A Discussion with Cristel Quiroz, Architect, TECHO Volunteer, and Former Student, Central American University, Managua, Nicaragua
With: Cristel Quiroz Berkley Center Profile
July 24, 2014
Background: As part of the Education
and Social Justice Project, in July 2014 undergraduate student Gianna Maita interviewed
Cristel Quiroz, a TECHO volunteer and former student at Central American University (Universidad Centroamericana, UCA). In this interview, she discusses the needs of the populations
that TECHO serves and the relationships between students and community members.
What
are the needs of the communities that you work in?
The needs always arise from housing. In Nicaragua, there is a huge problem with adequate housing, and the families are big. It is not only housing: it is also a series of social, political, and economic problems; it has to do with everything. But we work on housing and also in community development… [The people] look for ways to achieve their goal, which is to improve their barrio, to do projects that bring basic housing services.
In projects that are connected with the UCA, how does the UCA respond to this problem of housing?
The reality is that the UCA does not help very much, because we come here only to recruit students who would like to be volunteers. But in reality this organization, TECHO, is filled with lots of people from the UCA. …We are trying to have a better union in order to complete more activities, but it is not set in stone yet… If we want to do activities or campaigns here they do not provide space. If we want to present our projects, they do not give us the option to come, and they do not give permission to do it.
Can you talk about the relationships between student volunteers and people in the community?
In general students from here are very responsible and attentive to what they do or say when they are in the community. We know to be cautious and not say things that could bother people... In general we have relationships because we do social projects; the UCA also has this humanitarian part of its work. All of us could say that a very good relationship exists. …When members of the community realize that we are going to help them, they are happy. They try to be helpful… For example, if anyone is tired or anything like that they offer water, sodas, fruit. They are accommodating.
The needs always arise from housing. In Nicaragua, there is a huge problem with adequate housing, and the families are big. It is not only housing: it is also a series of social, political, and economic problems; it has to do with everything. But we work on housing and also in community development… [The people] look for ways to achieve their goal, which is to improve their barrio, to do projects that bring basic housing services.
In projects that are connected with the UCA, how does the UCA respond to this problem of housing?
The reality is that the UCA does not help very much, because we come here only to recruit students who would like to be volunteers. But in reality this organization, TECHO, is filled with lots of people from the UCA. …We are trying to have a better union in order to complete more activities, but it is not set in stone yet… If we want to do activities or campaigns here they do not provide space. If we want to present our projects, they do not give us the option to come, and they do not give permission to do it.
Can you talk about the relationships between student volunteers and people in the community?
In general students from here are very responsible and attentive to what they do or say when they are in the community. We know to be cautious and not say things that could bother people... In general we have relationships because we do social projects; the UCA also has this humanitarian part of its work. All of us could say that a very good relationship exists. …When members of the community realize that we are going to help them, they are happy. They try to be helpful… For example, if anyone is tired or anything like that they offer water, sodas, fruit. They are accommodating.
Opens in a new window