Pre-Trip Readings Quito
Ecuador Political/Economic Situation
Being half Ecuadorian myself, I am a little ashamed that I did not know much about the political and economic concerns that face this beautiful and diverse country and its people. Ecuadorian history is tumultuous, and the country still seems to be struggling with democracy. I was surprised to learn that the current president, Rafael Correa was a US trained economist. I was slightly aware that U.S. and Ecuador relations were being strained recently due to a number of factors, mainly involving Venezuela, which publicly denounces the United States. I was also aware that Ecuador is right in the middle of one of the highest narcotic producing region in the world. I remember seeing news articles about drug submarines from Columbian cartels being stashed away in Ecuador’s rivers on the northern border. I did not realize that Peru was a huge drug region as well. Being in an area of drug related unrest, along with an economy that is highly dependent on oil exports, and a government with a history of coups and political corruption, Ecuador is relatively unstable. I did not realize that 40 percent of the population lived in poverty. When I told my mother all of these things, even she did not realize the extent of the changes that had happened when she left almost 25 years ago. She lived in Ecuador during a time of economic growth and development. The country still had its own currency, the Ecuadorian Sucre and compared to today the country was more stable.
Since this article was from 2008, almost seven years ago, it would be interesting to see how much the economic and political landscape of Ecuador has changed. Rafael Correa is going on his third term as president of Ecuador, and some analysts have said that he has done a lot to lower poverty rates in the country. As this article indicates, he also was opposed to the extension of lease for a U.S. operated air base in Ecuador, and his policies went after foreign companies that were in control of Ecuador’s oil resources. He seems like a very nationalistic president. Correa also stood up for Ecuador’s sovereignty when he spoke out against the Columbian raid on a FARC camp in Ecuadorian territory. Ecuador has had a history of territory losses so I can see why he is favored as a president. Recently however, Correa has been drawing some negative attention for his dissent of the media. He was even calling out specific twitter users by name at a rally that were tweeting negatively about him. In a democratic society, freedom of the press is a must, and having a president who wishes to silence the media when it speaks out seems like a contradiction to this type of governmental system.
Quito/Quito Bus System
Quito is the colonial and political capital of Ecuador. It is nestled high up in the Andes Mountains, its growth limited to northern and southern expansion along the valley in which it lies due to the high peaks surrounding it. Quito lives in the shadow of many active volcanoes. The volcanoes have the capacity to be destructive and currently are rumbling. Most of my family lives in Quito currently. Quito is the second largest city in Ecuador, next to Guayaquil. What this reading taught me about Quito was that there is a growing problem with illegal neighborhoods and settlements. These peripheral neighbor hoods are shanty towns, many lacking basic civil services such as trash collection and indoor plumbing. When I asked my mom about this she only mentioned the poor neighborhoods in the older parts of Quito, but she was surprised to see these hovels on the mountainsides around the city. With the economic focus moving away from farm exports and more towards oil exports, these migrants needed a cheaper place to live closer to the centers of industry by the major cities. There are also rural neighborhoods in which some families rely on subsistence farming for food. Poverty is no stranger to major cities around the world, but I feel that in countries like Ecuador, where there is a developing frame work for social policies, these poor illegal settlements become much more of an issue.
One thing that Quito does better than most major cities I have been to in America is the public transportation. Reading about the bus system that is used in Quito, I can see how much thought and effort was put into this system to make it work in an expedient and reliable fashion. The bus system, modeled after the green city of Curitiba in Brazil, is extremely efficient. Busses have their own lanes of traffic, which sometimes move faster than other car lanes. At first when reading through this article, the complexity and coverage of the bus system made me wonder why a rail system of this caliber was not installed. I realize now that the busses have the ability to be shunted out to different routes if the need arises. American cities that I have been too do not have efficient means of bus transportation. Busses are often late and the bus routes are arduous and unreasonable. The fact that there is specific little bus tubes that ensure the accuracy and timeliness of transfers and pickups makes the whole system vastly more efficient than SEPTA in Philadelphia or the local NJ transit. Busses are also cheaper than trains in regards with maintenance. The only city I have been too with a comparable public transportation system was Vancouver, Canada. Here there were trains that were automated and took you to almost every major spot in the city. There were also buses that ran until 4am but they were similar to our bus system and thus took much longer than the train.
Ecuadorian Environmental Policy
For being such a small country, Ecuador has a wide array of diverse and sensitive landscapes. The coastal, Andean, and rainforest regions comprise the mainland and the Galapagos Islands which are owned by Ecuador offer another vestige of diverse and incredible wildlife diversity. Managing these precious resources would be a problem for any country, let alone a country that is as politically and economically unstable such as Ecuador. Many Ecuadoreans, however, value and respect their natural resources and this can be seen directly in environmental policies passed by Ecuadorian government. Ecuador has an extensive area of wild life preserves and national parks. Ecuador’s constitution even grants its citizens the right to live in an environmentally stable country. It has even received recognition from the World Wildlife Fund in response to its sustainability and environmental policies. Ecuador was the first country to also ratify the Kyoto protocol. It is clear to me that Ecuador and its citizens, although not perfect, exemplify an attitude about the environment that would work wonders if employed by other countries around the world.