Harvesting autonomy: Processes of autonomy of rural cooperative women in Nicaragua

Abstract

The general objective of this article is to analyze whether the practices and discourses that emerge from the participation of women in the cooperative Mujeres en acción (COMAC), Nicaragua, promote processes of autonomy in the collective and in their social relations. The specific objectives to achieve this were: to understand their meaning and the processes of learning and appropriation by the women involved; to examine the practices and discourses of the women their links and relationships outside the cooperative to understand how these influence their autonomy; to identify the factors that can hinder or promote the autonomy processes of the women, both within the cooperative and in their social environment; and finally, to determine the role of the different social actors in the projects and activities developed by the cooperative. Considering that the creation of cooperatives is evidence of women's interest in organizing themselves and subverting the order of the system, it appears as a way to gain autonomy, and to participate in their communities differently. 

Using a qualitative methodology with a feminist approach, I explore the experiences of women in the cooperative and how these contribute to the development of individual and relational autonomy. I also situate this article in the relational approach to communication and from the interest of understanding how these relationships explode in autonomy, which in turn leads to participation, in having a different role in the community than the traditional normative gender roles, in decision making, and in the role that the cooperative plays in their lives. Between June and July 2022 I went to the community and through participant observation I was able to record the discourses of the women who are part of the cooperative that take place in informal conversations and/or in their meetings when they are in their familiar spaces. Four participatory workshops were also held to get to know the women who are members of the cooperative, addressing the projects carried out by the cooperative and the participation of the members in them, exploring the relationship of the cooperative with the community and the perception of integration of its members. Seven interviews were conducted, five with members of the cooperative and two with external persons, to deepen the topics discussed in the workshops and conversations, complementing the information with documents from the cooperative, technical reports, and opinion articles. 

As part of the findings, members' perceptions of autonomy were explored, as expressed in terms of the right to participate, ownership of their assets, and the collective construction of meaningful projects. These experiences reflect how participation in the cooperative promotes autonomy in women's relationships, organization, and daily life. I also look at the importance of relationships for members and how, from a communicative perspective, these relationships can be seen as a process of knowledge production and learning, and how, in this way, the women of COMAC have found their autonomy in this fabric of relationships sustained by the affection of considering themselves sisters, in the trust of collective decision-making, and in the fact that, despite the existence of relationships mediated by power, supporting the cooperative gives them a new social role that allows them to negotiate and participate in community projects.  

Finally, I would like to emphasize the importance of the cooperative, which touches all aspects of members' lives, from the domestic sphere to their participation in the cooperative, and is understood as an essential tool for exercising autonomy. Organizing on all fronts to have the freedom to decide what to participate in and what not to participate in, organizing to participate in the cooperative gives members a space where they can actively participate in decision-making, collaborate in the management of resources, and share knowledge and experience. The cooperative is understood as an organizational structure that promotes solidarity, strengthens cohesion, and enhances the empowerment of its members, allowing them to exercise their autonomy collectively and effectively, where the organization functions as a means to understand this structure. 

The country's history is marked by an entrenched patriarchal system that has limited women's rights and opportunities over time. However, organizations such as the multisectoral cooperative Mujeres en Acción have emerged in response to these injustices, providing a space for rural women to unite, work together, and empower themselves economically.  

Although the roles established by the patriarchal system have been perpetuated by forcing them to take on two jobs to be part of the cooperative, one at home and one in the cooperative, they value being able to take on a different role and have implemented strategies to better share the work at home and free up time to fulfill their role as members. And it is precisely by participating in the cooperative that they have found the autonomy that they did not have in their role at home. 

This does not mean that they do not like to maintain these roles, on the contrary, they enjoy the possibility of having opportunities that they did not have before, such as the possibility of improving the quality of life of themselves and their families or having a productive activity that generates well-being and gives them power in the community to make better decisions that generate the common good and the good of the cooperative. 

In this way, they recognize the cooperative as a space where they can strengthen their relationships, transform their lives, and achieve their individual and collective goals. In this way, autonomy is not a simple concept, but a discourse and practice rooted in daily life and born from the moment each woman decides to become a member.  

Thus, contrary to what was expected in the context in which they lived, the collective organization, the shared work, and the relationships built through participation in the cooperative became powerful tools for their autonomy. In this way, they have not only learned to work the land, but they have also sown and today they are reaping their autonomy.