Art
and Hope
Indigenous People Art craft Promotion
The NGO “Indigenous Promotion”, better known as Art
and Hope, is a pioneer in the area of fair trade and solidarity
in Argentina. This NGO promotes and spreads cultural respect through
an educational approach, organizing training programs and trips
that support the local communities. One of their projects, aptly
named “To Share Life”, supports the health of the
“Wichi” and “Pilaga” communities. A group
of approximately six health professionals including doctors and
psychologists spend a week in the community providing their services
to the people. Another project aims to involve high school students
who spend a week in the communities while participating in the
various activities that make up daily life. Art and Hope also
works with the Italian cooperative “Chico Mendez”
to create a network of fair trade companies in Argentina. In Buenos
Aires, it is possible to visit the shop of the association where
crafts products, coming mainly from the communities “Wichi”
and “Pilaga” from the provinces of Formosa and Salta,
are displayed and sold.
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The Assembly
Cooperative for Economic Solidarity
 The
Assembly is a legally constituted cooperative whose origins can
be found in the experiences of the community assemblies of Nunez
and Saavedra during 2002. Its main goal is the formation of a
network of economic solidarity. The assembly promotes the production,
distribution, commercialization and consumption of self-managed
goods, which are the collective property of the workers. The goal
is to allow the workers to regain their dignity by creating an
integrated economic alternative. The distinctive self-managed
productions need the support of responsible consumers who are
conscious of the additional value that they represent. In order
to further educate consumers, the Assembly offers a school of
Solidarity Economics that offers courses in self-management to
producers and consumers alike. It also helps in the formation
of social work teams and gives access to the practical knowledge
gained by this experience and reflection.
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Abasto,
Patrimony and identity (A. P. e l.)
A.P. e l. is a civil association whose principal objective is
to recover tangible and intangible patrimony to encourage the
recuperation of neighborhood identity. It attempts to increase
the consciousness of the local population about the importance
of conserving the patrimonial culture of the Abasto neighborhood.
 
Consisting of an interdisciplinary group of professional specialists
(anthropologists, sociologists, architects, photographers, archaeologists,
artists, lawyers, etc.) and neighbors, the association was founded
in 1992. The group investigates and studies the neighborhood.
A.P. e I. focuses its actions on various areas of work and has
created a Center of Documentation. Together with other neighborhood
associations, they have organized a project of theme streets,
begun along Humuahuaca street in December 2002. This project seeks
to support local artists and artisans by giving them a space to
show their work, with each street showing a different art or trade.
The MapAbasto is a cultural network formed by artists, community
centers, health educators, theatres and cultural centers from
the Abasto neighborhood. This network has encouraged neighbors
and visitors alike to learn more about the work performed by the
different people of the community. The initiative was declared
to be of tourist interest by the Secretary of Tourism of the Government
of the City of Buenos Aries as well as of cultural interest by
the Legislature of the City. The web page is www.mapabasto.com.ar.
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