IRTF News

On Saturday, May 3, I flew to southern Arizona where I stayed for two and a half weeks for a border witness delegation. While hiking in the desert doing water drops, we always found clothing, shoes, and jackets left behind by migrants who had passed before us. There were also many black water bottles—used because they’re harder for Border Patrol to spot in the dark. Holding a black bottle and thinking about which hands had held it before was very powerful for me.

The whole trip to the borderlands was deeply meaningful to me. It gave me a much deeper understanding of the situation at the US-Mexico border and a deeper emotional sense of what migration means, not only at this border but at all borders. Seeing the vastness and dangers of the desert, walking on the same paths as people trying to migrate—this was very different from reading articles or looking at photos.

What I experienced brought me closer to IRTF—our  work and our mission.

Please consider donating to IRTF to make meaningful experiences like this possible for future volunteer staff associates.

This week, from July 14-16, the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS), Transnational Institute (TNI), Honduras Solidarity Network (HSN) and TerraJusta will co-host a three-day convening with local partners, the Network of Women Human Rights Defenders (RADDH), MASSVida y Caritas Honduras, in Choluteca, Honduras: ‘Without Human Rights, Energy Sovereignty Does Not Exist: A Meeting of Communities Affected by Energy Projects in Southern Honduras.’ The Central American country is facing an onslaught of international arbitration claims in secretive corporate courts, over a third of which have arisen from the renewable energy sector. This convening will shine a critical spotlight and offer an in-depth look at the negative impacts and community-driven opposition to the solar energy projects that benefited from deepening privatization and slew of renewable energy contracts approved in 2014, during the period known as the narcodictatorship. 

The recent arrests of two Maya leaders is emblematic of increasing repression and criminalization of Indigenous peoples by the Guatemalan state. With regards to Guatemala’s current state of affairs, many claim that the Public Ministry, Attorney General, and various judges criminalize human rights defenders and Indigenous peoples. It has been over two months since Pacheco and Chaclán were arrested, and the case is symbolic of the justice system in Guatemala, which works in favor of the Pact of Corrupt. “We are in a country that lives off corruption, that protects corruption, and that maintains impunity in many cases,” Herrera says. Yet, what is clear in talking to Herrera is that despite this criminalization and institutional challenges, they will continue to struggle undeterred and seek Pacheco’s and Chaclán’s freedom. 

IRTF board members traveled to Massachusetts in June when Equal Exchange, an alternative trade organization (ATO), hosted its eighth annual Summit.  This year, the energy was palpable and the room was full! It was a powerful reminder that we are at a turning point in our mission to build a truly democratic brand and foster meaningful participation in our food system.

These gatherings are core to the work we are doing with the People-Consumer community here at Equal Exchange. In a world where democracy is under threat, our work is more important now than ever before. Equal Exchange extends a special thanks to all the presenters and to the keynote speaker, Austin Frerick.  Austin is the author of the book Barons: Money, Power & Corruption of America’s Food Industry. Consolidation of power in our food system threatens the future of independent food and has been a cornerstone topic in our organizing work. Austin’s book and keynote grounded the group and set us up for more in-depth conversations with all of our amazing presenters.

Sessions covered a gamut of topics, from Equal Exchange’s alternative capital and governance model to our work with farmers and consumers.

Guatemala has more fresh water than most countries, but its Indigenous population lacks safe, reliable access.

Human Rights Watch emphasized that the Guatemalan military’s legacy of racist policies continued to shape water access. During the country’s civil war, military campaigns targeted Indigenous communities, destroying infrastructure and displacing populations. Post-war reconstruction efforts largely excluded Indigenous areas, perpetuating inequality. The report stated, “The Guatemalan military’s historical role in marginalizing Indigenous communities laid the groundwork for today’s water crisis. Infrastructure development has consistently prioritized urban, non-Indigenous regions.”