2015 Community Empowerment Tour Guidebook Photo: Jeanne Muller February 2015 1904 Franklin St, Suite 203 • Oakland, CA • 94612 510.835.1334 Community Empowerment Tour Guidebook Table of Contents Part 1: Logistical Trip Information ........................................................................................................... 4 Introduction ................................................................................................................................................. 4 Why Community Empowerment Tours? ................................................................................................ 4 Trip Preparation ......................................................................................................................................... 5 Entering and Leaving ..........................................................................................................................................5 Emergency Number.............................................................................................................................................5 Housing and Food ...............................................................................................................................................5 Environmental Policies ........................................................................................................................................6 Health, Safety and Packing ................................................................................................................................6 Health ................................................................................................................................................................6 Safety .................................................................................................................................................................7 Packing list ........................................................................................................................................................8 Maps of El Salvador ................................................................................................................................ 11 EcoViva gift and donation policy ........................................................................................................... 13 Preparing for your Return ....................................................................................................................... 14 Readjusting to your own culture ..................................................................................................................... 14 Ideas for Staying Involved When You Return Home .......................................................................... 15 Part 2: Important Background Information ........................................................................................... 16 Recent History .......................................................................................................................................... 16 Who’s Who – ..................................................................................................................................................... 20 2 EcoViva’s Partners in El Salvador .................................................................................................................. 20 Local Programs ........................................................................................................................................ 23 Basic Infrastructure: Water, Housing and Sanitation .................................................................................. 23 Environmental Protection ................................................................................................................................ 25 Building a Green Economy .............................................................................................................................. 28 Youth Empowerment ........................................................................................................................................ 31 Helpful Links and Suggested Reading ................................................................................................. 34 3 Part 1: Logistical Trip Information Introduction Thank you for participating in a Community Empowerment Tour to the El Salvador. We hope that this information packet will familiarize you with the country and our work, as well as answer some of your questions regarding the trip. We will be happy to answer any further concerns or questions you may have. Why Community Empowerment Tours? We have invited you on this Community Empowerment Tour so you can: 1) Participate in an experience that you might not otherwise be able to have. As a tourist or backpacker, you might visit famous sites and maybe even stay in someone's home. We seek to go further. We want to give you a taste of life in a rural community, a community of former refugees who have rebuilt their lives from scratch, people who depend on agriculture and fishing for their survival. What would it be like to grow up here? How would you make a living? What projects would you get involved in? We want you to walk in the shoes of someone with a very different life. 2) Learn how local people are addressing some of the most pressing issues facing our planet. Climate change, natural disasters, environmental degradation, poverty, gender inequality, malnutrition and food (in)security, gang violence, lack of opportunities for youth... these issues are present virtually everywhere in the world. We hope you leave with a sense of how the community projects people here are building offer the potential not just to improve their own lives but to offer a way forward for other communities as well. We hope you will be inspired by what they have accomplished, and continue to accomplish, in spite of the very daunting challenges they face. 3) Contribute to the local economy and be part of a model for low-impact tourism, one where local people are in charge and local people benefit. The Salvadoran government has identified the Bay of Jiquilisco as a focal point for tourism development due to its beauty and rich natural resource base. We would like to ensure that all tourism in this area protects the environment and support local communities. The Community Empowerment Tour program was created to show that tourism can help accomplish these goals. 4) Engage in new friendships. We hope you'll have a chance to chat with your guides, the families you eat with and other folks you meet along the way, and move beyond any preconceived notions you may have about what people whose lives are different than yours may be like. 4 5) Become involved with EcoViva. We hope that your week with us will motivate you to stay involved with our work for years to come. At the end of this guidebook you will find ideas for how to share your experience with your community when you return home, and invite your friends to join in organizing in solidarity with the people of El Salvador. We hope you’ll approach this journey as part of a long-term engagement with communities in El Salvador. It will make your experience much more meaningful. We are open to your feedback along the way – please let us know how we can make this an enjoyable, rich and meaningful experience. Trip Preparation Entering and Leaving Entry Requirements: Immigration requires that visitors entering El Salvador have their passport and one of the following documents: a visa or a tourist card. U.S. citizens only need their passport (valid for at least 6 months past your trip) and a tourist card, which is generally issued for 90 days and can be purchased for U.S. $10 at the port of entry. Passports of certain countries might need to obtain a visa before entering El Salvador. A visa for U.S. citizens is free. Some countries pay a fee for the issuance of a visa. If you are not a U.S. citizen and are unsure whether or not you need a visa, please contact EcoViva at [email protected]. Departure Taxes: Passengers leaving the country by air must pay a tax of about $30. Most airlines now include this tax in the total airfare cost. For those traveling by sea or land, the tax varies according to the area. Any travel agency can check the actual amounts. Please note these important details: Your passport must not expire for at least 6 months after you return home. If you are a U.S. or Canadian citizen, you only need your passport and a tourist card (purchased at the airport when you arrive) to enter El Salvador. Someone from EcoViva will pick you up at the airport and return you to the airport for your departing flight. Emergency Number If someone back home needs to get in touch with you while you are in El Salvador, they should contact the EcoViva office at 510-835-1334. The office will put you in touch. If it is an emergency, please call José María “Chema” Argueta at 011-503-7925-1876. He works with the Community Empowerment Tours program in El Salvador, speaks English, and will be able to help in an emergency situation. Please make sure that your emergency contact you listed on your trip application has this number. Housing and Food Community Empowerment Tour participants generally stay in a dormitory in the rural community of Ciudad Romero. It is quite rustic by U.S. standards, though rather nice by local standards. It is 5 comparable to staying in a youth hostel, as the rooms are shared. You will have