Nebaj

Nebaj

The last two days I caught a ride with a friend up to Quiche and then took a bus to Nebaj, a bustling but small town in the middle of the Ixil Triangle. Teresa and Halle stayed behind, as the 7 hour trip two days in a row would have been a bit much. The scenery was idyllic and the atmosphere lively. I went to go do some interviews for some research I’m involved in and I was able to finish what I needed to on Wednesday afternoon, not too long after arriving. I took the evening to wander the small town, sit in the main plaza, people watch and then go to bed. In the morning I went running down a dirt road to a spectacular waterfall (my pictures just don’t do it

justice). It was so nice to be in a place where I didn’t have to look over my shoulder and worry about being shot/robbed/kidnapped/blackmailed/etc. After my run I wandered the market, which was incredibly crowded and interesting. Most transactions were taking place in Ixil, the local language. The women all wore traditional clothing with beautiful green cloth woven in their hair. On the way home we stopped at some old ruins. All in all it was a nice reminder of what Guatemala has to offer.

In Nebaj, I interviewed someone from Soluciones Comunitarias, an organization that I greatly respect. (You can google them; they have a good webpage). They are a for-profit organization that is partially subsidized by Community Enterprise Solutions, an American non-profit. They sell reading glasses, water purifiers, seeds, stoves that use less wood and other items that have profound impacts on quality of life for people in rural areas. They work with local women, who become “microentrepreneurs” taking these products to people in far-flung regions of Guatemala. By using local women they gain access to the local language and knowledge. I like that they charge for the products. I think this is very important for several reasons.

1. People who buy the products really need and value what they are getting. This, in contrast to NGOs who just give things away. (For example the Canadian doctors who gave eye exams and then gave away glasses, only to find broken glasses left on the roadside a few blocks away).
2. By being for-profit they are creating employment for local women. Even if the women leave SolCom, they take the training and self-confidence they have gained. While intangible, I think this is invaluable.
3. The organization is much more accountable for funds because they are counting every Quetzal, trying to attain sustainability.
4. A model that doesn’t rely on donations is much more likely to be scalable (growth potential is much higher).

Overall, a wonderful trip. I hope to go back someday…and maybe do one of the backpacking trips from Nebaj through the Cuchumatanes to Todos Santos…