QUITO, Ecuador – November 27, 2023 — Heifer Ecuador distributed purple work boots to women farmers on the Galápagos Island of San Cristóbal today to bookend a multi-month effort in support of rural women to address restrictive gender norms. The event occurred in parallel with the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, observed worldwide on November 25.
The purple boots are a nod to the color that has long been tied to movements that oppose gender-based violence, and a continuation of Heifer Ecuador’s work to facilitate the economic empowerment of rural women through agriculture-based livelihoods. On the Galápagos Islands, Heifer Ecuador works alongside primarily women farmers to help build sustainable food systems by implementing agroecological practices, generating profitable bio-businesses, and improving access to fairer markets to sell their nutritious products.
“Our goal is to raise awareness of the specific challenges rural women face on account of their gender, but more importantly to help them recognize what’s possible when they have agency, decision-making power and a decent income,” said Rosa Rodriguez, country director of Heifer Ecuador. “Through bio-businesses, women of the archipelago are contributing to the conservation of their ecosystem and the food sovereignty of their territory.”
The boot distribution follows a series of seven workshops, organized by Heifer Ecuador in collaboration with the Ecuadorian Ministry of Human Rights and Women and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), which focused on exploring gendered roles and responsibilities in rural communities. Titled “Empowering Rural Women,” the workshops ran from March through October 2023 and provided a space for women and men to reflect together on the division of household chores, among other gender-related issues.
In Ecuador, according to official data, 57 percent of women have experienced psychological violence, 35 percent have experienced physical violence, a third have endured sexual violence, and 16 percent have experienced financial harassment, such as earning an income but lacking the decision-making power on how to spend it.
About Heifer Ecuador
Heifer Ecuador Foundation has been working for 30 years in Ecuador with peasant, indigenous and collector organizations in the development of rural businesses that increase the opportunities and income of families. Through a local development approach, it promotes initiatives with a triple impact: social, environmental and economic. Its interventions emphasize agroecological production, working with women and youth, and promoting adaptation to mitigate unfavorable climatic conditions and improve the care of ecosystems.
About Heifer International
Since its founding in 1944, Heifer International has worked with more than 46 million people around the world to end hunger and poverty in a sustainable way while caring for the Earth. Heifer currently operates in 19 countries across Africa, Asia and the Americas, including the United States, supporting farmers and food producers to strengthen local economies and build secure livelihoods that provide a living income. For more information, visit www.heifer.org
Media Contact:
Leocadio Salmeron, Public Relations Manager, Heifer International
+1 404 398 8858
