North/South America ICA Regional Report
Prepared by Isabel de la Maza

click link for country and othere repots
Chile
Guatemala
Peru
Canada
USA
Columbia
Strengthening our ICAs
ToP and ICA Associates
Virtual meeting

Face to Face in Nagarkot, Nepal
A face to face North and South America regional meeting was held in Nagarkot, Nepal, after the main Conference.
The following are notes from our discussions:

Exchanges between ICAs: We want to encourage the exchange of volunteers between North and South America. We discussed existing cases - Kay Alton working in Chile, Mary-Anne Philbrook in Peru, and Sunny Walker’s plan to go to Peru. We need written agreements on what is expected of the volunteer and what the host organisation will provide or pay. We must be careful not to impose volunteers on a host country. There must first be a need or desire for volunteers and a request from the host country.

USA Internship Program: This is a new idea. It would include an educational experience in Chicago to prepare interns to be assets in host countries where there are other National ICAs. We need to do some more screening and prepare the participants.

ICA Guatemala is going through a re-birth with the support of ICA Chile. It is now a team effort.

Peer-to-peer needs/possibilities:

  • Some ICAs face difficulties in training their staff. ICA Associates may sometimes be able to help. Peer-to-peer relationship between ICA Associates & ICA USA may be the breakthrough needed for all. ICA Associates is looking for the movement to tap into.
  • ICA Canada needs to learn from those working on self-sustaining programs so that our programming can gain longevity and grow into a movement.
  • We no longer seem to be in the movement business, a movement based organization. If we wanted this, we would need more of a sharing approaches dynamic.
  • ICA Associates: Teaching and having people come to teach from global locations may be a workable model but may create problems for others training.
  • USA looked into the possibility of partnering with AmeriCorps but couldn’t afford their percentage. They also don’t have programs where volunteers can take part. That has not changed with the new Accelerate 77 work.
  • Colombia has begun work with young North American professionals and is very committed to the environmental work they’re doing. They could use support, workers and volunteers.
  • For ICA Associates, most of the peer-to-peer work that may become relationships would be outside North America in places where there are no ICAs. Are there any downsides? No, but we would recommend transparency & communication just in case there are issues to be surfaced.
  • Difficult to think about starting new ICAs because people need/want money, not to start more charities.
  • Translation is a tricky subject. It would speed up the transfer of knowledge, and help work in other countries. If it’s an ICA, yes, but when it’s others who want to translate, it’s a dicey matter. Could this be a form of peer-to-peer work? To translate our materials through local ICAs, maybe through a grant or something that would put some money back into them?
  • March 2010 think tank in the US – did anything come of that? Seva Gandhi hired not long after that.
  • Let’s not put artificial boundaries and worries around encouraging/doing peer-to-peer work and exchanges. It should be supported and the enthusiasm for exploring and doing it applauded.
  • Whichever the host organisation is, they need to have clear agreements, expectations, etc.

Strengthening our ICAs:

  • Mix of professional staff, more volunteer staff, and inter-generational work pairings.
  • How does ICA USA intentionally approach work? Not without bumpy roads and it does take a lot of thinking and intention to bring senior ICA folks, but it creates a richness.
  • The struggle we have is figuring out which “WE” we’re talking about.
  • How do we make available to ICAs the opportunity to develop long-term relationships with those with wisdom, something to offer, etc.?
  • It is helpful to have someone like Larry Philbrook running around making connections, awakening, etc. How do we keep that going, multiply it?
  • We are about to head into challenging times. How do we collaborate thematically, how can we partner/ work with those doing critical work (Transition Towns, 350, Occupy movement)?
  • Non-violent resistance to become more relevant, prominent, needed. How do we help people towards this? How can we become part of the network of large, widespread NGOs?
  • How do we collaborate across our cities, throughout our communities?
  • There are a lot of movements at this moment - people telling the system that it’s not relevant/appropriate anymore.
  • It could turn violent – how do we deal with this violence? It’s frightening. In South America, everything was paralysed as young people engaged in activism instead of study - but they did change the law in the end.
  • An example of expanding the network would Jean Houston and Social Artistry...expanding, connecting, and collaborating to open work up. Encourage us to seek out these people on the edge of the work & engage
  • Let’s not stop working to find funding for internships, exchanges & get people in on the work we’re doing. All have potential to give.
  • Universities often require students to do projects for degrees & Masters’ programs that we could tap into.
  • Archive work...impact studies of all sorts, pulling out pieces we can use, apply & share.

ToP & ICA Associates:

  • Has ICA Associates considered starting branches around the world? Would love it, but would be backlash.
  • Scope of ToP globally & ICA Associates’ branches would be different. The name of ICA Associates continues to be problematic though. Recommendation to change it? Yes, please consider it.
  • Institutionally, if we want something to continue long-term we need to be clear & protect the institution. Requires a brand, if it’s ToP it needs to be protected, standardized. Can’t be confused about protecting/promoting & inspiring something much broader. That’s why there’s a difference in using ToP and spreading it around & something that identifies as the institution.
  • Want attribution. ToP called things need to have a disciplined structure.

Virtual meeting

North and South America held virtual meetings on Nov 14, 2012. Dick Alton was the facilitator. Participants: Lawrence Phillbrook, Martin Gilbraith, Dick Alton, Ken Hamje, Isabel de la Maza , Terry Berdall and Staci Kentish.

Joaquina Rodriguez from Guatemala and Emily Roynestad from Colombia sent in their reports. Dick Alton hosted the meeting from 8:15 to 9:45.

Agenda:

  • ICA Activities, News Reports- Peru, Chile. Guatemala, Canada and USA.
  • ICA International/ICA Nepal Conference/Youth Conference/HIV/ AIDS Report: Staci Kentish.
  • Introduction of New Board: Martin Gilbraith.
  • Post Conference two-day ICA meeting and General Assembly preparation: Larry Philbrook.
  • Closing.


Reports:

Chile (Prepared by Isabel de la Maza)
ICA Chile this second semester is developing 23 courses for two programs.

The first program is supported by a network of entrepreneurs who work providing scholarships to individuals with disabilities through training funds awarded by the Government of Chile. These trainings seek to strengthen the Disability Community Councils of 20 different Cities of Chile.

The second program attempts to work providing leadership tools to young people physically challenged in three Chilean Rehabilitation Centers , of three Chilean cities: Talca, Santiago, Concepción.

ICA Chile had to hire people of ICA Guatemala, and hire a USA professional and a volunteer. Also integrate to its team other Chilean professionals associated to ICA Chile.

ICA Chile participated in the Nepal Conference. Isabel de la Maza (ICA Chile) and Laura Matamala (consultant associate to ICA Chile).

Guatemala (Joaquina Rodriguez)
In English
In previous planning meetings, we have decided to train new members of the ICA board in the Technology of Participation, as well in the Thinking tools of Dr. de Bono.

  • To create a marketing strategy for ToP methods
  • To create teams with task roles as proposal writer.
  • To continuing the research on the Phase I for the Learning Basket Program and the local demonstration in Sanarate county.
  • Follow up administrator on task roles.
  • To create a functional work in the account system.

There are two banks accounts; one in Quetzales wich is feeding by the dollars saving. The total amount is around US$5,000 even, we need to still pay the monthly account system and a lawyer who is working in renewing the subscription of the ICA Guatemala, which is taking 8-12 months.

En español:
En sesiones de planificación anteriores, hemos decidido entrenar en la Tecnología de la Participación a los nuevos miembros de la Junta Administrativa del ICAG, además, en las Herramientas para Pensardel Dr.de Bono.

  • Crear una estrategia de mercadeo de las Técnicas de la Participación.
  • Crear equipo y roles para tareas como ejemplo para escribir propuestas.
  • Continuar con la investigación / Fase I del Programa de la Canasta de Aprendizaje y la Demostración local en el Municipio de Sanarate.
  • Sistema de seguimiento administrativo para las tareas y roles.
  • Crear un sistema funcional del sistema contable

Existen dos cuentas bancarias; una en Quetzales la cual es alimentada por la de ahorros en dólares, cuyo monto es alrededor de US$5,000, aunque necesitamos pagar un monto mensual por la contabilidad e invertir en contraparte para potenciales propuestas de desarrollo y/o mercadeo. Además de los costos legales para la re-inscripción de ICA Guatemala, lo cual podría tomar de 8 a 12 meses

   

Peru (Prepared by Ken Hamje)

Next steps for the ICA-Peru team: We are in the process of extending our services and adding new staff members for 2013.

  • Clients are currently asking us to extend the 6-month Projects and we have a new 12 month design for 2013 that supports local leadership to move aggressively to build a large number of family-run micro-industries to diversify production and transform crops for added value, and grow the local economy by multiples.
  • With the spread of cell phone coverage and Internet access to the highlands we are implementing a blog to serve as a dynamic interchange medium of “best practices” for the current and future leadership teams.
  • Increase our contracted Projects in 2013 to three 12-month Projects and six 6-month Projects which will require the addition of 6 more professional staff members, increasing our abilities to work in the native languages of Quechua and Aymara.
  • Seek to develop strategic alliances with companies in order to make the self-development (Auto- Desarrollo) approach to community development the ongoing foundation of their work with communities. This is a major step for us and will require the use of some colleagues with strong relationships with major companies.

(The following is a separate report, dated 01/12/2012, given after the virtual meeting)
2012 has been a challenging year with only 5 out of 11 programs contracted, and yet a rewarding year as we were able to support an expanded staff, make many improvements in our facilities and pass 250 communities in 15 of the 24 departments of Peru, served over the past 5 years with new leadership and new hope . We are indeed blessed.

What we have learned over the past 5 years is to extend our services beyond 3-weeks of leadership formation in our Training Center in Azpitia to a 6-month program, not only to assist in the recruitment process of the candidates, but to work with them after Azpitia back in their villages to establish them as accepted leaders for a new mode of Community Self-Development.

And now for 2013, we are extending the projects further to 12 months and more as we support the new leaders to build a vibrant local economy, restoring their confidence in their rural values and traditions, and learning once again to produce their own goods while meeting the standards of living as viable communities in the 21st century. The only hope of our staff these days is that we can learn fast enough to stay ahead of the people we are awakening, for we know well that there is no limit to their creativity once they have a vision of a new future which they themselves can control. These are exciting times to be working at the local.

ICA Canada (Prepared by Nan Hudson)

In middle of annual fundraising campaign…going flat out to achieve our goal of $125,000;

Staci Kentish and Mohamed Khaki attended the Nepal Human Development Conference on behalf of ICA Canada; other ICA Canada related participants included Duncan Holmes, Bill Staples, Derek Strachan, and Jan Sanders;

Staci Kentish appointed to the Global Leadership Team;

Currently in Phase 2 of pilot program with First Nations indigenous communities in Ontario doing early childhood education and focusing on language and cultural reclamation;

Currently finalizing MOU with the Southern African AIDS Trust to replicate the Il Ngwesi ICA Canada model in HIV/AIDS prevention, education, and community mobilization in SAT’s Tanzanian projects;

Currently doing phase 2 of our Community Facilitators Initiative training a second group of Toronto-based early career adults in the non-profit sector in ICA methodologies;

Currently continuing to see good response in sales to the second edition of the Courage to Lead, and offering the program with local hospital staff teams again this fall.

USA (Prepared by Terry Bergdall)

Six staff members from ICA-USA attended the 8th International Conference on Human Development in Nepal. We are now working hard to catch-up on undone work that accumulated during our absence. While many of us were away, remaining staff and volunteers continued to work on follow-up activities for the “Accelerate 77” share fair that was held in September. The formal report is now in its final stages and will be sent to all participants this coming week. Work is also progressing on organizing three meetings across Chicago (one each on the North Side, South Side, and West Side) which will occur in the new year. A service learning week has been scheduled with Nebraska Wesleyan University in January 2012 when fifteen students will come to Chicago. Ongoing work continues with ToP training programs across the country. We also are moving forward on initiating the new “Customer Fulfilment” system. Site visits with potential Learning Basket funders are being scheduled. Katie Kretzmann, our Learning Basket program officer, is also busy thinking about ways to take advantage to the international opportunities revealed during her time in Nepal.

Colombia y Brasil (Prepared by Emily Roynestad)

Emily sent a report of her work with Nira Fialho in Brasil in Tapagem in Alto Trombetas: September 17, 2012 Community of quilombola (afrodescendent) Mãe Cue.

Emily works in Anthrotect, this organization is a social enterprise founded in Palo Alto, California in 2007 with a mission to develop communitybased payments-for-ecosystems services models for mitigating climate change, protecting biodiversity, and generating transformative social and community development dividends. Anthrotect Colombia works with collective landowners in the Chocó department and in Brazil to conserve tropical rainforest and finance sustainable development via international carbon finance.


Make a comment on this article (Please name article in your comment)