LATIN AMERICA WEEK 2009

ALBERTA CARIÑO TRUJILLO

She is Mixtec woman from Oaxaca who works in CACTUS (Centre of Community Support Working Together), a Mixtec peasant organisation which is part of MAIZ (Agrarian Zapatista Indigenous Movement) and of the broader coalition “No Maize, No Country”. This organisation has extensive work in the area of food sovereignty, promoting sowing for local consumption and local barter, community water management, soil conservation, women's productive collectives, etc. They run an Agrarian School, Ricardo Flores Magón, which has as its mission to recover traditional and autonomous alimentary systems. CACTUS also advocates gender equality issues.

JUAN CAMBINDO CUENU
Juan Cambindo Cuenu is Director of the Sugar Cane Workers Union in Colombia. He is a worker of the sugarcane industry since 30 years ago. Since 1997 until now he works in the Manuelita Sugar Plantation, one of the biggest in the department of Valle del Cauca. Nowadays he is member of Sintrainal, which groups the workers of the food industry in Colombia. Juan Cambindo has been a outstanding leader of the Sugar cane sector and has participated of the different fights in defence of the rights of the sugar cane cutters. During the last strike from 15th September to 12th November 2008, he was spokesman of the workers and member of the negociation team between the workers and the government.