The Calgary Beacon Article

minkhasweaters — Fri, 29 Oct 2010 16:08:55 +0000

By Lauren Babuik, reporter

A formerly subsidized Save the Children program, known as Minkha, has transformed itself into a business owned and run entirely by indigenous women in the city of Cochabamba, Bolivia.

Minkha, which is Quechan for “women working together”, sells sweaters, vests and coats from hundred per cent alpaca wool or pima cotton, to customers primarily in Calgary and Edmonton. Items come in a wide variety of colors, styles and patterns.

The organization gives women an opportunity to pull themselves and their family out of poverty through a fair business opportunity. All of the profits are returned to the women.

Read the full Calgary Beacon article

Fiona Shepherd visits South America

minkhasweaters — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 18:06:03 +0000

Get past the altitude sickness and Bolivia offers a taste of another world, from the lively streets of La Paz to the scenery of the highest peaks.

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Food security and development

minkhasweaters — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 21:12:28 +0000

The area of Valle Central de Tarija, Bolivia, is benefiting from the “Proyecto de Seguridad Alimentaria y Desarrollo Económico de 60 comunidades campesinas,” being sponsored by IICCA (Instituto de Investigación y Capacitación Campesina) with the support of the Catholic NGO of volunteers “Manos Unidas.” Thanks to the project, which involves 1,200 families in the area, there have been 50 dams and 20 artificial lakes designed to collect about 500,000 cubic meters of water, and the 60 existing lagoons have also been improved.

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“Living Well” – A Bolivian Viewpoint

minkhasweaters — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 00:43:19 +0000

We should live in a simple way for others to be able to live as well.
Mahatma Gandhi

He who is richer is not who has more, but who needs less.
Zapotec saying, Oaxaca, Mexico

We suffer the severe effects of climate change, of the energy, food and financial crises. This is not the product of human beings in general, but of the existing inhuman capitalist system, with its unlimited industrial development. It is brought about by minority groups who control world power, concentrating wealth and power on themselves alone.

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Bolivian President's Anti-racism Bill

minkhasweaters — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 21:59:13 +0000

Bolivian President Evo Morales has enacted an anti-racism bill opposed by most of the nation’s major newspapers.

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Bolivian President’s Anti-racism Bill

minkhasweaters — Fri, 08 Oct 2010 21:59:13 +0000

Bolivian President Evo Morales has enacted an anti-racism bill opposed by most of the nation’s major newspapers.

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Bolivian Child Miners

minkhasweaters — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 18:28:40 +0000

For Bolivia’s child miners, life is nasty, brutish and short – Caught in a cycle of grinding poverty, youngsters toil in dangerous conditions for a pittance

Abigail Canaviri, 14, attends school by day in the Bolivian Andes. But when the sun sets she and other children tunnel deep into the world’s highest mine, following in their late fathers’ footsteps in a treacherous search for silver.

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Click on picture to open link to www.thedevilsminer.com, the movie.

No Option for Bolivian Graduates

minkhasweaters — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 22:01:36 +0000

Hundreds of Bolivian high school graduates, generally from poorer areas, left the country to study medicine in Cuba. Over 400 have returned and cannot find jobs.

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Waters of Lake Titicaca Drop off Significantly

minkhasweaters — Tue, 21 Sep 2010 19:43:06 +0000

A drought warning may be declared for Lake Titicaca because its water level is only 15 inches higher than what would oblige authorities to declare an emergency, the Bolivian Naval Hydrography Department confirmed.

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Social Progress in Cochabamba

minkhasweaters — Tue, 14 Sep 2010 15:16:47 +0000

President Evo Morales acknowledged the work of authorities in Cochabamba to improve the quality of life of the people who live in that region.

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