Representatives from ASERJUS in Guatemala and CIPCA in Peru visited Chiapas (Mexico) from May 20 to 24 to learn about the strategies of Yomol A´Tel as a group of Social and Solidarity Economy organizations and to gather insights that could support the promotion of alternative economies.
This exchange took place within the framework of the Comparte network, to which all three organizations belong, and within the Master’s program in Creation and Development of Social and Solidarity Economy Enterprises (MaCDESS) at Universidad Iberoamericana in Mexico City, also an allied university of Comparte.
Key learnings from this exchange
Each of the social and solidarity economy initiatives that make up Yomol A´tel have been driven and developed by Tseltal communities for the production, processing, and marketing of coffee, honey, the creation of cosmetic products, shampoos, creams, soaps, textiles, and artisanal products, as well as the management of savings and credit funds. These are locally rooted initiatives that involve families and promote leadership and shared responsibility among men and women in their organizations as well as within their households.
Yomol A´tel initiatives employ various strategies to position themselves as economies with a wider territorial reach. Within these initiatives, there is a constant drive to develop new products with market demand potential and to introduce new technologies that help automate and make processes more efficient. This has required producers to take responsible investment decisions to achieve a diverse product range, yielding positive results. Notably, the support of Mesusyet, an institution that assists and guides them in their productive, administrative, and commercial processes, has been instrumental in this progress.
Another key strategy of Yomol A´tel is collective construction. Although comprised of multiple cooperatives, they work together to achieve better outcomes. In production, they have succeeded in connecting for the supply of inputs necessary for their final products, such as Chabtic honey and Xapontic’s beauty products, among other short marketing circuits for coffee, aromatic plants, etc. Administratively and commercially, they combine efforts to reduce the costs of these processes, positioning them as true solidarity economies.
They foster conditions for the care of the common home. There is a continuous effort to ensure that all their productive activities are conducted in strict respect for natural resources (soil, water, and air). In other words, they pursue responsible and environmentally friendly production. In this context, training on the implementation of agroecological practices among the cooperative group is ongoing. During the visit, we had the opportunity to participate in Biol production days in one of the coffee-producing communities and engage in the application of agricultural practices, composting, and weeding in the cultivation of aromatic plants. This experience highlighted the commitment of producers to care for the land.
The participation of women in various areas is especially noteworthy, as they have strengthened their skills in coffee, honey, cosmetic, and textile production. In the administrative field, the implementation of a micro-financial system, mainly managed by women, has increased their financial and administrative skills in handling economic resources from both male and female producers, with the responsibility and challenge this entails.
Finally, it is worth noting that they implement strategies to ensure autonomy in cooperative management through an educational mentoring system in which the children of cooperative members are invited to internships that allow them to identify the stages or processes of the cooperatives where they would like to enhance their skills. Through this preparation, they are later equipped to take on roles and responsibilities within the organizations, ensuring generational succession with the capabilities required for each role—a system that helps ensure the sustainability of these cooperative ventures.
In summary, an experience rich in learning, but above all in challenges, primarily to adapt what was learned to our contexts and continue strengthening the development of social and solidarity initiatives in our countries.
Information provided by desarrollo-alternativo.org