The project in Guatemala is focused on building schools in impoverished communities with the innovative use of recycled products such as plastic bottles and tires in the construction. It was started in 2002 by a Peace Corps volunteer named Mateo Paneitz who was inspired to make a change after seeing garbage being dumped into local rivers. He worked with a local organization in Comalapa, Guatemala to start the initiative but has since founded the not-for-profit organization Long Way Home. The organizations first project, Tecnico Mayan Vocational School in Comalapa, began in 2007. The school combines recycled materials and environmentally sensitive designs to create a building that will facilitate educational development while promoting job opportunities in the marginalized community.
The article just touched the surface of Long Way Homes project. In looking further into the organization's initiative, it's inspiring to see such an effective form of development. I feel like it tackles all of the important forms of development: social, environmental, educational and economic. Since the school has been built, more projects keep coming; a playground, basketball court, botanical garden, community kitchen, house, reforestation and water distribution. I think it's amazing that this organization has not been restricted to one type of project, but rather changes based on the needs of the community. With a hard focus on grassroots development, Long Way Home has been able to successfully meet these needs because they live with the community as it grows and develops. These initiatives are important to end the cycles of poverty, but keeping them at a local level allows the projects to be context specific which I believe is much more effective than policies that govern vast areas and diverse groups of people.
From what I've seen, there haven't been any noticeable downsides to this project. The access to capital could be an issue when starting up, but in this situation they have been able to keep costs low, attract many volunteers and get funding from donors.
So, what do you think? Is this effective? Can it be sustained long-term? Can it work other places?
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Hey Jill,
ReplyDeleteThis looks like a very interesting project, bringing environmental activism together with community projects. I am also glad that their projects extend from building of schools to reforestation to water distribution etc. I strongly believe that to make future leaders that are passionate about the environment the learning must begin as early as possible and the school(s) definitely look like they provide this learning. I also think that the emphasis on providing jobs within the community is vital to affecting short and long term change because bringing a development project to a community (building a school etc.) has no impact in the short term on the community if they are not involved. It can even hinder the project in the long term if the community is not involved because they will not know how to sustain it. This brings me to my only concern, sustainability. Long way home seems to be very grassroots not only in its projects but in its funding and it worries me to build a program that may need more resources then they can provide to maintain. For example, with more courses comes more teachers, will this increase the 'nominal fee' the students have to pay? Is it worth it? In general this organization seems to have excellent plans and programs in mind, but in my opinion sustainability must be forefront in their designs.
Mariah Witham