From September 21, 2023 to September 26, 2023
The UCE collaborators will carry out the survey of information in the province of Pastaza from 21 to 26 September 2023. The updating of information on agro-productive and tourism enterprises and associations, in a participatory manner, began with community assemblies for which the support of the GAD ARAJUNO, AKAT has been an important element.
An initiative made possible thanks to the participation of many local actors.
The communities: San Mariano, Nushino Ishipinku, Shiwa Kucha, Elena Andy del Río Uklan, Chico Méndez, Pablo Lopez del Oglan Alto (CEPLOA), Centro San Virgilio, Kusano Sacha Shuar Washints are visited by representatives of the project. Irma Garcia, Deputy Dean of the Faculty of Economics and coordinator of the UCE project in Ecuador, opened the community dialogue based on the participatory map with key actors and objectives for this process involving several universities: from Ecuador (Universidad Central, Uniandes and IKIAM), 2 from France, 2 from Spain and 3 from Brazil. This initiative is part of the cooperation actions of the European Union.
On behalf of the Central University, we also have the teacher, Jacquelyn Pacheco, Fidel Rodríguez, Coordinator of the Amazonian Scientific Station Juri Juri Kawsay and the students, Erika Huatatoca, Lady Salinas, Fernando Lino, and Carla Quiña.
On behalf of the Universidad Regional Amazónica Ikiam (URAI), the teachers Alba Aguinaga, Diana Astudillo, Jessica Medina, Luis López; as well as the students Doris Alvarado, Dina Cerda, Edith Grefa, Maya Jácome, Alex Tapuy from the Biocommerce course.
The knowledge of the Kichwa language and the academic knowledge of several students has allowed them to generate added value to this process of dialogue with the communities.
On the part of the GAD, the project has the political will of the Mayor of the canton Arajuno, the Director of Economic and Productive Development Gualberto, the contribution of Pedro Zerembo, in his capacity as an official of the GAD and President of the Community Tourism Network, as well as the technicians René Sevilla and Mishel Pérez.
These are days of intense and committed work to get to know the reality of this territory and to be able to contribute to the objectives of this project, from the sensitivity to the life and work situation of those who receive us, with their desires, dreams and aspirations, community spaces, natural and tourist places, from the reflection and the contribution of research and education.
On the 25th and 26th of September the community diagnosis continued in 10 communities of the Canton Arajuno.
They have been days of exchange of ideas, new knowledge and learning. At the end of the information gathering process, we hope to promote the reactivation of agro-productive associations and community tourism. We would like to thank the leaders and members of the communities for the welcome we have received from the team of the two universities and the technicians of the GAD. Definitely the role of the Academy in the territory is valuable and recognized, we just need to join efforts to jointly plan activities and deliverables that contribute to community development, through strengthening associativity, agroecology, family economy, valuing ancestral knowledge, the role of youth and women among the most important.
>> Find all the pictures of the events in the gallery
