Active Citizens

Women in Peru’s Poor Urban Areas Combat the Crisis at the Cost of Their Wellbeing

By Mariela Jara
At five in the morning, when fog covers the streets and the cold pinches hard, Mercedes Marcahuachi is already on her feet ready to go to work in Pachacútec, the most populated area of the municipality of Ventanilla, in the province of Callao, known for being home to Peru's largest seaport.

Gender-Based Violence: Why Victims Do Not Leave

By Esther Nantana
In almost every conversation I’ve had about gender-based violence (GBV), the question “why don’t they leave?” inevitably comes up. After many years of working in this space, I have learned that the answer is not as simple as we think. The nature of GBV is quite complex. Numerous layers and factors affect individuals both internally and externally.

Women Suffer Harassment and Discrimination on Chile’s Public Transport

By Orlando Milesi
Sexual harassment and discrimination are daily realities for women on public transport in Chile and also an obstacle for plans to expand mass transit in order to reduce pollution in several cities in this South American country.

Biodigesters Boost Family Farming in Brazil

By Mario Osava
"The biodigester really gives a huge boost to those who have the courage to do things," said Maria das Dores Alves da Silva, based on her own experience as a 63-year-old small farmer.

Medical Abortion Expands Women’s Rights in Argentina

By Daniel Gutman
Viviana Mazur is a doctor at the Santojanni Hospital in Mataderos, a working-class neighborhood in Buenos Aires. She has witnessed the advances in women's rights in Argentina, where until 2020 abortion was only allowed on two grounds, while it is now available on demand up to 14 weeks of pregnancy.

Central America Fails to Acknowledge or Legislate in Favor of LGBTI Community

By Edgardo Ayala
There is still a long way to go before the LGBTI population in Central America stops being discriminated against and begins to make progress in gaining recognition of their full rights, including the possibility of changing their name to match their gender identity, in the case of trans people.

Healthy Homes – A Right of Rural Families in Peru

By Mariela Jara
Adopting a “healthy housing” approach is improving the living conditions of rural Peruvian women like Martina Santa Cruz, a 34-year-old farmer who lives with her husband and two children in the village of Sacllo, 2,959 meters above sea level in the Andes highlands municipality of Calca.

Peru’s Agro-Export Boom Has not Boosted Human Development

By Mariela Jara
Peru’s agro-export industry is growing steadily and reached record levels in 2022. But this has not had a favorable impact on human development in this South American country, where high levels of inequality, poverty, childhood anemia and malnutrition persist, as well as complaints about the poor quality of employment in the sector.

Kenyan Scientist’s Trend-Setting Research into Health Benefits of Snails

By Wilson Odhiambo
Snails and slime are usually followed by the thought ‘EEW!’ from most people … some might even scream at seeing a snail near them. For Dr Paul Kinoti, however, these slimy creatures could earn him international recognition because his research on snails landed his institution, Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), a Ksh. 127 million (USD 1 million) grant.[related_articles]

Menstrual Health and Hygiene Is Unaffordable for Poor Girls and Women in Latin America

By Humberto Márquez
Menstrual hygiene management is elusive for millions of poor women and girls in Latin America, who suffer because their living conditions make it difficult or impossible for them to access resources and services that could make menstruation a simple normal part of life.

Cooperatives in Argentina Help Drive Expansion of Renewable Energy

By Daniel Gutman
When the residents of Armstrong, a town of 15,000 in western Argentina, began to meet to discuss a renewable energy project, they agreed that there could be many positive effects and that it was not just a question of doing their bit in the global effort to mitigate climate change.

Women’s Cooperatives Work to Sustain the Social Fabric in Argentina

By Daniel Gutman
Nearby is an agroecological garden and a plant nursery, further on there are pens for raising pigs and chickens, and close by, in an old one-story house with a tiled roof, twelve women sew pants and blouses. All of this is happening in a portion of a public park near Buenos Aires, where popular cooperatives are fighting the impact of Argentina's long-drawn-out socioeconomic crisis.

Cuba: Elections Without Choices

By Inés M. Pousadela
The uncertainty that’s the hallmark of a democratic election was absent on 26 March, the day Cubans were summoned to appoint members of the National Assembly of People’s Power, the country’s legislative body. A vote did take place that day – people went to the polls and put a ballot in a box. But was this really an election? Cubans weren’t able to choose their representatives – their only option was to ratify those selected to stand, or abstain.

Andean Indigenous Women’s Knowledge Combats Food Insecurity in Peru

By Mariela Jara
Paulina Locumbe, a 42-year-old peasant farmer who lives in ​​the Andes highlands of southern Peru, learned as a child to harvest and dry crops, one of the ancestral practices with which she combats the food insecurity that affects millions in this Andean country.

The LGBTIQ+ Community Still Oppressed in Venezuela

By Humberto Márquez
The vulnerability and struggles of the LGBTIQ+ community in Venezuela were once again highlighted when the Supreme Court finally annulled the military code statute that punished, with one to three years in prison, members of the military who committed " acts against nature.”

Civil Society a Vital Force for Change Against the Odds

By Andrew Firmin and Inés M. Pousadela
Brave protests against women’s second-class status in Iran; the mass defence of economic rights in the face of a unilateral presidential decision in France; huge mobilisations to resist government plans to weaken the courts in Israel: all these have shown the willingness of people to take public action to stand up for human rights.

Beatriz v. El Salvador Case Could Set Precedent on Abortion in Latin America

By Edgardo Ayala
An open hearing in the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in the Beatriz v. El Salvador case is raising hopes that this country and other Latin American nations might overturn or at least mitigate the severe laws that criminalize abortion.

BRAC International Signs MoU with Rwanda to Empower People in Extreme Poverty

By Joyce Chimbi
Last week, BRAC International signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Rwanda under the Ministry of Local Government (MINALOC) to support efforts to empower people in extreme poverty to develop sustainable livelihoods and break the poverty trap long term. This is part of the Government’s broader efforts to eradicate extreme poverty by 2030.

Civic Space – the Bedrock of Democracy – is Scarce & Contested

By Mandeep S.Tiwana
On 29 and 30 March, the US government, in partnership with Costa Rica, Netherlands, South Korea and Zambia, will co-host the second virtual Summit for Democracy. Several elected leaders and state representatives will come together to highlight achievements in advancing democratic principles.

Digital Gender Gap in Latin America Reflects Discrimination Against Women

By Mariela Jara
The digital gender gap is multifactorial in Latin America and as long as countries fail to address discrimination against women, inequality will be reflected in the digital space, excluding them from access to opportunities and enjoyment of their rights.

Indigenous Conflicts over Land Spread, Fueling Debate in Argentina

By Daniel Gutman
In 1994 Argentina recognized in the constitution the ethnic and cultural pre-existence of indigenous peoples. However, enforcement of respect for their rights has fallen short and almost 30 years later the question of land is generating growing conflicts, which sometimes pit native communities against the rest of society.
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