One of the most important cultural features in Nicaragua seems to be the presence of religion. Coming from a not particularly religious culture, it is striking to see how much importance it has on everyday life here. Church is a place to see other people and to be seen, it is a centre of a community and inspiration for individuals in difficult times.
It’s been a long first week of volunteering here in Nicaragua. However, despite the hard work and the intensity of the midday sun, it’s certainly turned out to be a rewarding one too.
It began with an early start on the Tuesday morning. We travelled to a local primary school where we helped to plant trees in the school grounds, followed by a trip to a local river where we planted trees along the bank. This was part of a reforestation project which aims to regain some of the woodland which has been lost over the years in the Mozonte area in northern Nicaragua.
IF you were to ask someone what their idea of development was, nine out of ten people would likely tell you it’s alleviating poverty, building schools and amenities for communities in need or improving people’s health and well-being. And they wouldn’t be wrong, well not completely. This week we started a different kind of development, correcting the machismo ideals of women being inferior to men - through music.
With our partner-organisation FENACOOP, we recently carried a workshop in the town of Dipilto on the topic of gender, a complex and sensitive topic, especially in Nicaragua, which is steeped in ‘machismo’ culture. Machismo culture can take many forms. It can be the belief that men are superior to women, both intellectually and physically. It can be the belief that men are the sole bread winners of the family, and that women are the property of men and should be treated accordingly.
It’s a Tuesday, and once again we are trundling along an undulating road towards Palacaguina through the mountainous terrain of northern Nicaragua. We are on the way to a centre that is split in to two sections: half is a pre-escolar (pre-school) and the other is Asilo de Ancianos, a care home for the elderly. To hear of such necessities in Nicaragua is a rarity, but a much-appreciated service for those that get to obtain the education or receive the tender loving care in some of the most vulnerable years of their lives.
Food safety, security and nutrition are serious issues in the developing world. Nicaragua is classed as the second poorest country in the western hemisphere with figures from the UN Food and agriculture agency stating that 27% of the population suffers from malnutrition.
We awoke to find a smoky haze distorting the sun rise and ash scattered all over the court yard; there had been a forest fire in Mozonte.
I am Erick Antonio Garcia, from a town called Dipilto, in Nueva Segovia, Nicaragua.
In a town like the one we are volunteering in, where there are multiple issues including such simple problems as access to a continuous water supply all year round or adequate security from health threats such as Chaga bugs or Dengue fever, I wasn’t expecting the environment to be a particularly high on the agenda here.
