Dos Corrientes- An Eco-Model for Community Self Development

Dos Corrientes began on a wind-swept hillside overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Manabí, near a poor village of 385 people subsisting on rice and fish. Two Canadians came here years ago, bought 20 hectares of land with a gorgeous view, kept returning year after year, and in 2021 came to Ecuador for full time residency. The only economic industry in this remote area is fishing, and these two expats wanted to develop an ecological and organic model of self-development to benefit the nearby villagers and help them alleviate their poverty. The plan for holistic assistance and self-reliance for the nearby residents’ benefit encompasses elements of micro-financing, instruction, permaculture, hands-on experience, and shared communal work. All that, including needed income to the community, can become a model to be utilized anywhere in Ecuador to assist poor settlements that need to find methods to improve their own lifestyles.