07/12/05

Chapter Four

During our assessment, we asked local residents frequently about the changes they wished to see in the next few years, as well as those aspects of their lives they hoped they could maintain.  This section will address the aspirations and priorities that seemed to be most important to local people, and discuss the potential positive and negative outcomes that could arise if these changes were to take place.   This section may be a helpful summary of what Monkey River residents want and believe, and a useful starting point for future discussions about change and development in the village. 

In both interviews and during the community forum activity, Monkey River Town residents overwhelmingly favored obtaining a full-time electricity supply to the village.  People seemed to think that electricity would not only make life more comfortable for local people, but would also enable the village to attract more tourists to spend longer vacations in the village.  If tourists are able to stay for longer periods of time, they will likely spend more money in Monkey River Town, creating improved business opportunities for local people operating restaurants, boarding houses, guided jungle tours and fishing trips, as well as those selling souvenirs.  

The benefits of a constant source of electricity would include making cooking, cleaning and other everyday tasks less time consuming and difficult.  In addition, having a plentiful supply of electricity would make the possibility of both children and adults having access to more telephones, and possibly even computers more likely in the future.  Having electrical lighting in the evenings would allow people to accomplish more tasks after dark that now have to be finished before sundown.

Some people interviewed expressed concern about the possible negative changes that electricity might bring to Monkey River.  Several adult residents talked about the potentially negative influences of American television and music, and seemed to appreciate the fact that these cultural influences had not reached their remote village yet.  Many people in American and other cultures have blamed the images and words of modern television shows and music for increasingly violent trends in youth culture. 

Actually getting a constant source of electricity in Monkey River Town is a major challenge in itself.  After the hurricane, the government put in telephone poles and wiring through the village, but the system does not connect to the outside grid, which is fourteen miles away.  Hooking up to the grid would be a challenge, because of the significant distance, lack of roads, and lack of heavy machinery, cables, and technical expertise to build the rest of the structures required.  The community should possibly consider petitioning the federal government for assistance if this appears to be the most logical way to pursue a constant electrical source.    

Another possible source of electricity would be a community generator.  The town does have a damaged electric generator which hasn’t produced power for months.  If it were repaired, the town would again have an alternate source of electricity, although it might not be sufficient to supply the entire village, twenty-four hours a day.  Challenges of this option include finding someone who is able to repair the generator, or the money to purchase another generator if the old one cannot be repaired, and the cost of buying and transporting diesel fuel to run the generator once it works again.

A final option for solving the electricity dilemma would be to install solar panels on every home and business with sufficient storage capacity to provide twenty-four hour power.  There may be a challenge providing a constant source on cloudy days, and especially during the rainy season when the sky is overcast for weeks at a time.  A backup generator could be used to provide electricity on these occasions.  One positive aspects of using solar panels is that solar energy is “clean”, that is, does not produce any pollution, such as the exhaust that would come from burning diesel fuel in a generator.  Solar energy is also quiet, and uses a plentiful resource, sunlight, which is abundant most of the year in the area.  However, there are several drawbacks to depending on solar energy as well.  First, solar panels are expensive to purchase, and may require maintenance that local people aren’t familiar with.  Second, as mentioned before, cloudy days present a problem collecting solar power, and a backup source of power may be necessary. 

Conservation efforts similar to those used with Monkey River’s community water supply may work for electricity as well.  If the village decides to invest together in a source of constant electrical power, households may pay a flat monthly fee to fund the maintenance of the power lines, generator, diesel fuel or solar panels, and be charged an additional fee for every kilowatt hour they exceed their monthly allocation.  This additional charge would encourage people to think carefully about how and when they use their electricity.

The biggest challenge with any of these choices, of course, is finding the money to fund the project.  Community organizations such as the village council may be able to network to outside groups for funding, or organize a cooperative effort in the village to raise money or supplies.  Choosing an option such as solar power may attract environmental groups who are concerned about the preservation and protection of local ecosystems may be interested in helping to fund solar panels for the village. 

 From our discussions with local people, there appear to be two types of improvements sought by Monkey River residents.  First, changes within the village were desired, such as building playgrounds and sports fields for children, cleaning up the paths and beach, creating jobs, improving health care, and creating groups for children and women.  Second, changes outside the village were also mentioned, such as improving the road to Independence, protecting the nearby jungle and sea environment, and links leading to the growth of the tourist industry.  In this section, we will discuss local peoples' wants and needs within the village. 

During the community meeting, the women’s group in particular expressed an interest in these issues.   First, the wellbeing of Monkey River Village’s children was a major concern.  Adult residents hoped for improvements in recreational, educational and future employment opportunities for children in Monkey River.  Women desired improved playgrounds, sports fields, and possibly a youth group with activities for the children.  Others talked about how the education system could be made more relevant to life in Monkey River Village, including information about local history, cultures, traditions, geography, and wildlife in the curriculum, as well as better preparing children for entering high school.  Finally, adult residents wished to see more thoughtful planning for the future, including the creation of employment opportunities to give youth the option of staying in Monkey River as adults, rather than having to move away to find work and raise families of their own. 

Second, the lack of a doctor in the village was a major concern for nearly everyone we spoke with.  Although there is a nurse there now, who dispenses medicine and acts as midwife, there was general agreement that for emergencies and more serious ailments, a doctor was needed.

Third, the infrastructure of the village was a concern in particular to women residents.  People expressed an interest in fixing up the community center to be prepared in the event of another hurricane, cleaning up streets and the beach and improving the paths through the village.  Also concerning physical property in Monkey River, several older villagers were concerned about passing property on to young residents, and stressed that keeping ownership local was essential for maintaining local control of land and resources.

Finally, the women’s group in particular wanted to see improvements and changes in their own lives in Monkey River Village.  Several mentioned wanting to see more employment opportunities for women, and a women’s group that would enable more women to have a voice in community decision making.

There were several improvements sought that involved creating or improving links from Monkey River to areas outside the village.  First, the men in particular really wanted to see the tourism industry grow, especially guided fishing tours.  Expanding the tourist industry would require not only improvements within Monkey River Village to attract tourists to stay there, but improved links and advertising to areas where tourists are already.  Monkey River guides could increase their presence and advertising in Placencia and Punta Gorda, trying to attract tourists staying there to come visit Monkey River.  Monkey River Guides could also advertise on a larger scale, possibly using the internet or a national company to book tours.  The Monkey River Tour Guide Association could take an active role in figuring out how many tourists or trips the village could handle at one time, and decide from there how to pursue attracting more tourists.

Second, people wanted to see an improved transportation link to Independence.  Several possible solutions were discussed.  First, a bridge could be built across Monkey River to allow easy travel back and forth.  Although this would make travel of people and goods across the river much easier, there were concerns about choosing this option.  Some people expressed concern that now, the river acts as a boundary, or as one resident put it, “the police force”, isolating and protecting Monkey River from unwanted outsiders and influence.  Depending on whether the bridge built was a footbridge or a larger one designed for vehicles, the lack of infrastructure in Monkey River Village might be a problem.  Nearly everyone we spoke to did not want motorized vehicles in the village. Another option is that a ferry service could be started, and money charged to take people back and forth across the river.  Maybe people with boats could form a group that would designate shifts for different operators to ferry people across.  This could even become like a co-op, in which the money they raise charging people to use the ferry could become a community fund available for making repairs to boats or buying new boats.  Finally, people discussed improving the road to Independence.  This would be difficult without additional outside funding and use of heavy machinery, but it would make the trips to town for the market and for high school easier for residents. 

Third, people were interested in protecting the local natural resources, such as the wildlife in the jungle, and the fish populations in the sea.  Monkey River Village residents depend on these resources for survival and should care about their protection for present and future use.  Monkey River residents need to stay informed about decisions being made about natural resources by outside groups that may affect their livelihood.  The community organizations in Monkey River can be important in this process, learning about changes in the regulations and the status of nearby lands, and keeping other residents informed.  Community organizations can also take an active role in trying to influence some of these decisions.

If the current proposal for a major resort development in Paynes Creek National Park moves forward, both Punta Negra and Monkey River Village could see monumental changes in their economy and their environment. Most importantly, the Punta Negra Lagoon is part of the planned development concession and as a prime fly fishing location will be marketed heavily to foreign tourists. The number of foreign visitors will likely skyrocket within a few years once the resort is established. As part of the development proposal, cruise ships may be docking off the coast. These ships will bring a large number of daily and overnight visitors to the entire region—but especially to the planned resort between the two villages. The reality of a major resort being carved out of a National Park had one informant say, “We’re just protecting these lands until this one or then next Prime Minister decides to open the land up to development”. The sense of despair and ambivalence among local environmentalists and community leaders is very real. At the same time, some local residents see the resort as a potential economic boon and are interested to see it come as long as it can be “contained” in the resort area. The employment of local villagers at the resort and the potential for increased visitors to the villages are anticipated, but it is unclear if these employment gains will be realized. It is also unknown how many outside workers might be brought in to work at the new resorts. For example, the nearby commercial farm, Monkey River Estates, employs over 1600 workers. Almost all of the workers are immigrant labor from Guatemala and Honduras. On a smaller scale, we noticed that immigrant workers were hired to work on two on-going construction projects in MRV. If immigrant labor is preferred, even within the village, it is unclear how many jobs from the new resort will reserved for local residents.

In terms of how the village itself might change, one resident summed it up as, “Once this town has electricity, its going to turn into Placencia”. This attitude seems to be reflected in the ambivalence some residents feel toward having a bridge that connects the village to the main road to Independence. While maintaining “water taxi” fares was often cited as the main reason for refusing a bridge, others saw the bridge as source of crime and development in the village. The sense was that once foreign investors finally “discover” these two villages and can get to it easily by car—they will be drawn in and the land rush will begin. The challenge for leaders in both villages is to determine how to promote the development of the community without losing control of the development process.