Making Dreams Reality: The power of ideas, the force of action
VOLUME 25, NUMBER 3, JUNE 2003
On the West Coast of Africa, nestled between its Senegalese and Guinean neighbours, Guinea-Bissau struggles to navigate the turbulent waters of economic globalization. A small paradise blessed with an exuberant ecology, its natural resources form the base of the economy while the country enjoys a human richness which contributes equally to its beauty and vitality.
Despite these qualities, Guinea-Bissau is one of the poorest countries in Africa and in the world, a reality being confronted by its people.
Visiting the island of Formosa in the Bijagos archipelago, a jewel of the world's biosphere, we are at first seduced by its beauty. And then, we are seduced by its people's energy and pride. Here, the villagers have long realized the need to protect the nourishing earth from the global craving for resources and commodities that leads to exploitation with little regard for local people or the environment. The people of this region have learned that the conserving ethos of their culture, deeply rooted in the land, is the best defence against practices dictated solely by the "laws" of the market.
Gathered in a house in the village of Acôcô, the fishers tell us how they have been working with other islanders to document ancestral fishing practices that allowed them, until the advent of modern commercial fishing techniques, to manage resources in a way that balanced the environment and people's needs. With the help of Tiniguena, a long-time Inter Pares counterpart, the fishermen have succeeded in re-establishing fishing rules that are based on indigenous knowledge and that promote a sustainable and participatory path for development in the islands. These rules, called UROK by the inhabitants, enable them to identify which of the archipelago's territories and seasons can sustain fishing without threatening certain species, such as the manatee, which reproduces in the shelter of mangroves.
The UROK rules aim to prevent stock depletion and other environmental damage that commercial fishing can cause in this fragile ecosystem. Drawing on their knowledge, the Bijagos people have found a way to signal local and foreign commercial fishers where the protected areas are located. The entrances to these territories are identified with "gris-gris," hung on stakes at key locations. These symbols indicate the sacred nature of the protected areas. Acôcô fishermen say that all West Africans of this region recognize and voluntarily respect these signs as part of their ancestral heritage.
The confidence and creativity of the Bijagos communities spring from a profound sense of belonging to the land and to a culture shaped by age-old knowledge. The people of the archipelago value this heritage, and have chosen to make it the banner of their resistance. This collective daily resistance allows them to envision the world in their own way, and to act to shape it in the ways they imagine.
In almost every place in the world, as in the Bijagos, hope shines through the action taken by women and men who dare to confront global forces with the strength of their own vision. Like the Bijagos, such people have the confidence to act based on who they are and what they know, and to offer a quiet resistance rooted in their ancestral memory. The mutual support within communities is essential to this courage - to think, to conspire, and together surpass the limits imposed by others. Living in the margins can be synonymous with exclusion, but it may also mean investing in spaces that escape the norms and open the way to a more humane and healthy world. Many organizations are working, in the North as in the South, to question the mantra that "there is no alternative", and to offer living alternatives for all to see.
At Inter Pares, we have the privilege of supporting and working with people and organizations who invent and re-invent their reality, day-by-day, in defiance of the logic of the established order. In this Bulletin, we present examples of mobilizing ideas that nurture our own reflection and work. They are evidence that other realities are indeed possible, and that alternative futures are already germinating in the present.
Previous page | Next page
| Reviewed June 1, 2004 |  |
Publishing Policies |
