Blog post by Tina Winterlik © 2014
zipolita@gmail.com
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Hola, It has come to my attention that there is talk of the government of Oaxaca or ?? is going to try to change the land in Zipolite from Ejido
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ejido to letting the people have deeds to their land so they can sell it.
I just want to make sure the people of Zipolite understand the full ramifications of this. Bucerias is a good example. For 20+ I visited Bucerias. At first is was just a small town with little hotels that you could rent a room with a kitchen for $12Cdn a night. That was in 1988.
Since then I have watched it change immensely. I stayed there in 2001 when I was pregnant with my daughter. I lived across the very noisy highway with all the poorer Mexicans. It was humbling to say the least. Down at the waterfront, a clever business man had built up beautiful million dollar homes all along it and sold them to wealthy Americans and Canadians.
Now there is nothing to rent less than $50 a night and you can imagine the cost of living there.
This will happen to Zipolite. Wealthy people from other places, Oaxaca City, Mexico City, Canada, United States will move in and buy up all the waterfront. The people that live there will be displaced, either they will move somewhere else and realize the high cost of living or they will just move to the back and be faced with the higher and higher costs of living in their home town where they were born and raised.
This is what is happening in Vancouver. Many homes start at $1 million. It's riduclous. I was born and raised here in BC and there is a chance I will never own a home because it is just impossible to raise this kind of money in my lifetime. The reason is that Canada- BC- or Vancouver for that matter did not make any policies to ensure this could not happen. Vancouver has a very high homeless rate. Many of you have no idea about this. You hear wonderful things about it. Child poverty is highest in BC. It's crazy that in such a wealthy country you would think this would not exist. WRONG!!
Many of the homes that are owned here...the ones that cost $1,000,000 are owned by foreigners, many from China/Hong Kong...wealthy people from other countries, come here buy these home and don't even live in them. They use them as vacation homes and a place to keep there money..they are investments. But this just displaced people. There is no affordable housing, rents start at about $900 for a one bedroom apartment. The government had to create subsidies for the older people and single parents because there is just no way to earn that kind of money on the wages available and because the rents are so high.
This happened in Nelson and many other places. This WILL HAPPEN IN ZIPOLITE!!
Now you will say what about the people of Zipolite, don't they deserve a nice life with all the material things that everyone else has. The televisions, cars, swimming pools...food for their families, big fancy houses, don't they deserve that.
The question is -What will you give up?
You ALREADY LIVE IN PARADISE!!
Why do you think people come there and why do you think they want to buy that land.
I have some suggestions. One is to really think about what you value most. Is it your family? Because that is what I have noticed and loved about Zipolite is how much you love each other and how much you value family. Many of you are poor but your smiling and you go about your life in a simple way. These simple ways are fishing in the ocean, building palapa homes, raising your own food such as chickens, fruit, coconuts etc. Yes I understand it is hard, but if you give in and you sell you will be forced away from your ocean, and it will be a much harder life and a much more materialistic life.
And this materialistic life is what is killing the world. It's causing all the bad storms and poisoning the oceans, cutting down the beautiful forests and exterminating the animals and indigenous people that a left.
My suggestion is to :
KEEP YOUR LAND. STAY EJIDO.
NEVER GIVE THAT UP!
BECAUSE AS A UNIT YOU ARE A MIGHTY FORCE.
STAY UNITED!!
And as that united force adapt methods that will support everyone together. Look into alternative sources of support. For example look at
-solar and wind power sources
-raised bed gardens for food- create food forests-community gardens where you raise food for everyone in the community.
-composting- there are much better ways than what they do at Pina Palmera
-Cob houses. Build these - they can withstand earthquakes and hurricanes
-popbottle green houses - you can start the seeds in them and this will aid in the growing the gardens.
You must unite on this, or you will be torn apart and your children will never be able to afford a home in Zipolite, let alone who knows where and they will end up working for people who own the hotel that will now be located on the beachfront you once owned. They will work for minimum wages and their quality of life will be poor because will not be able to afford anything due to the very high cost of living. You are so very very blessed. You can unite with social media. Together you can have a strong voice. This opportunity exists for you. You must sieze the moment because once it changes there will be NO RETURN!!
Here are some links to examples I am suggesting. There are many people who will help you with this. You must unite and take action and ask for this help. Ask to stay green and stay community.
http://www.pinterest.com/zipolita/zipolita-z-vision-board/
http://tinawinterlik.blogspot.ca/2012/10/wwoof-fruits-of-garden-video.html
http://tinawinterlik.blogspot.ca/2013/06/lets-grow-food-forest-like-seattle.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cob_%28material%29
http://www.cobworks.com/
Raised Bed Gardens
https://www.google.ca/search?q=raised+bed+gardens&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=3SoIU72TONGFogT6nILwAQ&sqi=2&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1352&bih=605
Community Gardens
https://www.google.ca/search?q=community+gardens&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=HSsIU5qMLMuDogSN94GAAg&sqi=2&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1352&bih=605
Solar Energy for small communities
https://www.google.ca/search?q=solar+energy&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=RysIU_aKEoGHogSVnYGwDA&sqi=2&ved=0CAcQ_AUoAQ&biw=1352&bih=605#q=solar+energy+for+small+communities&tbm=isch
How to Build a Solar Bottle Bulb
http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-build-a-SOLAR-BOTTLE-BULB/
Popbottle Greenhouses
https://www.google.ca/search?q=pop+bottle+greenhouse&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=_ysIU9_PL8qHogSVrYGQAQ&sqi=2&ved=0CCcQsAQ&biw=1352&bih=605
How to build a Compost Tumbler- this is a very good idea and will keep flies away and turn the leaves, fruit and other materials to rich black earth in 6 weeks. You have the perfect climate for this. You could make money selling compost.
http://www.theinnovationdiaries.com/1775/how-to-make-a-compost-tumbler/
I love Zipolite and I know it is very hard to survive waiting for the tourist. Forget the tourism, focus on becoming green and sustainable. You could set an example for all of Mexico.
On a side note I am trying to help... I am working on an app and it will be for the little guy, not the big fancy hotels that are going in there and charge $80 to $100 a night. No my app will be a listing of all the little places on the beach. I am working on this now, I am in school and I hope to produce the first version before Semana Santa. So I am doing my best to help you on all fronts.
So please if you can print this and share it and have meetings and create a Facebook page and talk to each other. Get united because it is the only way...otherwise I see a very sad future of Zipolite. Of great big hotels owned by people from other countries and all the things that we know and love about Zipolite will become a thing of the past. History. Gone...but not forgotten. Don't let this happen. Please!!
