My Journey in Ecuador with the International Reporting Project
By Kimberly Crane | October 19, 2015 | Ecuador
When I began working at World Pulse in 2010, one of my very first assignments introduced me to a unique characteristic of Ecuador. The rights of nature were enshrined in its recently adopted (circa 2008) constitution. This means the natural environment is not regarded solely as property of humans, and has its own legal standing. At the time, I was working on the Earth edition of the World Pulse print magazine and I remember thinking: This is a very different way to look at the world.
A different way to look at the world. This is the reason I am endlessly fascinated with the stories I encounter on World Pulse and it is the reason I am in Quito, Ecuador, today embarking on a journey with the International Reporting Project. I will be traveling throughout the country reporting on health, development, and environmental issues, along with 10 truly impressive journalists.
My flight from Portland landed in Quito at 10pm on Saturday. As our taxi wound its way upwards in darkness and thick cloud cover, I could see very little of my surroundings. I could only sense our upward trajectory towards the highest capital city in the world (at 9,350 ft above sea level). And I was hit with the reality of how little I know about this country where I will spend the next couple of weeks.
The next morning, sunlight streamed through my hotel window, lifting the veil of mystery from the night before. I woke up feeling only the excitement and energy of the city I saw bustling below me. I was eager to begin learning about the forces shaping the lives of the people I saw passing by.
By all accounts, the bold ideals of Ecuador's 2008 constitution have not been a panacea for the all of the diverse peoples of Ecuador (nor its flora and fauna). I am still interested, as I was in 2010, in bold ideals. But I am especially interested in grassroots efforts—to which women are often central—to hold those in positions of power accountable to the ideals.
I am looking forward to meeting inspiring change makers at the center of some very important conversations. In less than 48 hours in Ecuador I have already noticed that many of the challenges facing the country—from the environment, to reproductive rights, to natural disaster response, to the distribution of resources and opportunity—are relevant in my home country of the United States. I imagine these issues are relevant in many parts of the world. I plan to update this journal as I go and I will try as much as possible to bring these conversations back here to World Pulse. So stay tuned and follow along!
You can read more about the trip and my fellow reporters at the International Reporting Project.
You can also follow the trip on social media with the hashtag #IRPFellows.
Finally, if you know of someone in Ecuador with an important story to tell related to issues of gender, health, development, and the environment, please send me a message.
Thank you for joining me on this journey!
This story was also published on WorldPulse.
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