Rebuilding communities affected by 8.2 earthquake

After the diagnosis finished, maps of vulnerability were made, as well as a map that identified houses with partial damages and total damages in Ixtepec, Oaxaca. From then on, meetings with earthquakes victims are taking part in two separated groups. 

Due to lack of mason workers in the region, starting to build 70 houses has been slow. The work has begun little by little. Nine new houses are building foundations and 43 reinforced houses have started pulling the plaster down to see the cracks in the walls and start covering with a metal mesh.

On the other hand, we started the diagnosis to know the damages in kitchens, comixcal´s bases and bread ovens. After the diagnosis of 114 families, in 5 different neighbourhoods of Ixtepec, we founded out that 94 women needed 78 kitchens, 94 comixcales, 72 bases for comixcales and 34 bread ovens. 

In February we have delivered 94 comixcales in 4 different neighbourhoods, 19,000 bricks and material to build the comixcal´s bases, as well the bread ovens bases, while women have commited to look for the sand to build them. As soon as they get the material the construction will start.

Two hands on workshops for building comixcale´s basis have been made with women, and one participative design traditional kitchen workshop for their construction. 

Although inhabitants of Ixtepec mainly belong to zapaoteca ethnolinguistic group, Cooperacion Comunitaria is also recovering the women´s economy from other communities which are Ikoot or Huave culture. San Francisco del Mar was the first to organize with 23 women who made a kitchen. There, they learned about traditional construction, but Cooperación Comunitaria helped to reinforce the construction to resist the local earthquakes and hard winds that raise the 160km/hr in the region.

After we finished building the kitchen, Amelia, the owner of the first one and who lost her house and kitchen during the earthquake said: “ I am very grateful with all of you because you helped to recover the traditional knowledge that has almost disappeared. I liked the process because we learned something, I like the kitchen. Nowadays people buy all the material, I like this kitchen because is fresh¨.

With the inhabitants` organization and participation, the social recovering and the comprehensive reconstruction are easier and become a process not only a quick action. 

Cooperacion Comunitaria´s team and the communities of Oaxaca are deeply grateful with your contribution.

THANK YOU!!!

Links:

• An interview with Cooperacion Comunitaria about the project
• Totopos production, womens main economic activity.

After the earthquakes of September 7th and 23th, that caused lots of  damages and affectations to hundreds of communities in the country, Cooperación Comunitaria visited different communities in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Oaxaca, evaluating the degree of emergency.

In two months  thanks to you generous donations we have being able to carried out the following activities:

- Work meetings with social production organizations, to coordinate the social habitat´s reconstruction.

- Diagnostics for the evaluation of kitchen´s damages, bread and comixcales ovens  in Ixtepec, San Mateo del Mar, San Francisco del Mar and San Dionisio del Mar.

-  Assemblies with the communities, to inform about the working parameters for the reconstruction.

- Distribution of tarpaulins (donated in Mexico City)  to the victims in Ixtepec.

- Diagnosis of damage assessment to the productive infrastructure, housing and analysis of vulnerability, visiting different neighborhoods of Ixtepec.

- Informative meetings and conversations with women from 4 different  communities, presenting the proposal of a kitchen´s construction system (seismic resistence),  for the economic reactivation dedicated to the production of totopos (corn chips).

- Meetings with brick producers to stablish production times and negotiate fair prices for the communities.

- The housing and kitchen design proposal, made with the local organization and the communities,  will be built as a model that people can easily build.

- Informative meeting with the participants of the reconstruction of houses and kitchens in the community of Ixtepec, to coordinate the organization and follow-up.

- Meetings with 2 communities for the preparation to build a housing model and 6 kitchen models in 6 different communities with 2 organizations: Ixtepec, Juchitan, Xadani, Sn Dionisio, Sn Mateo y Sn Francisco del Mar. 

In December will start the reconstruction and we will be communicating our results. 

THANKS FOR YOUR SUPPORT!