The inspiring experiences of several rural people in the southern department of Santander, Colombia, tell how they have found happiness through agroecology and rural life. Their stories are evidence of a transformative power. From Somara Leal’s agroforestry farm, to Salomón León’s commitment to sustainable agricultural practices, to Pilar Useda’s leadership full of wisdom and joy, to the neo-rural testimony of Lizeth Zambrano and Jesús Güisa, they bring us closer to the rural life that generates satisfaction and fulfillment in plenitude. The regional farmer organization El Común, with its agro-ecological school and the empowerment of farmer women, supported by Misereor, promoting the generation and exchange of knowledge, is key in this process of care, welfare and common good. “Roads to Happiness” offers a compelling vision of a more just and equitable future, rooted in harmony with nature and human well-being.
Sower of Motivation
Through Mujer y Vida, Somara got to know El Común, a farmer´s organization that brings together several grassroots groups from three provinces in the south of the department of Santander. “I learned about the agroecological school and since then I have not missed a single cycle of the school”. It consists of 4 times a year where topics related to agroecology, production, soil fertility, organic fertilizers, clean renewable energy and much more are discussed. “I learned a lot in these spaces where you learn more from practice than theory. El Común” Somara explains, “is like a family. We are empowered women, we take care of agrobiodiversity, seeds, we save water. I owe my empowerment to El Común”.
Listen and find your way
When was the last time you stopped to listen to your inner voice? What is your road to happiness? It is never too late to begin this exercise.
Life Project
For Somara, there is no doubt that her life has changed one hundred percent. She says this from the bottom of her heart, even though many people who visited her land warned her that the drought in the area was severe. Somara began planting shade trees and bananas. “It was a lot of work, but now I am happy to listen to the birds and watch the pollinating insects”. Somara loves to research and share her knowledge, and she gives lectures on popular economy. Her three daughters are already working in their professions or, in the case of the twins, are studying at the university; Sofia is studying social work and Vanesa is studying fine arts. They love their mother’s life project and help her design labels for the farm’s products. Granja El Orquideal, the name Somara has given to her land, has achieved an enormous variety of products and processed products. Honey, coffee, orchids, piglets, eggs, fish, ornamental and aromatic plants, essential oils, passion fruit, pineapple and mandarin wine. “I have done quite well with the planting. After six years, almost all the land is shaded by trees. With the mulch as a ground cover, the soil retains more moisture. There are people who visit me because they want to reforest and are interested in my experience. The secret in all of this is to try; if a plant I have planted doesn’t work, I try again in a place a little farther away”.
The reason for partnering
In Somara’s experience, the motivation needed to sustain an organization over time must come from an interest in learning and applying new knowledge. “If people’s interest is in getting money or attracting projects, the group will quickly fall apart”, explains our hostess. There is no shortage of invitations, visits and offers of participation; Somara’s openness and caring attitude is admirable. “I attend the first thing I commit to, because I like to keep my word. The first priority is everything that has to do with El Común”. The schools have already discovered Somara’s little agro-ecological paradise. They come to observe flowers and bees, and more advanced students work here on class projects. They also barter: bananas for avocados. “Sometimes people come to help me with the harvest and take the banana plants to plant”.
“Everything is a process; to stop using chemicals in production, it is done little by little. Women usually start by sowing and producing on a small scale. Men tend to produce on a larger scale, which is why they do not easily abandon conventional agriculture, which uses synthetic and toxic chemicals”. Somara says there are cases where the women in her group face the problem that their husbands are not open to agroecological practices. But there are also cases of the opposite, like Uriel, who fell in love with the biodigester installed at the initiative of the organized women. Uriel has become an expert in biogas or the production of fertilizers such as biol.
More than a few men have had to visit El Orquideal Farm to see the changes and Somara’s forest to be convinced. The work on the farm and the activities in the organizations seem to absorb Somara’s 24 hours a day: between taking care of the animals, growing crops, distilling essential oils, designing brands with labels and packaging, virtual store and points of sale in Barichara, applying for public tenders with the projects of the organizations. Somara corrects us: “Three or four times a week I go to the gym in Barichara because it makes me happy”.
I have always liked groups
Salomón León, born in Agua Fría, a village that belongs to Villanueva, a municipality in the province of Guanenta, Santander, left home when he was young to find work in Lebrija, near Bucaramanga, the capital of the department. The construction of a dam displaced Salomon and his family, and they decided to return to his father’s small farm of less than two hectares. That was in April 2014. “Years before, we had helped my father to pay for the earthworks for a pond as a water reservoir on the farm. When we came in 2014, we invested the money we had left after the earthworks in fruit tree seedlings.” Salomón borrowed some money and started with 120 laying hens. To this day, egg production is the backbone of the family’s economy. There are currently 400 hens in production. Salomón sells directly and has a wide circle of local customers. The lemon and mango orchards supplement the farm’s income. During his years as an employee, Salomón contributed to the pension fund and continues to do so. He will soon be able to aspire to a monthly pension.
Collectivity and action
Do you participate in a group? Do you know how to improve group dynamics?
Between pseudo-participation and healthy food
“Everything is here”, says Salomón with a friendly smile. Salomón is tired of the Municipal Planning Council, because although people participate, it seems that their proposals are not taken into account. Regarding access to capital for investment, Salomón says that it is difficult to meet the requirements of banks. He is also concerned that young people are not very interested in pursuing their future in agriculture. “Rainfall has decreased in the area; thanks to the lagoon we built years ago, we do not lack water here on the farm, but in many parts the situation is difficult”.
For Salomón, agroecology is a great success: “We eat healthy, we don’t spend money on chemicals, we don’t get into this vicious cycle, and we don’t destroy the fertility of the soil. Of course, we have to implement the approach slowly and not immediately think big. I believe that agroecology can be used to teach young people to appreciate the countryside and to counteract the current risk of discrediting rurality”.
Alejandra Vargas of El Común, agroecology and school facilitator, confirms what Salomón said. “There are beliefs and obstacles to agroecology: the fear that crop yields will drop sharply, the short-term mentality, the discrediting of the countryside, the difficulty of selling clean products at a fair price, and young people without land because buying land is expensive, there are more and more non-agricultural uses of land, among others”.
Consistency between what is said and what is done
Pilar Useda, from the village of Quitasol, in the municipality of Guadalupe, in the province of Comunera, in Santander, is a young, very dynamic rural woman, but a veteran when it comes to organizing. She has been involved in local rural women’s organizations for 25 years and is a co-founder of her local group, known as AMAR. Pilar recalls: “I was very shy and gradually I learned to express myself and speak in public”. Today, she is the president of the board of directors of El Común, a second-tier organization that brings together a large number of women’s organizations and farming families in the south of Santander. Pilar easily infects those around her with her joy and energy: “I’m in the fourth cycle of the agroecological school of El Común and I never want to stop because I keep learning new things”. Pilar and her husband Irenarco bought the farm of less than 2 hectares when two of their three children were already born. They had to manage another farm and then work in a nursery to save money to buy their own land. Since the land was quite steep, they started building terraces, a technique that Pilar learned as part of an exchange of experiences. She has brought seedlings and seeds with her on all her visits to other farms and regions. Irenarco also attended the agroecological school. “We don’t have a single crop, but rather associated crops, a little bit of everything is our recipe on the farm. Instead of having a lot at once, we prefer to have something that comes in many times. On Saturdays, I go to the head of the community in the morning, and since the people already know us and our products are clean and healthy, I am back home by nine in the morning”. Pilar remembers when they installed their biodigester, the first in the village. “I didn’t let Irenarco sleep until we finished the installation at night. What I see and learn, I have to apply. And as a promoter of my organization, I couldn’t recommend something without having tried it”.
Proudly a woman farmer
Pilar feels fulfilled as a woman. “As a woman, I can fulfill myself in the field and I am still a dreamer”. She recalls a situation 22 years ago. At a meeting of her group, it was Pilar’s turn to speak to the group; she was about to leave the room when Pedro Chacón, a pioneer promoter of El Común, encouraged Pilar to stay. Pilar was pleased to see how the agroecological approach and the care economy practiced by the women in their families have generated well-being, food sovereignty, and happiness. The family’s economy consists of 120 products from the farm, while also supporting the university studies of their two eldest children. “For financial needs, we were able to form a self-savings group. We started with a seed capital of 200,000 pesos, and today we have 4 million [equivalent to one thousand dollars], and we facilitate loans among ourselves”. Pilar says that her organization has worked a lot on the issue of integrating the next generations. There are young people who are discovering their future in the countryside. As a local organization, they offer music classes for their young children, eleven children have their own instruments, and there is currently a painting class.
Hooked on neo-ruralism
Jesús Güiza and Lizeth Zambrano have lived in the city all their lives, sometimes moving for Jesús’ work, but they have lived a distinctly urban life. When Jesús retired 7 years ago, his original plan was to buy a taxi and work as a driver. Jesús needed a new job and couldn’t find one. Out of sheer boredom, he walked the animals on the street 4 times a day. Jesus’ wife Lizeth says, “We wanted a change in our lives and we found it”. Six years ago, the couple, who had never lived in the country before, bought a farm and moved to the village of Moravio, in the municipality of Confines. Through her neighbors, Lizeth learned about the ASOMUC group, which brings together rural women in the area and is also part of El Común. Lizeth laughs as she tells an anecdote: “My neighbor Marta came to help me because when I was weeding, I couldn’t tell the difference between what was planted and the weeds”. Lizeth learned how to plant her own vegetable garden from her neighbors. Both agree: “There is no envy in sharing knowledge. The local group and El Común helped us a lot to get started”.
“The ease of consumerism of the city didn’t satisfy us”, Jesús recalls. “My family had a cacao farm, but we wanted the farm to be self-sufficient. In our case, curiosity and desire were stronger than fear”. Lizeth recently spent a week in Bucaramanga, counting the hours until she could return to the farm. She weighed 90 kilos when she came to live in the countryside. Today she is 20 kilos lighter and feels much better, despite some illnesses. Several of Lizeth and Jesús’ relatives told them that they would not be able to adjust to life on the farm. After six years, they are the first to come when the couple invites them to the farm for a sancocho, a meal made with ingredients from the farm. Lizeth and Jesus have achieved something by embracing rural life and becoming the guardians of their own happiness.
What other tips do you apply to find and follow the roads to your happiness? Leave us a message on our social networks to share it with the community!
Messages to the Future
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Authors:
- Jorge Krekeler | jorge.krekeler@posteo.de
- Javier Jaramillo | jjaramillo18@hotmail.com
Design:
- Gabriela Avendaño.
Photos:
- Javier Jaramillo
- Jorge Krekeler
Contact information regarding the documented experience:
- Organization EL COMÚN
- Somara Leal
- WhatsApp: +57 3134826780
- email: granjaelarquideal@gmail.com
- Facebook and Twitter: granja_orquideal
- Salomón León
- WhatsApp: + 57 3158211031
- Pilar Useda
- WhatsApp: +57 3223172397
- Jesús Güiza
- WhatsApp: +57 3157626277
Edition:
june 2025
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