Solidaridad CVX, the social center of the COMPARTE Network in El Salvador, welcomed a delegation from American Jesuits International (AJI) on March 25th, including members of its operational team and Board of Directors.
The meeting featured Claudia Ruíz, Executive Secretary of the Network, who traveled from Guatemala to present COMPARTE’s work. She explained how the efforts of 18 social centers across 11 Latin American countries and one European country are coordinated, and how these centers support more than 6,500 people in their organizational and productive processes.
During the session, the producer organization Cooperativa Cerro de Dios, located in the Teotepeque district (La Libertad Costa), shared its history and work strategy. The delegation visited the economic initiatives of three member families, providing a firsthand look at the impact that participating in organizational and productive processes—grounded in a solidarity economy approach—has had on their lives.
Nate Radomski, Executive Director of AJI, emphasized: “Encounters like this are very important, not only for those of us working at AJI but also for the Board of Directors, as they allow us to see the reality of the communities firsthand and, hopefully, think together about how to build a more just world.”
Lina Aguilar, President of the Cerro de Dios Cooperative, expressed that these visits “fill us with joy, strengthen us, and motivate us by knowing that people are interested in what we do. This drives us to keep moving forward (…) and gives us the opportunity to share our mission and work focus, which is oriented not only toward economic development but also toward spiritual growth and the integral well-being of the cooperative and the community.”
This meeting is part of the Network’s actions to strengthen solidarity relationships and strategic alliances that contribute to promoting the sustainable economic alternatives supported by COMPARTE in various Latin American territories.
The activity spanned two days: starting with fieldwork at the Cerro de Dios Cooperative in El Salvador, followed by a working meeting with Claudia Ruiz. The result was a mutual reconfirmation of the desire to collaborate and a commitment to identifying specific points for a formal partnership in the coming months.
