Ambiguous effects of NGO governance in protected areas of Guatemala

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Ambiguous effects of NGO governance in

protected areas of Guatemala

University of Amsterdam, GSSS department Master thesis

Cultural and Social Anthropology Applied Anthropology track

Maria Siaulyte, 11251697 Amsterdam, August 2018 Word count: 21.835

Supervisor: Gerben Nooteboom

Second and Third readers: Milena Veenis and Laurens Bakker

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An ethnographic journey through rural Guatemalan communities, who have urgent

development necessities and are learning new environmental moralities.

A mural by a local environmental NGO on a primary school in the village of Plan Grande Quehueche. The text translates to: “let’s reforest degraded areas. Without forest, there is no water, without water, there is no life. Forests are for the wellbeing of everyone”.

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Abstract

In protected areas of rural Guatemala, environmental NGOs have the authority to administer not only the flora and fauna but also the livelihoods of the communities. Lack of state involvement results in NGO governance whose expressions shape individual agency. In this thesis the foucauldian notion of governmentality is used as a lens to analyze the NGO working

mechanisms and effects it has on the populations it assists. The ethnography captures the shift from developmental to environmental in the world of NGOs and looks into NGO projects and practices inducing identity change in individuals.

Ecotourism was chosen as an example of such NGO workings – local communities are giving opportunities to generate income receiving visitors, the sites invite tourists to see the authentic life unfold. The authentic life as argued in the thesis is inspired by environmental values introduced to the communities by NGOs. The research was focused on individual perceptions and feelings towards this new development trend and aims at demonstrating the paradox encountered during the fieldwork: reduced individual agency might also mean getting one step

closer to what is considered to be a better life. Having interviewed, conversed and observed the

various levels of population which is effected by NGO tourism projects, the thesis represents the polyvocality encountered in the field. It invites the reader to look beyond dichotomies such as more development/less agency and offers conclusions inspired by the communities where good life is not found yet.

Key words: NGO, governance, development, environmentalist, agency, community tourism, Guatemala

* Declaration on Plagiarism and Fraud:

I have read and understood the University of Amsterdam plagiarism policy. I declare that this assignment is entirely my own work, all sources have been properly acknowledged, and that I have not previously submitted this work, or any version of it, for assessment in any other paper.

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Acknowledgments

First of all, this thesis would have never happened without the numerous remarkable open-hearted people I met in rural areas of Guatemala, many of which rise every morning to face a life of struggle against poverty and lack of opportunities. Nevertheless, most have received me with unforgettable warmth and shared not only stories, dreams and sorrows, but also delicious foods and cozy homes. I thank the communities of Pacul, Pachali, Plan Grande, Cocoli, Barra Sarstun, and Lagunitas Slavador for allowing me to be part of your colorful lives in magnificent places. I am also immensely grateful to the directors, coordinators and staff members of the NGOs I collaborated formally or informally, I was lucky to have received enormous support and many have opened the doors to me - a stranger, not only trusting me, but sometimes even willing to take my advice. These encounters opened a world of NGOs previously unknown to me and encouraged me to be stronger when pursuing my goals.

Lastly, I want to say a big thank you to my supervisor Gerben Nooteboom for your academic support. The continuous feedback not only allowed me to understand what a master thesis should be like, the discussions and brainstorms also helped me to structure my own thoughts scattered throughout the fieldwork. I found the criticism always constructive and the positive comments contributed hugely to gaining mental strength to go through the process of completing this thesis.

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Introduction

Guatemala is a country rich in biodiversity - a variety of ecosystems with countless natural reserves provide home to 23 different ethnic-linguistic Mayan groups. However, poverty levels are striking and a lack of social integration is apparent1. The Guatemalan state, unfortunately, is not yet capable to cater for the needs of the majority of its citizens – people who have no jobs, receive no social support, who live in places far away from industrialized cities where schools and healthcare are often nonexistent. As a result this hugely multiethnic nation co-living in a relatively small country has been dependent on the benevolence of foreign funds reaching the communities through developmental projects of multiple NGOs.

The global concern for environment and increased mobility, invite more and more people to explore Guatemala’s diverse landscapes2_{. Growing interest in the ‘natural’ encourages not}

only the protection but further production of these environments, therefore the number of areas converted into natural reserves in Guatemala have grown correspondingly3_{. Environmental}

NGOs are entrusted not only with the wellbeing of nature but also of ‘natural people’ as the indigenous are often referred to, and this care is expressed by providing the communities with projects to generate income, ecotourism being one of them.

Ecotourism, which is characterized as a type of tourism based on participation in natural environments with native people inhabiting them, represents ‘authentic life no longer found in urban settings (West and Carrier 2004). Guatemala has many sites fitting the description, places often far away from cities lagging behind in developing. However, ecotourism projects do not stem from the imagination of local populations living in those natural paradises; instead they are brought by the environmental NGOs administering protected areas. By doing so, environmental

1_{World Bank review of Guatemala http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/guatemala/overview [accessed on March,}

2018]

2_{Guatemalan Institute for Tourism reports, that from 2016 to 2017 tourism increased by 11%.}

http://www.inguat.gob.gt/estadisticas/boletines-estadisticos/2017.php [accessed June, 2018]

3_{Council for Protected Areas (CONAP) reports that the number of protected areas in 2017 is 339 and covers 30%}

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NGOs fulfill their obligation to offer alternative sources of income after having restricted the use of traditional livelihoods such as logging, hunting, pasture and agriculture. Not everyone is happy with the forced transition, even if changes are often desired. This thesis looks into NGO practices in concrete Guatemalan communities and asks how agency is affected by tourism projects introduced by those outside organizations. Based on the outcome of the fieldwork, my focus has shifted from analyzing individual motivations of participation, to the relationship between individuals and NGOs.

Instead of trying to untangle subjective perceptions of culture, I chose to look into how subjects perceive institutions, which assist them in their daily lives. Thereby the focus of the thesis moved from culture and identity to power inequalities. It looks at cultural practices and identity formations as a consequence of organizational practices, namely environmentalist NGOs studied in the field. More concretely this thesis can be categorized as part of anthropology of development because it concerns the logic and effects of NGOs supporting communities in ‘developing’ localities. The theoretical lens through which I look into NGO practices is the Foucauldian notion of governmentality - an interpretation of power as embedded in countless agencies, NGOs being among them, each having its own goal (Foucault 1991) and a distinct manner of governing its subjects.

NGO developmental work in anthropological literature is often criticized for imposing Western values and overlooking local understandings of good life (Barletti 2016; Conklin and Graham 1995; West and Carrier 2004). It has therefore acquired a negative connotation for it has not always brought the desired change but instead served as an imposition of alienating values. Ecotourism can be seen as part of such universalizing agenda imposing Western

environmentalist values onto the communities in order to attract visitors who come from that same West. Protected areas coordinated by NGOs dependent on foreign capital, become

contested spaces where NGOs are given the power to govern local populations and further shape individual behaviors and identities to make them into certain type of beings (Agrawal 2005; Foucault 1991; Rose 1998).

What my fieldwork taught me is that although developmental projects might feel like an unwanted imposition in some cases, they do not undermine the overall importance of NGO work. Even if development is grounded in certain practices and principles deriving from the NGO

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based in the global North, it does not prevent people from making localized use and meaning out of the NGO efforts. I chose to explore a paradox encountered during the fieldwork: reduced individual agency might also mean getting one step closer to what is considered to be a better life. I argue that although NGO work can be criticized for not always bringing the right solutions, it nevertheless contributes to the desired progress and assists communities in achieving a better life.

The thesis centers on the question of how is individual agency affected by tourism projects

brought by NGOs to rural communities living in protected areas in Guatemala? But instead of

providing an answer it attempts to question the simplistic dichotomies such as ‘more

development, less agency’. Having interviewed, conversed and observed the various levels of populations who are effected by NGO tourism projects, the thesis shares this polivocality of opinions and shows what different effects the same projects can have on different people

according to their individual expectations and desires. It is an ethnographic journey through lives of marginalized groups of urgent necessities living in detached communities in natural reserves of Guatemala. I hope this thesis can also serve as a critique to one’s own “informed” position towards social world phenomena. It started as a collection of sound statements criticizing development and romanticizing individual perceptions but should end as a reconsideration of such premises making the ethnographer more open and humble when facing the world of inequalities and struggles.

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Theoretical framework

Three bodies of literature will be necessary to analyze the NGO workings recorded in protected areas of Guatemala. The first reviews the concept of governmentality, the way of governing populations as introduced by Foucault and further elaborated by anthropologists whose work revolves around development and NGO work (Agrawal 2005; Mitchell 2010; Rose 1998; Trouillot 2001). Second component of literature focuses on more concrete NGO effects on the populations it intends to help. NGO work is surrounded by contentious analysis and has been extensively criticized by anthropologists for reducing personal agency (Bierschenk 2014; Di Giovine 2010; Fassin 2007; Sachs 2017). I will pay due attention to the literature depicting NGO practices as a tool for personal empowerment (Feldman 2012; Mosses 2013; Scharma 2008). Lastly, individual agency is touched upon through the topic of tourism as an expression of NGO induced development. Academic debate regarding tourism discourse and identities it produces will be applied to explain particular effects of the NGO governance.

NGO governance

Foucault analyzed the type of governance that is characteristic of the developed West,

governance embodied in a multitude of agents operating in ways each serving its own purpose, or having a “finality of its own” (Foucault 1991: 90). According to this notion, the previously concentrated government powers are now widely dispersed and executed by multiple authorities. Furthermore, power now lies in scientific objective knowledge (Foucault 2003) and each

authority owns a set of knowledge allowing it to exert control over certain population. Authority is not executed through disciplinary means anymore but by imposing ‘regimes of truth’ (ibid: 244) – providing the population with instructions of what is the correct way to be in the society. Governing is no more understood as a set of apparatuses, but instead as processes – ‘the conduct of conduct’, it extends beyond the mere law and order but aims to shape the behavior, desires,

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and moralities of individuals (Foucault 1991:95). Power can thus be disguised under know-how recipes assuming to help those in need.

According to this discourse, NGOs are seen as one of many carriers of state power subjecting and shaping individuals it intends to govern (Trouillot 2001: 132). Developmental programs assisting less privileged people bring projects which imply a moral framework based on the knowledge system in which the organization operates (Mitchell 2010). Programs promote certain things as better - suggest what diets are more appropriate for children, what activities more ‘environmentally-friendly’, material more suitable for health. People receiving social benefits, or ‘gifts’, are required to perform in a certain way, for instance to attend meetings and training sessions (ibid: 27). What Foucault termed ‘conduct of conducts’ can be seen in NGO practices as a promotion of “self-regulating behaviors of communities and individuals” (Mosses 2013: 229), which eventually aims at transforming the way individuals think about themselves, making them into “selves of certain sorts” (Rose 1998: 4). The aspect of behavior taming will be particularly important in my case because the populations of my research always have to attend capacity training sessions as a condition to partake in NGO projects. The new knowledge and skills obtained during the trainings not only alter individual approaches to work, it further influences the way the world is perceived.

In line with the Foucauldian notion of governmentality, Agrawal (2005) coined the term environmentality, referring to a particular governance of environmental agencies, enacted in places where subjects depend upon environmental goods – forests, fisheries, pasture – and become involved in some aspects of their own government when their ecological practices are at stake (Agrawal 2005: 294). His research on Kumaon communities in western Indian Himalaya analyzes how after Kumaon land was declared protected reserve, enforcement of environmental regulations followed and eventually changed locals’ identity making them into what Agrawal calls environmental subjects (Agrawal 2005). Agrawal’s application of the Foucauldian concept allows me to better explain the workings of environmental NGOs on the communities living in Guatemalan reserves.

As we have seen throughout the recent history, the ‘objective scientific knowledge’, which claims the authority, ceases to be the truth when new facts are generated. The emerging threat of global warming produces new ‘agents of truth’, such as environmental NGOs.

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Therefore, the last two decades witnessed a shift towards conservationism which assumes limiting development since growth became seen as a threat to the environment (Sachs 2017:2575). West and Carrier (2004) analyze the convergence of the two seemingly

irreconcilable discourses, conservationism and developmentalism, and conclude that eocotourism is the result illustrating the move to merge the two. They further emphasize the role NGOs play arguing that “NGOs became central to environmental management and ecotourism becomes central to their management strategies” (West and Carrier 2004: 491). Ecotourism is thus seen as a form of governance imposing Western neoliberal values to shape local people’s perceptions of how they should be ‘authentic’. The question becomes problematic when communities have urgent needs but find themselves living in protected areas which might restrict the development they are entitled to. I will focus not only on the expressions of NGO governance but further look into the dynamics within NGOs to capture the change of values that environmentality entails.

Empowering NGO-ing

Development is one of the crucial themes in my thesis due to the choice to follow applied anthropology track and to collaborate with a developmental NGO. Anthropologists have often been prone to harsh criticism of development, because its objectives are descended from the so called already developed Western world, therefore as Di Giovine puts it, development “posits a universal evolutionary trajectory” ignoring inherently different cultural aspirations(Di Giovine 2010: 212). Many development agents do not originate from places where development agendas are implemented, the lack of contextual knowledge have often resulted in what Biershenk called “structural amnesia”, when new projects are tackled as if the past did not exist (Biershenk 2014: 88). Another negative outcome is increased aid dependency - populations in developing

countries are used to NGOs coming to their lives and giving them ‘gifts’ in multiple forms. Fassin writing on humanitarianism concluded that “a gift to the victims does not imply a counter gift and they are indebted to the world” (Fassin 2007: 510).

Acknowledging the ambivalent nature of NGO work, other anthropologists have nevertheless emphasized the positive, although sometimes unintended, consequences that

development work has on the populations it assist. Sharma writing NGO development projects in India argues that development is not an unchanging discourse, but a “fluid and contradictory

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script which produces new realities” (Sharma 2008: 120). Sharma’s ethnography confirms that marginalized actors can “use development idiom to fashion themselves as morally upright and deserving citizens” (Sharma 2008: 97). Feldman who has written extensively on Palestinians living in refugee camps also concludes that the humanitarian agencies operating for decades eventually become the platform on which political claims can be made (Feldman 2012). Even if NGOs can be criticized for creating dependency and encouraging passivity, it can also contribute to the feeling of empowerment, as Feldman’s and Sharma’s works testify.

Maintaining the boundaries of the Foucauldian concept of governance, NGO work can also be seen as a process with a variety of means and goals. To appeal to the aforementioned intangible nature of NGOs, Hilhorst’s coined the term NGO-ing and invited anthropologists to refer to NGO work as a verb rather than noun: “NGOs are not things, but processes, instead of asking what an NGO is, the more appropriate question becomes how NGO-ing is done” (Lewis and Schuller 2017: 642). NGOs are just as diverse as populations with context specific methods and objectives. As pointed out by Lewis and Schuller in their writing on NGO as a ‘Productively Unstable category’, Foucault’s governmentality concept provides an alternative outlook to that promoted by development agencies, it allows scholars to “interrogate the interactions between different groups” (ibid: 637).

The approach I choose to apply when analyzing NGO effects could be summarized by Mosses as follows: “development is a category of practice (…) it is a provincialized cultural formation that involves identity, occupation and space making” (Mosses 2013: 231). Although the framework NGOs work in stems from the Western imaginary, the concrete practices are embedded in local contexts and thus NGO practices result in ‘local’ effects. Tourism projects which NGOs offer to communities entail tools of how to become a host. For this reason literature on identity formation is reviewed to locate the agent within the NGO governance.

Agency to invent authenticities

Following the Foucauldian discourse of the structure-agent relationship, agency, as I see it, encompasses ambivalent aspects. Facing the omnipresent nature of power, subjects also partly govern themselves by choosing to self-impose the governing rules and regulations and to internalize certain truths, which, they believe, will later bring them personal benefits (Bryant

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2002: 269). Mahmood (2001) analyzes the structure-agent relationship while writing about the Egyptian women mosque movement and concludes that agentive power is not only enacted by subversive actions, but also by efforts to support the established system. The women who belong to the movement advocate the continuation of the tradition, which from the liberal, progressive point of view makes them voiceless and obedient subjects. However, from the perspective of the women, the conditions of subordination serve as means of self-conscious identity formation (ibid: 210). Drawing on Mahmood’s conclusions, I define agency as capacity to make conscious choices regarding one’s own identity and its application, in other words it is an ability to re-invent oneself in order to achieve new goals.

I chose community tourism projects as an expression of before mentioned NGO-ing and analyze how the agentive power is applied when undertaking development projects. Tourism practiced by ‘native people’ has been widely discussed in anthropology often criticizing the mechanisms implied for subjecting ‘natives’ to Wesatern imaginary (Bruner 1989, 1991; Di Giovine 2009; Conklin and Graham 1995, Sammels 2014). In order to be receive guests, local people become market participants, which inevitable leads them to acculturation – new

languages, skills, attitudes and values need to be acquired (Godoy et al. 2005: 123). The nature which locals are inviting tourists to explore is also adjusted to the demand; trails are put in place, signs nailed to the trees indicating their names in Latin as well as local language. The logic of market obliges locals to “reshape the nature” and instead of preserving the existing valued ecosystems, leads to the creation of landscapes that conform to important Western idealization of nature (West and Carrier 2004: 491). Reviewing many anthropologists work, Stronza,

nevertheless, argued that “tourism can help maintain people identity” because the local population is encouraged to reflect on their values and customs in a new way (Stronza 2001: 271). I will be exploring how identities are not only re-evaluated as Stronza suggested, but in fact invented just as tourist paths are carved out in the forest to make the place more accessible.

Because of the research population, literature on indigeneity was taken into account. Many anthropologists writing on indigeneity criticize categorization of people into native and non-native arguing that such divide serves as a political and economic tool to exclude certain groups (Li 2000; Postero 2017), and make natives “culturally unsuited to become full market subjects” (Li 2000: 387). Other scholars argue that it is false to see indigenous people as merely dependent on power structures and ruling elite desires and that indigeneity is being used as a

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political tool by the native groups themselves (Conklin and Graham 1995; Raffles 1999; Karlsson 2003). Many indigenous groups are increasingly engaging in ecotourism entering the realm of market while often intentionally exploiting their indigeneity as a marketing tool.

Because my research population resides in a natural reserve, the culture being promoted is inseparable of environmental premises implemented by NGOs. I combine the literature on identity and tourism with NGO and development to provide an academic framework for my ethnographic accounts to speak out. Inspired by anthropological accounts where the

aforementioned agency is given situated definitions (Mahmood 2001; Sharma 2008), I also strive not to fall into the trap of Western notions and allow my informants to give their own definitions.

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Setting

In order to situate NGO governance within Guatemala, I will give a brief overview of the context in which it operates. The population of Guatemala is growing fast4 and the majority of the

population is estimated to live below poverty line, half of which is considered to live in extreme poverty 5. The poorest are mostly concentrated in rural areas, the majority consisting of

indigenous people6. These statistics are relevant because my research population is almost exclusively rural indigenous whose daily battle with poverty greatly influence their actions, preferences and choices. Guatemalan state is weak, public investment remains minimal because the government collects the lowest share of public revenue in the world relative to the size of its economy7. As a result, it fails to provide sufficient education and health. Furthermore,

indigenous groups have only recently been officially incorporated in the education system8, while in practice education still remains unreachable for many. The country’s wild environment results in people living in villages separated with impassable roads, the lack of infrastructure isolates the communities and distances them from the state even more.

Guatemala has experienced a brutal civil war between the military and indigenous people between 1960 and 1996. During the civil war NGO sector opposed state actions and as a

consequence was often subjected to state repressions; therefore NGOs became associated with resistance and grew as an alternative potential power (Beck 2014:144). Because of the role NGOs played in supporting human rights and providing social support for indigenous and the poor during the armed conflict, after the peace accords were signed, many doors were opened to them to attract new donors. In the 1990s, 57 percent of foreign aid was channeled through NGOs and not the state because the latter was assumed to be a corrupt and unreliable partner (ibid: 150). Soon the state started to change its relationship with the NGO sector, which gave

4_{According to World Population Review, Guatemalan population has grown from 10 to 17 million in the last 20}

yearshttp://worldpopulationreview.com/countries/guatemala-population/ [accessed July, 2018]

5_{World Bank reports, that 75% of Guatemalans live in poverty, which is defined as inability to purchase basic}

goods and services, out of which 58% live in extreme poverty and do not have sufficiently for the daily caloric intake. https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/guatemala/overview [accessed July, 2018]

6_{Avivara report on poverty in Guatemala. http://www.avivara.org/aboutguatemala/povertyinguatemala.html [}

accessed July, 2018]

7_{World Bank report}

8_{Avirava report states, that only in 1985 policies were implemented acknowledging indigenous communities’}

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NGOs access to manage public funds and resulted in NGO boom – from two thousand in 2001 to ten thousand in 2007 (ibid: 151). The state eventually joined forces with many NGOs in the effort to develop Guatemala.

Protected areas are an example of such joint efforts, the territories where I conducted research, Alux and Sarstun, are co-administered between the state body CONAP (Council for Protected Areas) and the environmental NGO Aproverde. In 2010 Guatemala was included in the group of countries characterized as megadiverse, 18 countries worldwide whose territory

contains the majority of earth’s species9_{. It helps to explain why the number of territories which}

were declared protected has grown exponentially, there are now 339 protected areas which cover 30.9 percent of the national territory10. According to CONAP research, protected areas attract tourism11 and Aproverde has been establishing sites of sustainable tourism in the communities which live in the protected territories.

The absence of state, urgent needs of the population, global recognition of Guatemala’s rich ecosystem and a powerful position of environmental NGOs renders it relevant to research the relationship between communities living in protected areas and environmental NGOs administering the territories.

Methods

The question of my research concerns individual agency in the encounter with NGO practices. The NGO practices encompass a wide range of activities, such as capacity trainings, meetings, projects, rules and regulations that community members have to follow. I was not able to observe many instances of direct encounters, such as capacity trainings, and for this reason my results greatly depend what has been said. It relies on the testimony of my interlocutors expressed in interviews, conversations, stories. I chose what Marcus (1995) termed ‘mobile ethnography’ and followed environmental NGO’s projects in different locations. In addition, the collaboration with ASESAC allowed me to connect discourses by doing multi0sited research – immersing myself

9_{CONAP, http://conap.gob.gt/} 10_ibid

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into the site where policies are being decided upon, attending meetings and interviewing the NGO coordinators in the central office, and simultaneously living on the site where the

communities are being affected by such policies. Further expansion of the number of sites and exposure to different ethnic and social groups provided me with opportunities to experiment with a variety of methods, and more importantly made me more careful as not to draw bold

conclusions.

I was fortunate to have good access to the communities tackling tourism as well as NGOs operating in the areas. The access was facilitated by my initial affiliation with ASESAC, which opened a window to a wider network of NGOs whose members were more willing to talk to me considering me a partner of some sort. The contacts I established in the capital directed me to local coordinators in Sarstun area. Many community members, I felt, also attributed to me a greater level of legitimacy based on my connections with various NGOs. I am aware that the mentioned affiliation also resulted in certain expectations towards me, which local coordinators and community members often expressed.

I did, however, try to act as independently as possible, I spent every day hanging out with the ‘locals’ - eating together, visiting their homes, sharing stories, even going to the fields, attending mass on Sundays, and watching soap operas together. I felt like taking notes often distracted me from participating in the ongoing reality and for this reason I chose to mostly write down after the participation. I marked boundaries between descriptive reflective notes to trace back my own influence in the story to avoid what Hirschauer called “authorization of the author” (2006: 419). I would often allow myself to dive into lengthy conversations about the experiences of my field friends.

All of my interviews were semi-structured leaving space for unforeseen trajectories but coming back to the intended questions eventually. I interviewed the director, coordinator and the three local employees of ASESAC as well as members of tourism committee in a community of Plan Grande, local employees of Aproverde and other smaller NGOs. The data gathered reflects the variety of perspectives from actors with different positions, ethnicities and social standings and is therefore relevant in providing a broad and sometimes contested picture of the world in which I participated. I was twice invited to meetings of locals which perfectly resembled focus groups because the initial reason for the meetings was my presence in a given community. Such

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occasions provided valuable material, many topics were raised and social interactions among the participants could be observed. However, I as a ‘guest from outside’ had to handle a lot of attention and pressure which was not always easy.

It is important to find methods which did not include talking. Women and children are difficult to approach due to their Spanish language inefficiency and my lack of Q’eqchi knowledge. Children of Plan Grande knew that my bungalow was open to everyone each afternoon for homework and drawing sessions. Through drawing and games of associations I learned that things they find most beautiful are what they already have around, such as pigs, turkeys, river and fields, and that tourists are associated with making new friends and receiving gifts. Children also revealed many details concerning their private lives which I would have never gotten to see otherwise, such as drinking, abuse, and hunger. I also organized a cooking session with the women of the community. Brought together in a group they found it difficult to work together, many demonstrated indecisiveness and even apathy. Internal conflicts would also come to the surface. My get-together cooking session was seen as a capacity-training, when they watch and follow and then judge if are left dissatisfied. The fact that I was automatically

assumed to be an outside expert, made me realize how deeply the power differences were engraved.

Problems

The biggest problem while staying with Q'eqchi communities was language barrier, which I had not foreseen; and for this reason it took me a while to adjust my methods. Most men within approximately 18 – 50 age range speak Spanish because of greater exposure to non-Q’eqchi environments - they travel to other parts of Guatemala to work, while women hardly ever leave their communities. I made friends among women, elderly and children and tried interviewing various people from groups whose Spanish was deficient but the data gathered from those attempts can be misleading. For that reason, I mostly relied on the information provided by men except in a few cases when I interviewed women employed by local NGOs. I am aware that the

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gender imbalance limits my results; therefore I attempted to compensate this inequality with data obtained through informal conversations and observation in group activities.

Language barrier does not only imply proficiency but also cultural tenets, asking the right questions turned out to be a bigger challenge than I had assumed. I started off by asking questions such as: what is wellbeing and development; why are tourists fascinated by Mayan culture; do you feel you have changed because of constant contact with tourists; do you see cultural differences between your culture and the people coming to visit. “Culture too big to understand” was rightly pointed by one of my respondents. The most comical example of my incompetence was when to the question “what is common good” I received the answer “goods in common”. The mistakes led me to rephrase the questions regularly, which reflects my new understandings while in the field.

Collaboration with an organization legitimized my presence in the communities but it also resulted in my dependency on the NGO and its agenda. The coordinator often gave me tasks, which in my view only served their purpose and did not contribute to my research. I was asked to come up with solutions for illegal logging, however, I had not arrived prepared to tackle topics concerning forestry and I lacked knowledge regarding environmental issues. Dependency was also time related, things were often delayed, long waiting followed, and 'tomorrow' was given to me as answer many times when I wanted to arrange a meeting or interview.

While working with ASESAC I was rarely left alone, being independent presented an opposite challenge – a threat of auto-ethnography. The community sites in Sarstun were receiving almost no tourists at the time of my stay, which meant I was always the only ‘tourist’. This left me very little space for pure observation, whether I went to the church with the locals, ate in a family, or just sat in the village waiting for someone, I was constantly aware that my presence effected the behavior of the people I was surrounded by. This second period of my research inevitably involves extended passages of reflection on my own positionality, which has a dualistic effect on my results – the increased sensitivity can also be limiting. I will further explain the limitations in the following section.

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Ambiguous role of ethnographer

“Look Maria, maybe you know some organizations there in the Netherlands which we could cooperate with?” I was asked directly by the executive director of ASESAC after one of the meetings in the capital. It then occurred to me that the NGO was keeping me for appearances and hoped to get access to new funds. My presence somehow validated their efforts before the

outside world. It upset me a little but I knew the difficult times they are going through, and I have read literature on the working logics of NGOs therefore after initial questioning of their morality, I eventually justified the inquiry.

Sadly, it was more difficult to justify the same logics enacted by individuals. I started feeling that the families in the communities were competing for my attention. Which one will get to have me for lunch, whose children will become my friends? I felt acknowledged, it was pleasing to think I might brighten their day, experience together a cultural exchange, and establish a personal bond which will change us both forever. Men and women alike opened up incredibly fast about the most personal things. It made me question whether they are used to opening up the door to their lives in exchange for help or if it was a consequence of too much missionary/charity work. Towards the end, however, I started seeing this urge to have me as a guest as a form of ‘gaining a new project’.

From the perspective of many, I was the potential access to funds, wherever I come from, since funds come from ‘over there’. This realization started making me paranoid. I started seeing children playing strategic games, telling me stories with specific angles, emphasizing aspects of their lives which might produce sympathy in me. I would be skeptical about any story that included grief or misfortune in order to escape this pity trap. I wanted to like them all equally but started simply to distrust everyone.

I had to be understanding of such behavior considering the scarcity and needs people had, but, I admit, it nevertheless influenced my judgment – I started controlling my empathy towards the community members and listen more openly to the arguments provided by NGO

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presents have been inevitably affected by my increasing appreciation of NGO efforts to bring the needed development while it still provides examples of when NGOs should re-evaluate their working mechanisms.

Set-up of the fieldwork

My research period was divided into two parts. First five weeks were spent in collaboration with an NGO called ASESAC (Asociation for Social and Economic Change in Central America) where I stayed in a capacity training center owned by the organization. The facility is to be converted into an ecotourism site; therefore my task was to inquire the nearby living

communities regarding participation in the tourism project. The remaining five weeks I was living in a village of Plan Grande where the community is managing a tourism project. While being based in Plan Grande, I visited three other sites in the area and spent three days in each. I was in contact with various local NGOs but had no obligations to any.

ASESAC is now involved in six projects with differing profiles – they help communities providing microcredit, social housing, also organizes workshops on participatory democracy and gender equality. I was living on one of their sites - a capacity training center Las Orquideas, which is located in a mountain range of Alux, a protected area outside of capital city. The

communities living in the area are predominantly indigenous Kaqchikel people whose daily lives depend on agriculture, pasturing and collection of fire wood. The recent restraints on logging sometimes result in tense relationships between the communities and NGOs operating in the area. Environmental NGO Aproverde is assigned as the coordinator of the area together with a governmental body CONAP (National Council for Protected Areas). The environmental organization is active in educational programs for the residents to become more environment-conscious. ASECAC works in partnership with Aproverde.

My second site was located in Sarstun River reserve, a rainforest area bordering the Caribbean coast. The River Sarstun Multiple Use area consists of over 35 thousand hectares and is recognized as a “wetland of global importance”.12_{It was declared protected area in 2005}

causing discontent among communities due to newly imposed restrictions. The area contains rainforest and is scarcely inhabited with dispersed communities which are difficult to reach due to lack of infrastructure. There are 22 communities living within the Sarstun protected area, most

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communities being indigenous Q’eqchi. The dependency on agriculture, fishing or forestall resources has become an issue therefore environmental NGOs are active in supporting

communities with alternative livelihood projects, tourism being a prominent option. The reserve borders the Caribbean coast, and has Belize and Honduras on each side making it into a

convenient spot for tourists to make a stop; therefore most communities offer sustainable tourism experiences.

The two locations of my research are protected areas administered by the

environmentalist NGO Aprovrde Although the populations are different ethnic groups, they have both experienced relatively recent land status change restricting the usual livelihoods, and are now being taught how to be more environmentally-conscious.

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Image 3. Satellite view of Alux mountain range - a protected area of 45 square km located outside of Guatemala city.

Image 4. Sattelite view of Sarstun Multiple Use area – a protected area of 325 square km, the village of Plan Grande is located 10km into the rainforest from Livingston, while Barra Sarstun is located on the edge of the reserve and borders Belize.

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Chapter 1. From governmentality to environmentality

“Development? Oh there are contradictions, for us development would be to have better access, but IDESAC refuses to give permit because they have found some frog which dwells there”. (Abraham, January, 2018)

The organization I collaborated with for the first month opened my eyes to the broader world of NGOs and their moralities in the particular context of Guatemala. ASESAC defines itself as “the agency of social change”, according to the institute’s mission, their work concerns groups of people who are more vulnerable and excluded from basic services and benefits. Their socially oriented ideology had always been directed to support farmers in their effort to achieve a better life through establishing cooperatives, assisting with microcredits and social housing, in other words to help them to pursue modernization. Lately, however, the organization has been going through difficult times in terms of competing for funding because donor countries are facing new social challenges. According to ASESAC executive director, many of their vital funds were cut because of the refugee crisis in Europe.

One of the sites administered by ASESAC is a training and formation center Las Orquideas. The site is situated in a green Alux mountain range which has been declared protected area by the government and later entrusted to environmental NGO Aproverde to co-administer the area together with CONAP (National Council for Protected Areas). As a result ASESAC has to coordinate its actions with Aproverde whenever there are activities in Las Orquideas. ASESAC recently decided to convert Las Orquideas into an ecotourism project because Aproverde is pressuring them to operate in a more sustainable way. My task was to deliver the message of what are the expectations and motivations of locals living in the villages surrounding Las Orquideas and whether they would be potentially interested in taking part in ecotourism.

This chapter analyses the move of paradigms within NGOs through the experiences of actors whose lives depend on the principles and mechanisms which NGOs implement. I will use

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data collected in two different locations, Alux and Sarstun protected areas, whose populations go through very similar changes – the environmentalist organization Aproverde has become a very influential player in both locations, it administers the forests and actively involves communities in ecodevelopment projects, ecotourism being a popular choice.

The meeting: confronting moralities

It was in the meeting between the two partners, ASESAC and Aproverde, where I started to better understand the logics behind certain decisions ASESAC makes. The reason for the meeting was illegal logging. When an area is declared protected, many of the established livelihoods become constrained – agriculture becomes restricted, quotas are put on logging, additional bureaucracy follows construction of facilities. The change of land status does not, however, reflect changes in peoples living conditions; local populations have the same needs for firewood as before. Thus constraints on logging only increase confrontation between the

institutions, NGOs in this case, and the local communities. ASESAC and Aproverde meet on regular basis to discuss what measures should be taken to decrease illegal logging and to report the updates.

The meeting takes place on the 11th_{of January. It is held in the central office of ASESAC}

in the capital city of Guatemala. Although it was scheduled at 2pm but as usual no one is present on time. I wait together with Abraham, the elderly man in charge of Las Orquideas. He is

nervous, in fact I noticed he becomes nervous every time there is a meeting. He knows Las Orquideas and the communities around better than anyone else, locals of all generations refer to Abraham calling him don [sir] with respect and care because he saw many grow up, moreover, the position of being an NGO employee not once allowed him to help those in need. Yet he is always nervous and worried that something he did was not perceived well. Abraham was raised by Dutch missionaries and is proud to “have learned punctuality from Europeans” which gives him another reason to often criticize ASESAC coordinators for not having such trait.

As the meeting begins, tension can be felt. The two representatives from each

organization sit facing each other whereas I and Abraham are seated in between the two parties sideways (in a position of a mediator, which is perfect for observation). Aproverde suggests

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placing cameras in the forest as a means to deter locals from cutting trees. Luis, the director of ASESAC, is not in favor of more surveillance and states that it is very important “to maintain the prudent attitude, healthy relation with the people through education”. Aproverde representative agrees with Luis - “we need to break the ice with the communities, to make them understand that if they collaborate they benefit from it”. We are told that the biologists working on the area recently found a new species of a frog which dwells in the area and Aproverde has the duty to protect the habitat of the species and their funding is further influenced by the results of such protection. Peaceful relationships with the communities are therefore important for both parties but there seem to be different reasons behind this objective.

During the meeting I learn that there is one more reason for the tensions felt - ASESAC was expecting to receive an additional financial support for the implementation of the means necessary to increase forest protection, such as additional guards for patrolling the territory. Aproverde, however, came to the meeting prepared not to spend an extra cent “if you have resources to have this young lady (pointing at me) to carry research for you, we do not want to believe you don’t have sufficient funds for vigilance purposes”. This last statement was groundless, almost silly I felt at a time, yet later I realized the representative of Aproverde purposely brought me up in the negotiations part because ASESAC was also using me to increase the validity of their effort.

Although both parties used the excuse of difficult financial times, it was clear which one had more leverage in this context and in many others that I will come to observe later on. The two partners not only differ in the level of actual institutional power each has. The reason behind ASESAC’s partnership with Aproverde is that the former is not powerful enough anymore to be an independent player in the field of NGO-ing. Aproverde’s conservationist efforts are backed by Guatemalan government, which allows the environmentalist NGO to co-administer protected areas. Sachs reviews the history of development organizations and draws attention to the fact that the threat of global warming makes the previous idea of development obsolete, not only it did not reduce the gap between rich and poor, ”Development-as-Growth is leading to a planet that is inhospitable to human life”(Sachs 2017: 2575). Further population growth means fewer

resources and thus a new approach to development is required – poverty becomes an ecological problem. If ASESAC represents the traditional “Development-as-growth”, Aproverde advocates

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ecodevelopment and conservation. On the other hand, NGO with more socially-oriented projects, such as ASESAC, is obliged to adjust its actions and to incorporate more ecodevelopmnent aspects into their agenda

Frog no one has seen

“What are the rules then?” asked Abraham in a meeting with local staff the week after. “Depends on the criteria, when we enter into a union with Aproverde, the criteria changes” responded Luis. Abraham was confused, se were Sara and Pedrito , the other two local ASESAC employees of Las Orquideas. The meeting was organized because Aproverde reported that Abraham sold a tree to someone from the nearby village, which is illegal in the protected area. The tree, however, had fallen by the force of nature; moreover it was blocking the path. So Abraham told local farmer he can cut it and take it home and the money the farmer paid would go to ASESAC’s treasury. What Abraham did not know, however, is that according to the new research done on forest biology, even if a tree is fallen, taking it away from its habitat interferes with ecosystem in a negative way. “But if ASESAC is an NGO which helps the poor, it should give firewood to those who need it, instead of protecting that frog which no one has even seen here” concludes Sara defending Abraham’s actions. Luis nods in agreement, however, it is not in his decision making power anymore.

Abraham has dedicated over 40 years of his life for the development organization. But his long term employer has recently started changing its work principles, which Abraham sees as a contradiction. The obligation to promote conservation might indeed contradict development the way Abraham understands it, such as providing housing and better access between villages.

I give you a clear example. So there above the tunnel, there is a village, there are few houses, four maybe. Then around four years or so they gathered and wanted to do something, and they did. Each neighbour even though their piece of land is tiny, it's little, gave a meter and a half. They wanted to broaden the path so the vehicles can pass. Only the owners could pass, everyone agreed, even decided to put a gate at the end with a lock so that it is private. But the lady who was the executive secretary in IDESAC then, refused [NGOs’ property borders the’ to be’ road]. IDESAC says they are for

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development, this extra meter that they gave was for the development. Here they are contradicting themselves. Not sure what do you think of that? (Interview, Abraham, January, 2018)

I accompanied Abraham on his routine patrol around the property to have a look at how much damage had been recently done. While walking he was telling me how before there was no forest here, but cornfields, which ASESAC was giving to farmers so they could work without paying for it. There was a cooperative which wanted to buy the land and build a ‘colonia’ [colony as in residential area]. “If that had happened maybe Pacul would have more buses than it does” speculated Abraham. But ‘the lady in charge’ as Abraham refers to her, took advantage of funds and afforested the land instead. They received money for some years but now it is over and “this forest is just there serving nothing, I would cut all the trees and sell them for Q500 each [equivalent to around 60 euros] and rent the land for cornfields”. Many times I have heard Abraham telling me about poor people he knows, he always sympathizes with the ones who suffer.

The communities situated in Alux, Pacul and Pachali, are used to receive sympathy in material form. NGO projects with social orientation have been present for decades – food package allocations for young families, poultry breeding in a collective. There was a diner in the village of Pachali providing food for people with no income. However, some people who still went to the diner did not belong to the eligible category of the poor, but kept going there because “it was free” as a member of the local farmers association told me. Guatemalan population is increasingly growing and from what I observed, local people often are reluctant to change their habits. Many pay TV cable but asked about gas stoves shake their heads saying it is not

affordable.

In contrast to the projects giving tangible, material benefits such as food or animals, Aproverde’s conservation oriented projects center around workshops and trainings to increase environmental conscience as well as collective afforestation activities. “If they don’t let us cut trees why don’t they give us gas stoves with subsidized gas” said Sara almost with irritation. They did, however, distribute upgraded stoves, which need far less wood, and asked families who received the stoves to participate in reforestation in return. What Aproverde offers to the communities is not always seen as “support”, because when something is given, restraints

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accompany the “gift”, those projects are long term oriented and might even be perceived as contentious. Aproverde constantly receives criticism from the communities for the decisions they make. Having been used to developmental projects, people tend to see environmentalism

prioritizing the natural world as absence of help.

In its historical overview, development in rural Guatemala is portrayed as a destructive force (Abbot 2017), an invasion of foreign investment ignoring cultural values. However, in the Alux mountain range development is strived for, and the issue the communities were facing was that development was in fact diminishing due to the rising importance of environmental agencies such as Aproverde. The road is development for Abraham and the many villagers he feels

solidarity with and his anxiety stems from this new shaky ground on which he finds himself – in between the discourses. He feels betrayed that the organization he has worked for so many decades does not choose the side of the poor anymore.

The legitimacy to exert power lies in owning the actualized knowledge (Foucault, 2003) and what I encountered while collaborating with ASESAC is that development agencies focusing on projects on modernization and growth have ceased to be influential actors in the field of NGO governance; a shift to eco-governance was taking place. ASESAC has been contributing to developmental efforts since 1964 with projects of social housing, micro credits and cooperatives, but in 2018 some of their previous efforts do not fit the actualized moral framework. The criteria are set by the most powerful and in this case it is Aproverde - an NGO with funds, influence and UN support, because the subject of its care – the natural world – is the priority of the Western world in the 21 century. Therefore Aproverde, the agency promoting conservation, has become the ruling authority. From Abraham’s point of view, the new criteria brought by

environmentalists are further increasing the suffering in the communities because it does not consider the needs of the poor, for this reason he feels upset that due to environmentalist impact in Alux, progress seems to be at halt now.

“Protected areas invading communities”

Partly provoked by the effect that the environmental agency had on the communities in Alux and partly because I was not able to explore tourism initiatives with ASESAC, I moved to another

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protected area on the Caribbean coast also administered by Aproverde, where ecotourism projects were abundant. In the protected area of River Sarstun I would be following the implementation of the same environmentalist policies. In this region rich with rainforests, development was lagging even more behind than Alux, with many communities living in detached places often only accessible by foot or kayak.

The area was declared protected in 2005 and was predominantly inhabited by Q’eqchi people. The area is administered by CONAP together with Aproverde and indigenous association Amantes de la Tierra (Earth lovers). From the first day of my arrival I encountered people eager to share stories of what they saw as environmentalist tyranny depriving locals of their usual and deserved livelihoods. However, it can be easy to collect evidence when one’s mind, in this case my own, is already set on the preferred direction and it is certainly a challenge to see through one’s own prejudice. I will convey the stories I was told because they reflect the phenomenon of environmentality, however, it should be clear that I do not necessarily share this worldview, at least not anymore.

On my first day in Sarstun I met with a coordinator of a small Q’eqchi NGO helping ‘their own people’, as he put it, with sustainable projects such as providing seeds or plants, water filters, improved stoves etc. I was hoping to obtain a list of active community managed

ecotourism sites in the area, because many sites advertised online have stopped receiving

visitors. Instead, within minutes the conversation turned to local issues and controversies. I asked him whether he was familiar with the projects coordinated by Aproverde. “Aproverde has a bad reputation here” was his initial reply. The coordinator explained how the protected area was declared without consulting the locals, how traditional ways of managing forests and dealing with the environment were not considered. He also said that the document left space for petroleum companies to extract oil. He further criticized the talks, workshops and capacity training organized by the environmentalist NGO as useless practices, which are only done for appearances, to create the image that they are working with people. All this effort to establish bonds with communities aims at appeasing the people who feel deprived of their home, land and tradition.

I felt intrigued, upset and motivated at the same time after having been told the ‘reality’ of Sarstun. The coordinator recommended I read an article named “How protected areas invade

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the communities” where Sarstun communities’ struggles are explained. It was in fact a book, written by a Guatemalan anthropologist Tally (2014) in collaboration with the indigenous association of the area. A sensitive account of local Q’eqchi people struggles over land tenure and a subsequent environmentalist entry annihilating all the previous efforts by declaring the area protected. The book portrays the change as a violation of rights, individual as well as communal, since it limits the practice of traditional lifestyles by imposing new rules. Few days later I was having dinner at one of the families when the brother of the host Juan started telling me the already heard story about protected areas invading the communities.

The environmentalists saw the map and a green area and didn’t bother to take a closer look to see that apart from forest there are people living, have been living for a hundred of years, have been the ones taking care of those green areas. They just looked from satellite and declared it a protected area ignoring us, the people. Animals go after, we should be first. (Conversation with Juan, February, 2018)

He turned out to be one of the leaders of the Indigenous Association who in fact now works for Aproverde. I was confused by all of it somehow. Juan gave me an explanation of his dual collaboration: “if we don’t enter, all the money will end up in the hands of an NGO”. The

communities might not have as much power when the decision of land status was made, but they are now beneficiaries of funds assigned to maintain the nature.

It is us looking after the forest daily, since the foundation of the community in 1920s, so now when they [refers to Aproverde] get money for all those trees it all belongs to us, for all those years, and we will carry on looking after it and won’t cut big trees anymore. (Interview, Miguel, February, 2018)

Miguel, one of the community leaders in Plan Grande village told me the above which repeats Juan and adds something important in my opinion – they are willing to go back to being the forest ‘guardians’ – considerate of the importance that forests have, and to change their practices if they are to be offered benefits for such effort. Communities are of very scarce resources so it is only understandable that monetary incentives are vital. However, it also indicated a change in thinking about the world, Miguel emphasized that Q’eqchi has better connection with nature because of their ancestral links and therefore are the deserved guardians. Later I learned that

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looking after the forest now is a routinized activity, it means patrolling day and night in turns. It is an extra job for which individuals will be remunerated at the end of each year because there are funds allocated for the protection of Sarstun nature. I was doubtful whether the practice of rewarding afterwards is the most suitable way; however, the new rules were being slowly accepted in exchange of tangible benefits and were slowly changing the way people talk about who they are.

Solutions to environmental problems require changes in individual behavior by which new environmental subjects are made (Agrawal 2005: 294). Communities, as expressed by Aproverde’s representative, should be made to understand the benefits that conservationism brings, therefore the environmental NGO is actively educating populations via workshops and capacity training sessions in order to alter individual perceptions of what is the appropriate way to live in a protected area. People in Sarstun often expressed their disagreement with

Aproverde’s outlook, nevertheless, they were slowly becoming allies in the conservationsit effort because economic benefits could be obtained from the participation. Writing on Amazonian natives collaboration with environmentalists, Conklin and Graham describe the process of how “natives become allies” with the prospect of using the environmental framework instrumentally and make political claims Conklin and Graham 1995: 697). Although the change of the land status into a national protected reserve was initially perceived as invasion, the possibility to partake in the management of the forest increases local people motivation to obey the new rules.

The authorities of what can be called ‘environmentality’ are also made up before imposing new frameworks. The traditional development oriented NGO ASESAC fears the loss of power and is subsequently adjusting its values to fit the new system. It subsequently starts teaching its staff and beneficiary groups new principles and rules. The local employees of ASESAC do not yet perceive the importance of preserving the new species of the frog, or the idea behind leaving fallen trees to rot, especially when hunger in the communities can be alleviated with fire wood. I met them at the initiating phase of environmentality, which allowed me to witness what feelings the imposed mentality produces in its subjects. My thesis provides evidence capturing the change from development to eco governance regime in the context of particular areas of Guatemala. It demonstrates how an NGO representing itself as a development agency attempts to re-evaluate its morality in order to be part of the new governance.

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The combination of “green” values and outsiders increased interest in the way local people live result in a renewed reflection upon one’s own identity. Some of my interlocutors justified the collaboration with environmentalists as an enactment of their true Mayan identity, which I will argue is a result of the new paradigm rather than its basis. In the following chapter I will focus on the ‘ally-making’ strategies that Aproverde propagates in order to be successful, and will look at how local employees become supporters of the NGO actions.

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Chapter 2. NGO-ing and its effects

“There are places where no one comes to say what is it that we have to do, if they are an NGO then that is what they should do” (Interview with Julio, March, 2018)

I had come across compelling anthropological work portraying NGOs as agencies imposing Western type of modernization and subjugating individuals to alienating norms and practices (Di Giovine 2010Sammells 2014; Tally 2014), and further victimizing the already underprivileged desperate people who are in no position to return NGO gifts (Fassin 2007). The populations of rural Guatemala have often demonstrated conflicting relationship with NGO developmental work not always approving of the agendas that organizations bring (Abbot 2017). Therefore, when during an interview Julio, a long term member of local COCODE (Community Advice on Urban and Rural Development), told me he thought NGOs should be more involved in his community, I was inspired to re-evaluate my previous convictions regarding NGO work. I will look at NGO effects depending on actors’ relation to the NGO and its projects mostly focusing on local ASESAC and Aproverde employees and will argue that in a context where state support is absent, NGOs can in fact become the security guarantor, something that Julio was missing in his community.

Proud to be trained guides

I arrived at Barra Sarstun village because Aproverde has a community tourism site here. I was eager to visit the site hoping it would be the perfect spot for the research project I had designed, an ecotourism site administered by locals where thoughts on NGO and tourism could be

explored. I found here something else from what was expected – an abandoned hotel in the middle of the forest on the riverbank and the three locals, now NGO employees and trained guides, dedicated to take care of the neglecgted site waiting for the visitors who rarely come nowadays.

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The coordinator in the capital had mentioned that the project is not going well, he told me of internal conflicts and that distance played a role in the lack of success. Sarstun is a river marking state boundaries, on the other side of Sarstun starts Belize. It is not an easy task to get to this place but a decade earlier Aproverde still chose to invest in this site. I had been instructed to find the women committee members which Aproverde helped organizing, however, turns out it is the men who are in charge here and the women group is disintegrating and meets only occasionally to bake and sell bread together. I wait for few hours for the men to return, have some chit chats with Maria, the wife of the community leader, have lunch, read on the pier, drink coffee and do nothing. I spend hours waiting for people to show up in this country so I am used to the suspense feeling.

Marcos and his colleague Samuel take me to the tourism site. From the pier I can already see that the place is a big contrast to how Marco’s community looks like. The hotel is not

elevated above the water like any other fishermen house, it is hidden among the trees inland, it is a huge two story building. Differently than a regular house in the community made solely out of wood, the hotel was constructed using concrete, decorated with wood, has modern glass

windows with blinds built-in. There is a man vaguely greeting us, the third colleague [compañero] Ricardo, behind him, sitting on the concrete stairs in the doorway is his wife, looking down and a crying baby girl on her lap. A toddler of around four runs towards me, I am trying to talk to him but he keeps mumbling something which is probably in Q’eqchi, the

language which would become my all inside jokes and stories blocking gatekeeper distancing me from many groups within Q’eqchi communities.

The hotel looks more like a squat – there is no water because the well broke, nor

electricity, because the solar panels need new battery. They built it like a hostel with dorms and bunk beds probably expecting to accommodate big groups. Some doors are missing planks, windows cannot be opened anymore, the bathroom used as storage by the employees living on the site. There are sport kayaks lined up in the storage all in need to be fixed and not used anymore. The river, mangroves and forests are beautiful and calming but the deteriorated hotel with its employees and crying children loads the air with heavy feeling

I start asking questions: do many people come? How long have they worked for the organization? What training workshops have they attended? Did they like it? Is it difficult to

Ambiguous effects of NGO governance in protected areas of Guatemala