Fundación En Vía

Silva starts making tortillas at 4:00 a.m. to
avoid the heat of the day.

Karen is an 18-year-old
euntreprenuer.

Mole negro at The Jaguar Café.

When Randy and I were in Oaxaca 3 years ago, we took a tour with the organization Fundación En Vía  http://www.envia.org/. Their mission is: to support the creation and growth of income-generating businesses that promote the well-being of families, and the strengthening of communites by using microfinance, responsible tourism, and educational programs.

The main idea behind microfinance is that many people living in poverty have the skills, motivation, work ethic and ideas to operate successful businesses but they lack things like affordable loans, a place for savings, insurance, etc. Microloans are readily available in Mexico - with average interest rates of 70%!

The view from the churchyard in Teotitlan.

The tour took us to 2 pueblos outside of the city of Oaxaca where we met 6 women who had received interest-free microloans from En Vía (obtained through tour fees, the responsible tourism piece). We had lunch at the restaurant of one woman; we visited the homes of 2 weavers and a shoe seller; we ended by visiting a mother who sold garlic and her daughter who sold a Mary Kay-like line of cosmetics - to her high school friends! They were all able to start or expand their businesses thanks to En Vía. Although some of the lives - and certainly living conditions - still seemed incredibly harsh to us, it was clear that all these women were so grateful for the improvements and hope that these loans made possible. And as I found with "my refugees" when I was teaching in MN, the focus is mostly on insuring a better life for their children. A lot of the women proudly announce that their kids are attending high school (which, in many towns, is not free, or at least has costs attached).

Some of the elders in the communities
speak only Zapotec.

Andrea provides payment plans for her customers.

This artist draws the design, then weaves it into a tapete.

I had planned on teaching English while I was here - and En Via's education arm offers English classes in two of the pueblos - but when they asked if I'd lead the tours I jumped on the chance to do something different. And it's been great! I've met really interesting people (co-workers, tourists, and the borrowers) and seen and learned a lot about the 6 communities where we work.

María demonstrates spinning her own wool.

A town we go to often is Teotitlan de Valle, which is famous for its weavers. Some of the women card, spin and dye their own wool. Many use natural dye made from ingredients that they find in nature, such as insects, flowers, and tree bark. They all use the traditional peddle-looms. En Vía has helped these women buy materials in bulk, which saves money and allows them to buy during the slow sale times and prepare for the busy ones. Many of the weavers are now able to sell their "tapetes" or rugs, directly instead of going through one of the "Casas Grandes" or Big Houses that take a large percentage of the sales.

Veronica sells desserts around Santa Domingo
by bicycle.

My commute. It sure beats I-94!

Other businesses include a woman selling desserts from her bicycle, a pig famer, a chocolate maker, tortilla makers, and an 18-year-old with her own beauty salon (I'm sending Randy there for a haircut!). The tour is a great way to get to know a bit about these women, their businesses and the lives they lead. It's so inspiring to see what people can do when they are offered the opportunity!

Common colors for yarn, made with natural products, such as...

...the white on these nopal paddles are insects
called cochinea and are used to make red dyes.

Rafaela grinds the cochinea, the first step in the dying process.