biking out of poverty
cesta/friends of the earth el
salvador
© cesta/foe el salvador
In the 1980s, people suffering from
economic hardship in El Salvador urgently
needed alternatives to expensive gas or
diesel cars and buses. In response,
ESTA/Friends of the Earth El Salvador set
up the EcoBici school and workshop in San
Salvador in order to bring sustainable and
affordable transportation to the people.
Over the years, some 600 people have
graduated from the workshop, many of whom
now support themselves with their own
bicycle-making workshops.
After some years, Friends of the Earth
set up a mobile school in order to reach
rural children who could not attend EcoBici
because their labor was needed at home. The
program has been successful in increasing
the use of bicycles among young people in
urban and rural areas alike.
The project has wheeled from one success
to the next. A bicycle fitted with a
wheelbarrow and 18-speed tricycles capable
of carrying heavy loads are now used by
small and medium-sized companies to sell
dairy products, newspapers and drinks from
door to door. Bicitaxis, popular in tourist
areas, are also promoted as a way to
relieve increasingly congested urban
streets. In addition, the group’s
Bicirecollectors have increased the
effectiveness of garbage collection and
reduced fuel consumption.
Friends of the Earth El Salvador also
runs an appropriate technology workshop
that encourages the sustainable use of
water and energy through bicyclepowered
water pumps as well as woodsaving stoves
and solar cookers.
