From DW Documentary.

In the highlands of Ecuador, options for women are limited. Many work in the country’s dominant cut flower industry. In greenhouses, plants are sprayed frequently with toxic pesticides and workers report illness and long-term health risks. Other women who cannot work are financially dependent on their husbands’ wages. But agroecology workshops are changing this trajectory.

At first, women attended these training courses in secret. They waited until their husbands left for work before slipping away to learn how to grow food organically on the steep slopes of the Andes. When their husbands saw that agriculture began generating income, skepticism turned into support.

What began as quiet resistance has evolved into structural change. Although they still face many challenges, today, these women run independent farms, manage a formal producers’ association, sell at weekly markets and through digital platforms, and take part in local politics. By combining indigenous knowledge with modern soil science, they have built an economic alternative to pesticide-intensive plantation labor.

Find out more in “Strong women – The fight for self-determination” on the DW Documentary YouTube channel.

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