Peru

Grufides has been working since 2001 to protect the rights of communities impacted by the devastating consequences of extractive projects (mines, dams, etc.). Grufides is a nongovernmental organization working in the Cajamarca region that stands up for human rights and the environment, putting the emphasis on environmental protection, the right to access water, solidarity economy, gender equality and intergenerational dialog, within the scope of the construction of a Buen Vivir (based on the principle of a harmonious relationship between human beings and nature, on a community life based on mutual assistance, shared responsibilities, collective production and distribution of wealth according to the needs of the community members). Its areas of activity: Grufides provides legal assistance to the opponents of extractive projects and works for environmental management and community capacity building.

The objective of the project is to discover, share and better understand the challenges and issues of Peruvian communities facing the negative effects of extractive projects located on their territory. Grufides’ support to communities takes the form of building the capacity of community members, with a particular attention to women, to defend their rights and monitor their environment. Volunteers join a part of the community’s activities, discover the daily life of its members, participate in training workshops and collaborate in the realization of a journalistic and/or artistic micro-project defined by the community and the group.

• Discovery of Grufides and the different projects they run: support for indigenous communities in their struggles, in the implementation of projects on new media and in their work on environmental vigilance.

• Collective activity: sharing with the host community of the daily work, the environmental vigilance and the diffusion of their struggles through media, social networks or art.

• Daily life and intercultural exchanges: sharing the daily life of families, visiting natural or historical sites nearby the village, discovering local cultural specialties and local festivals. Division of the stay period (as an indication): between 3 and 4 days at Grufides headquarters in Cajamarca (training on the realities of the country, the history of Grufides, its areas of work, issues linked to mining and environmental vigilance projects), then 3 weeks in a community.