More on El Chagüe...

El Chague, A Rural Community

In the Spring of 2003, Project Minnesota Gettysburg/León (PMGL) selected the rural community of El Chague as a community which will receive the bulk of PMGL's human, material and economic resources over the next few years. Our partnership with them has been growing over the past year and a half.

After extensive community visits throughout the rural areas, El Chague was carefully selected based on two criteria: greatest need and demonstrated prior existence of a well-organized and accepted group of new leaders. Our selection process included coordination with the Mayor's office to avoid choosing communities already served by other non-governmental organizations.

We continue to be impressed with the level of leadership within this community's directiva, in spite of the short amount of time the community board has been organized. After speaking with the directiva members, one is left astounded by the profound level at which this group understands the issues affecting their community. El Chague is located 10 km (6 miles) southwest of León city. To the west, El Chague borders on a national protected forest reserve called Juan Venado.

One of El Chague's challenges is preservation of the forest that surrounds them. Due to rural Nicaragua's extremely critical economic situation, a number of families live on the firewood they cut to sell from within the forest. Community leaders have been exploring a number of solutions including establishing reforestation days. Although virtually all of the families do plant a variety of vegetation in their own yards, most are reluctant to invest much time and energy in the areas nearby which they do not own. Thus there is not yet a community-wide willingness to care regularly for the seedlings the group has already planted nor are there willing hands to carry water to the young trees. Neither has there been the necessary commitment on the part of these families to take the time and effort to re-plant what they cut down to sell. El Chague's leaders have solicited the assistance of the Mayor's office about the problem and have succeeded in winning an official daily limit on the number of cartloads that can be taken out of the woods. An important additional initiative of the directiva is a search for economic alternatives to cutting and selling firewood for a living.

Here at the PML office in León, we notice that the members of the directiva have rolled up their sleeves in a profound and systematic manner to tackle their problems. We firmly believe that with PMGL's human resources in place here and your continued moral and material support, we can be of potent assistance to this community. Come visit and see first hand as this happens!

Working Together

The leadership capabilities and energies of the leaders in El Chague has inspired exciting ideas among all of us. However, our initial activities have focused on establishing a base of trust between us. These activities have included the placement of 3 PML visitors/volunteers in El Chague, exchanges with 4 PMGL delegations and volunteers, a yearly children's camp, and weekly youth training sessions given by UNAN Social Work students on topics such as self-esteem, family violence, sexually transmitted diseases, and drug abuse.

In September 2003, the León coordinators, the consejo, and the El Chague directiva held a series of discussions and workshops with community members about community planning and organizing at the micro level. This gave us specific information about the areas of health, education, production and the environment. In the final workshops, El Chague residents analyzed and prioritized the problems that were listed, named solutions, and identified sources of community support. The results of this process will help PMGL identify where and how we can offer relevant support in El Chague.

We are energized and excited by the leadership and enthusiasm within this community. We look forward to upcoming visits from more Minnesotans so you personally know these aspiring and inspiring individuals. Do come visit our new community in León!

Updated by Anna Vangsness November, 2004