Visions for the future: Gendered environmental contestations in Toj Coman, Guatemala

Keywords: Guatemala, Gender, Indigeneity, Development, Temporality
Abstract Type: Paper Abstract

Abstract

The women’s collective in the Mam Maya town of Toj Coman, Guatemala formed in 2005 to meet basic needs of women in their community, building a public water tank and wash basins at a time when most did not have domestic potable water. They have since expanded their work to include organic farming, tourism work, commercialization of their textile arts, and mutual aid. Women struggle against what they say was a transformation of gender relations that began with the invasion of the Spanish onto Mayan territories over 500 years ago and persists through the devaluation of women’s labor and knowledge and lack of representation in local Indigenous-led politics. In this paper, I draw on a 6-year participatory research collaboration with the Toj Coman women’s collective and scholarship in Indigenous, feminist, and temporal geographies to discuss gendered contestations around built and natural environments in Toj Coman. Women make up a majority of the Toj Coman population due to outmigration of men to the United States. However, they struggle to have their visions for the future of Toj Coman considered in local politics. Remittances help fund the extensive development that has quickly transformed their community. There are new houses, improved infrastructure, and more vehicles on the roads --but women assert that they need a health clinic, scholarships for women and girls, and a youth recreation center. Although women largely believe that local development has been positive, they are concerned that without women’s representation in local decision-making, it will leave their needs unmet.