Ahecha Paraguay
Click here to donate via the official Peace Corps website
What is this project about?
Ahecha Paraguay or “I see Paraguay” in a mixture of the country’s two official languages, Spanish and Guarani, is a participatory photography project designed to provide Paraguayan youth the opportunity to develop their creativity and gain new life perspectives through the camera´s lens.
The project will create four camera kits (five cameras per kit, for a total of twenty cameras) that sixteen volunteers annually will use to organize photography workshops for a minimum of eighty Paraguayan youth in their respective communities. The project includes sixteen photo exchanges between rural communities as a means of expanding inter-community awareness and will culminate with an annual photo exhibition featuring community-selected photographs.
What is the need for photography instruction in Paraguay?
Historically, the nation´s arts and creativity have been limited by a legacy of dictatorships. To this day, much of the art and culture are concentrated in the capital city of Asunción; rural comunities are far removed from these creative outlets. Among Paraguayan youth, volunteers have observed the prevalence of inhibited individual expression and low self-esteem. Research shows that ¨students in after-school arts groups ´had nine times as many opportunities to write original text material (not dictated notes) as their classroom counterparts´"[1] and that ¨high arts children also scored higher from teachers' ratings on expression, positive risk-taking, creativity-imagination, and cooperative learning¨.[2]
To address these issues, Ahecha Paraguay project organizers have drawn from participatory photography precedents such as - Kids with Cameras (creators of the Academy-Award winning Born in the Brothels documentary), National Geographic Photo Camps and Nicaphoto (www.nicaphoto.com), in order to develop a project plan that fits the realities of Peace Corps Volunteers and their Paraguayan communities.
How can I help give 80+Paraguayan youth the experience of expression through photography?
If the direct link above does not work, please follow the steps below:
1. Go to the Peace Corps Website—http://www.peacecorps.gov/
2. Click on "Donate now" located on the sidebar
3. Click on the "Donate to Volunteer Projects" link
4. Under “Choose a Region,” click on the “Latin America" link
5. Scroll down to “PARAGUAY – Ahecha Paraguay"
6. Insert the amount to be donated $$$
7. Go to the bottom of the page and hit "Continue"
8. Insert appropriate information and then continue on to "Insert Credit Card Information"
Contributions of all levels are appreciated. Our goal is to raise $5343.20 by December 15, 2007.
If you are interested in learning more about Ahecha Paraguay,
please contact CoCuMu (Compartiendo Cultura Mundial), the Peace Corps Paraguay volunteer arts and culture interest group behind the Ahecha Paraguay project, at cocumu@gmail.com, for more project details and answers to any and all questions.
Thank you for your support – Gracias por su apoyo – Aguije nde pytyvô haguere
[1] source: Critical Links: Learning in the Arts and Student Academic and Social Development, 2002, p.66study: Learning In and Through the Arts: The Question of Transfer
[2] source: Champions of Change, 1999, p.28 Stanford University and Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching study: Imaginative Actuality: Learning in the Arts During Nonschool Hours
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Project budget
Quantity and Item | Description and source (for community contribution) | Projected Unit Cost (USD) | Projected Total Cost (USD) | Projected Unit Cost (Guaranis)* | Projected Total Cost (Guaranis)* | ||||||
REQUESTED FUNDS: | |||||||||||
20 Digital Cameras | All uniform, Kodak Model C330, 4 Megapixels, including upload cables and camera protection cases; to be divided into 4 camera kits (5 cameras per kit) | $220.00 | $4,400.00 | Gs 1,100,000.00 | Gs 22,000,000.00 | ||||||
4 Carrying Cases | 1 case per kit | $50.00 | $200.00 | Gs 250,000.00 | Gs 1,000,000.00 | ||||||
4 Cleaning Cloths | 1 cloth per kit | $5.00 | $20.00 | Gs 25,000.00 | Gs 100,000.00 | ||||||
1 Photography Instructional book (I Wanna Take me a Picture, by Ewald Lightfoot) | 1 copy for Peace Corps Office use and reference | $20.00 | $20.00 | Gs 100,000.00 | Gs 100,000.00 | ||||||
416 Photographic Prints (In-Site Exhibits and Final Exhibit) | 8.5 in x 11; for 1 project cycle. Bulk quantity discount through Ferreteria Americana S.R.L. (Kodak | $1.50 | $624.00 | Gs 7,500.00 | Gs 3,120,000.00 | ||||||
2 package of 500 sheets of white office printing paper | For the creation of project and workshop guidance manual, participant permission slips, PCV liability agreements, and promotional materials; PCV allotted printing paper privileges and CoCuMu fund for Ahecha | $5.00 | $10.00 | Gs 25,000.00 | Gs 50,000.00 | ||||||
10 rolls of double-sided tape | To be used in mounting exhibit photographs to cardstock; Cocumu fund for Ahecha | $0.40 | $4.00 | Gs 2,000.00 | Gs 20,000.00 | ||||||
5 rolls of fishing line | To be used in final exhibit as a means of displaying photos | $6.00 | $30.00 | Gs 30,000.00 | Gs 150,000.00 | ||||||
4 packages of clothespins (12 per package) | Will be used to hang photos from fishing line | $0.40 | $1.60 | Gs 2,000.00 | Gs 8,000.00 | ||||||
16 pieces of photograph mounting material | To mount photos for in-site and final exhibit photos | $0.60 | $9.60 | Gs 3,000.00 | Gs 48,000.00 | ||||||
10 rolls of masking tape | To mount captions to exhibit walls | $2.40 | $24.00 | Gs 12,000.00 | Gs 120,000.00 | ||||||
SUB TOTAL | $5,343.20 | Gs 26,716,000.00 | |||||||||
Quantity and Item | Description and source (for community contribution) | Projected Unit Cost (USD) | Projected Total Cost (USD) | Projected Unit Cost (Guaranis)* | Projected Total Cost (Guaranis)* | ||||||
COMMUNITY CONTRIBUTION: | |||||||||||
20 Memory Cards | Size:512 MB; Ferreteria Americana S.R.L. | $40.00 | $800.00 | Gs 200,000.00 | Gs 4,000,000.00 | ||||||
20 Sets of Rechargeable Batteies | Size: AA; Ferreteria Americana S.R.L. | $5.00 | $100.00 | Gs 25,000.00 | Gs 500,000.00 | ||||||
20 | 2 rechargers per camera kit-the remaining 12 will be held in reserve at the Peace Corps Office;Ferreteria Americana S.R.L. | $20.00 | $400.00 | Gs 100,000.00 | Gs 2,000,000.00 | ||||||
1 Copy of the Academy-Award Winning Documentary DVD Born into Brothels | Participatory photography project, model resource, to be held and loaned by PCVC; PCV in-kind donation | $15.00 | $15.00 | Gs 75,000.00 | Gs 75,000.00 | ||||||
1000 Sheets of Computer Printing Paper | For the creation of project and workshop guidance manuals, participant permission slips, PCV liability agreements, promtional materials, and Final Exhibit captions; PCV allotted printer use privileges and CoCuMu fund for Ahecha | $0.10 | $100.00 | Gs 500.00 | Gs 500,000.00 | ||||||
300 Photocopies | For the creation of project and workshop guidance manuals, participant permission slips, PCV liability agreements, and promtional materials; PCV photocopying privileges and CoCuMu fund for Ahecha | $0.20 | $60.00 | Gs 1,000.00 | Gs 300,000.00 | ||||||
16 Community In-Site Exhibit Space Rentals | Including set-up, monitoring, disassembly, electricity; PCV Paraguayan community in-kind donation | $15.00 | $240.00 | Gs 75,000.00 | Gs 1,200,000.00 | ||||||
1 Asunción Final Exhibit Space | at CCPA, in-kind donation | $30.00 | $30.00 | Gs 150,000.00 | Gs 150,000.00 | ||||||
480 Sheets of Cardstock Paper (Certificate Paper) | To be used as backings for exhibit print mounting; PCV allotted certificate paper privileges | $0.25 | $120.00 | Gs 1,250.00 | Gs 600,000.00 | ||||||
400 Participant Copies of Exhibit Prints | Size; Ferreteria Americana S.R.L. | $0.50 | $200.00 | Gs 2,500.00 | Gs 1,000,000.00 | ||||||
64 trips of required transportation of participating PCVs to Asunción | 4 roundtrips per PCV during course of project, average; PCV in-kind contribution | $12.00 | $768.00 | Gs 60,000.00 | Gs 3,840,000.00 | ||||||
SUB TOTAL | $2,833.00 | Gs 14,165,000.00 | |||||||||
TOTAL | $8,152.20 | Gs 40,761,000.00 | |||||||||
Projected Timeline
Month | Task |
August 2007 | Submit Parternship proposal to Peace Corps Paraguay |
September 2007 | Proposal under review – plan financial support campaign |
October 2007 | Given approval, Ahecha |
November 2007 | Prepare project and workshop guidance manual – continue financial support campaign |
December 2007 | Finalize project and workshop guidance manual – complete financial support campaign by end of month |
January 2008 | Receive funding – make purchases – set up camera kit administration system with PCVC |
February 2008 | Initiate Project Cycle 1 – 4 more PCVs complete workshops ands In-Site Exhibits |
March 2008 | Project Cycle 1 continues – 4 more PCVs complete workshops ands In-Site – Exhibits Exhibit Exchange takes place among February group |
April 2008 | Project Cycle 1 continues – Ahecha sub-committee conducts mid-cycle evaluation – 4 more PCVs complete workshops ands In-Site Exhibits – Exhibit Exchange takes place among March group |
May 2008 | Project Cycle continues 1 – seek out PCVs interested in participating in Cycle 2 – 4 more PCVs complete workshops ands In-Site Exhibits – Exhibit Exchange takes place among April group |
June 2008 | Exhibit Exchange takes place – seek out PCVs interested in participating in Cycle 2 – Exhibit Exchange takes place among May group |
July 2008 | Exhibit Exchange takes place among June group – prepare for Final Exhibit – train interested PCVs to facilitate Cycle 2 |
August 2008 | Hold Final Exhibit – evaluate Cycle 1 – Cycle 2 planning begins |
