In the past I've written about the people who live off of the controversial Managua dump, La Chureca. Like in so much of the developing world, there exists a subsection of urban Managua dwellers that salvages bottles, cardboard and other "waste products," cleans them up, then sells them to recycling centers for a pittance. Many of the "Churequeros" are uneducated, hail from the countryside and have few expectations that their children will have a more dignified life.
Today's post is a story of hope. In a small workshop in the barrio of Acahualinca, near the dump, a group of women whose livelihood depends on Managua's trash is transforming it something beautiful, something other people might call art, something they can do with dignity.
"My friends don't really like what I'm doing or they laugh because it's so strange," says 21-year-old Angélica Lorena Baldonado Pérez, holding up a metal bottle cap she'd converted into an earring. "I think we'll have better luck selling to foreigners because ... Nicaraguans don't seem to value things that come from here; we prefer what comes from outside."
Jessica Hirst is trying to change these perceptions through her project, Nicología. Nearly a year ago, when the project was only an idea that had yet to produce any results, she wrote this for the Bourgeon online arts magazine:
There is no such thing as garbage here. Anything with metal in it – old broken car parts, household appliances, teeth – can be resold. I started making earrings out of bottle caps, corks, keys, and wooden clothespins. While recycled fashion is chic in the US, here it is shocking to see a chela (white girl) with garbage hanging from her ears. Lately more people have been asking where they can get their own, which I take as a good sign.
It is a good sign. After about six weeks on the project, the women -- about a half dozen, plus many of their daughters -- are finally getting paid for their work as the earrings catch on and find buyers. Hirst is still figuring out how much to sell them for, and the prices are on a sliding scale right now; from as low as 50 córdobas for Nicaraguans who refuse to pay more, to 200 córdobas for foreigners into trendy "green" products (between $2.50 US to $10 US). Besides earrings, the women are creatively branching into other products such as necklaces, bracelets, pins and more.
Hirst -- who arrived here more than two years ago after working for two decades in the U.S. as an environmentalist, artist and dance teacher -- doesn't make money off Nicología; for the moment, she's actually losing money in gas/materials/etc. But for now it's worth it as Managua's elite begin taking her project seriously and the Chureca women develop their creativity and business savvy.
"The way I look at it, it's good to learn a little bit of everything: making the jewelry and selling it," Maria Mayor Belasquez told me. "And Jessica won't be here forever. If and when she leaves, we'll be able to buy our own material, make the jewelry and sell it ourselves."
The 30-year-old, who is illiterate and the mother of four, easily tells me she'd prefer to do this than her usual routine of collecting, cleaning and selling some 500 bottles and cans each morning with her husband.
"But each one of us has to find a way to make a living," said Mayor, who Hirst calls the most creative woman of the group.
The project becomes a source of personal pride for the women, who already had the knowledge and skills to work with the "garbage," says Maryeling Murillo Ramírez. She is the coordinator for Nica:HOPE, which provides the workshop space for Nicología and 7 other art groups.
"Usually it's a headache, something frustrating, any time they have to leave La Chureca," she said. "They think everyone who sees them will make fun of them, will offend them for smelling of garbage or denigrate them. But here, they feel accepted, their self-esteem rises."
The families who participate in Nicología also gain access to the computer courses and other art courses offered by Nica:HOPE, which was created earlier this year by the Fabretto Children's Foundation.
(The picture above was taken last week at a performance by Hirst and fellow artist Ariel Bravo called "Vamos por más victorias" — a cheeky reference to the Sandinista Party's newest slogan spread across the city in the typical Chayo pinks and blues — during a week-long theater festival that ended last night. You can see Nicología's humble jewelry display at the bottom.)
For more information on the project or to purchase jewelry, please visit: http://nicology-nicologia.blogspot.com/.
