Wageningen University - Department of Social Sciences MSc Thesis Chair Group of Communication and Innovation Studies Women's Practices in Confronting Endemic Climate Variability in the Central Highlands of Bolivia October, 2011 Mariana Alem Zabalaga Supervisor: Dr. Stephen G. Sherwood Development and Rural Innovation Rural and Development MSc 1 Women´s Practices in Confronting Endemic Climate Variability in the Central Highlands of Bolivia MARIANA ALEM ZABALAGA 2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I´d like to express my gratitude to the people from Chuñuchuñuni, authorities, men, woman and children, who opened me and Taira Isabela the doors of their community. With special regards, to Doña Virginia, Don Fortunato and Don Patricio that besides helping me to approach the community, they were the first ones sharing their trust and friendship with us, making my days in Chuñuchuñuni a great adventure and experience. I´d like to thank Fundación Agrecol Andes, with especial mention to Luis Carlos Aguilar that guided and taught me a lot during the whole thesis field work and internship. Also to thank the GRAC team, Alex Canviri for his good music and company during the field trips, to Tania Ricaldi from the Centro de Estudios Universitarios for her patience and inputs in the topic of research, to the tesistas of the Ayllu Urinsaya: Carolina Aguilar and Favio Fernandez for their great company and support during the field trips. I´d also like to thank the local NGOs with which I coordinated my field work for the thesis and to all their técnicos and engineers: I learnt a lot from all of you observing development projects in practice. My most especial gratitude to my supervisor Stephen Sherwood for providing me not only his guidance and approach, but also his support, encouragement and friendship… thank you for even visiting me at home for having appointments! To my all MAKs friends back in Wageningen and now spread all around the globe, my warmest thanks for sharing your life experiences and dilemmas into understanding the Social World together. An especial gratitude for my Steisi, who encouraged me with her transparent and honest eyes and taught me how to welcome and smile to life and all its living organisms every day. I really much appreciated the Ekorural environment for the last weeks of my thesis, where I could escape for some hours a day from my motherhood activities to fully submerge into my chapters. Especial thanks to Ross, Pedro, Kaat, Rosita, Giomar and Marta. Immense thanks to my family in law that helped me out looking at Taira Isabela while I was submerged into my Chapters in Ekorural and for their endless support and aliento. My most big thanks to my parents that supported me, believed in me and read some of my chapters to provide me with their ideas and inputs and their unconditional love that fills my heart and thoughts every day. I also thank my sister and brothers for their immense care and to my aunt Gloria that contagious me her love for ethnography. Finally, to my two beloved wolfs: Tairita Isabela thanks for building a “bridge” (since being so little) to facilitate my field work and Hernán, thanks for so much help and endless marvellous moments. This adventure wouldn´t be so amazing without both of your everyday cariño, laughs and hugs (and bites) that provided me with the most important alimento for my soul. 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................................. 6 PREFACE ................................................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 11 1.1 Background ........................................................................................................................................ 11 1.2 The Problem ....................................................................................................................................... 13 1.3 Research Questions ........................................................................................................................... 14 1.4 Central Concepts ................................................................................................................................ 15 1.5 Methods ............................................................................................................................................. 15 1.6 Organization of the Thesis ................................................................................................................. 17 CHAPTER 2. AN OVERVIEW OF WOMEN´S ROLES AND ACTIVITIES IN A CHUÑUCHUÑUNI´S FAMILY .... 18 2.1 General description of the Ayllu Urinsaya and the community of Chuñuchuñuni ............................ 18 2.2 Social roles and activities of women and men in the community and in the family ......................... 29 2.2.1 Shared activities in a Chuñuchuñuni´ s family ............................................................................ 29 2.2.2 Exclusive roles and activities that men undertake ..................................................................... 30 2.2.3 Exclusive roles and activities that women undertake ................................................................ 34 2.2.4 Children´s Activities .................................................................................................................... 39 2.2.5 Physical separation of space ...................................................................................................... 41 CHAPTER 3. LIFE-WORLDS OF FIVE UNIQUE WOMEN .......................................................................... 43 3.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 43 3.2 Five Life-worlds .................................................................................................................................. 43 3.2.1 Doña Virginia Espinoza ............................................................................................................... 43 3.2.2 Doña Francisca Coria .................................................................................................................. 47 3.2.3 Doña Maria Franciscano ............................................................................................................. 52 3.2.4 Doña Albina Casilla ..................................................................................................................... 55 3.2.5 Victoria Franciscano ................................................................................................................... 57 3.3 Focus group discussions .................................................................................................................... 58 3.4 Comparative table of the five women and their characteristics ....................................................... 60 CHAPTER 4. WOMEN´S CULTURAL PRACTICES IN THE CONTEXT OF HIGH CLIMATIC UNCERTAINTY ..... 62 4.1 Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 62 4.2 Background ........................................................................................................................................ 62 4.3 Data sources and methods ................................................................................................................ 62 4.4 Findings: Women's practices in a context of intrinsic high climate uncertainty ............................... 63 4.4.1 Livestock management:.............................................................................................................. 63 4.4.2 Women´s care and reproduction of the family unit ................................................................... 65 4.4.3 Women´s practices for income generation: ............................................................................... 67 4.4.4 Farming Activities ....................................................................................................................... 68 4.4.5 Traditional and socio-cultural practices ..................................................................................... 69 4.5 Discussion: Women's comparisons regarding their practices ........................................................... 74 4.6 Conclusion and final remarks of the Chapter .................................................................................... 75 CHAPTER 5. WOMEN AT THE INTERFACE OF CLIMATE AND DEVELOPMENT ........................................ 76 5.1 Social Interface and Social Networks definitions ............................................................................... 76 4 5.2 The Yapuchiri project by design ......................................................................................................... 77 5.3 Multiple interfaces between the GRAC project, the women´s development projects and its operating environment ............................................................................................................................ 80 5.3.1 First encounters with the field practitioners .............................................................................. 80 5.3.2 Encounter between AGRECOL´s técnico and the Yapuchiris