Cáritas Latin America and the Caribbean, in collaboration with Cáritas Norway, presents a research titled "The Periphery is the center: strengthening local leadership for the Amazon from Cáritas Latin America and the Caribbean". The work has been coordinated by the researcher Eduardo Ernesto Arias Rodas and the Coordinator of Knowledge Management and Projects of Cáritas Latin America and the Caribbean, Jose Oscar Henao Monje. It also has contributions from Nicolás Meyer, Damiana Lanusse and Liliana Zamudio Vaquiro.

The research is available in full version and executive summary. The document seeks to be a contribution from Cáritas' territorial experience in the Amazon Basin to the global discussion on the "localization" of humanitarian aid.

Its main objective is to integrate humanitarian action with sustainable development, recognizing and empowering local communities as key actors in the protection and management of the Amazon.

Local voices and fraternal cooperation

In the face of the multifaceted crisis facing the Amazon, Cáritas Latin America and the Caribbean, in collaboration with its partners, proposes a model for strengthening local leadership ("localization") focused on the periphery as the axis of transformation.

This model, built through a participatory process with national Caritas and fraternal cooperation, articulates three interrelated dimensions: flexible and sustainable financing for the development of local capacities, the action of the Catholic Church based on solidarity, fraternal cooperation and subsidiarity, and solutions based on communities and nature, prioritizing the preservation of traditional knowledge.

Potential and challenges

The analysis of good practices of national Cáritas in Brazil, Bolívia, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela and Colombia shows the potential of this approach to empower Amazonian communities. However, the document also identifies persistent challenges, such as a lack of flexibility in financing by international organizations and resistance to change to cede power and prominence to local actors.

Cáritas positions itself as a key actor in facilitating localization, acting as a bridge between donors and local organizations to ensure that aid is effective and adapted to the realities of the context. The proposal seeks to contribute to overcoming the limitations of the conventional localization agenda, offering a more comprehensive approach that enhances community leadership.