Some 120 civil organizations from all over the country support the work of the Union of Organizations of the Sierra Juárez de Oaxaca SC (UNOSJO), based in Guelatao, in the face of the attacks suffered by this organization. On March 14 and 15, 2021, a group of citizens and community members of Ixtlán de Juárez invaded the land where the UNOSJO offices are located to put up poles and then destroy part of its facilities, as well as trees and medicinal plants in the area. The assault affected a little more than ¼ hectare and left their offices without water.  UNOSJO...[ Read More ]

The Oaxaca Site Visit team converged at the lush garden filled Hotel Las Golondrinas on a Sunday night in time for a first sampling of the enticing local cuisine and a planning session for the week ahead.  The group, consisting of two men and two women from four different decades, came together after spending the previous days visiting a variety of locations: water projects in Ecuador, the sights of Mexico City, and an exemplary Rotary Project supporting hydroponic green houses in rural Oaxaca. How often can we travel with a small group diverse in age and gender, where we together...[ Read More ]

Going into my first site visit trip, I wasn’t sure what to expect. We had a full week scheduled in Oaxaca, Mexico, a few meetings to better understand the regional context, and plans to visit three community organizations that we fund who address gender and women’s rights issues (UNOSJO, MUSOR and GESMujer). Despite knowledge of these facts, I felt rather uncertain of how the week would actually unfold. My first takeaway: Don’t expect to know what to expect.   A lot of work goes into planning the site visit (my gratitude to Pangea members Susan and Betsy for their prep...[ Read More ]