Workshops

2. Complexities of the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela Francisco Dominguez; The coming to Venezuela's presidency in 1999 of Hugo Chavez, unleashed the Bolivarian Revolution leading to the reverse of neoliberalism which soon spread throughout the continent. Ever since, Venezuela's oligarchy in cahoots with the U.S., have sought to overthrow the Bolivarian government through violence, coup plots, economic war, assassination and US-inspired destabilisation plans, reminiscent of Allende's Chile. Venezuela's current economic woes stems partly from its oil economy that paradoxically makes it more vulnerable to right wing economic sabotage. Francisco is founder member and national secretary of the Venezuela Solidarity Campaign, as well as active in the national Cuba and Ecuador solidarity campaigns, and is head of the Centre for Brazilian and Latin American Studies at Middlesex University.

3. Conflict and development: perspectives on the exploitation of natural resources in Latin America Patrick Illmer. Latin America has a much larger proportion of the world's hydrocarbons, metals and minerals than its population would indicate. Under pressure to provide these resources to a world commercial market, conflicting perspectives have evolved from governments, business, trades unions, and indigenous and other social movements. The workshop will outline these perspectives and provide case studies. Participants will weigh up different ways of establishing consensus and policy, and perhaps consider the implications for fracking in the UK. Patrick Illmer is a PhD student at the Division of Peace Studies at Bradford University.

4. Cuba in transition Steve Ludlam; In recent years, Cuba has begun an economic transformation, with vastly increased self employment and micro-enterprises, new cooperatives, private employment in these sectors, plus more profit-dependent state enterprises, and Special Economic Zones for foreign investment. Critics claim Cuba is abandoning socialism; Cuba insists it is guaranteeing it. What is going on, and what about the workers and their unions? Steve Ludlam is a Cuba Solidarity Campaign activist and a Sheffield University specialist in Cuban politics and employment rights.

5. Food sovereignty in Latin America Wendy Emmett; Food sovereignty is the right of peoples to healthy food produced through sustainable methods, and their right to define their own food and agriculture systems. It puts those who produce, distribute and consume food at the heart of food systems and policies rather than the multinationals and global markets that dominate in many parts of the world. The workshop will look at how Latin American countries have been at the forefront of the movement. Wendy is an Executive member of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign and has travelled widely in Latin America.

6. Global challenges - sustainable solutions: learning from Masaya, Leicester's twin town in Nicaragua Claire Plumb; This workshop considers to what extent we can learn from small communities in rural Masaya that are tackling challenges of energy, water and environmental degradation with locally focused solutions. It explores the global implications and questions who really benefits from sustainable development. Using case studies from Masaya and a participatory approach, the workshop provides a space for dialogue, enquiry and critical reflection. Claire is the development worker for the Leicester-Masaya Link Group.

8. Learning from race, race relations and racism in Latin America Pete Wade. Latin American has been seen in the past as a place where racism is less of an issue that in other areas; some have even claimed Brazil is a ‘racial democracy’! What can we learn about race and racism from a region where the majority of people are mestizos ‘mixed’? Pete is Professor of social anthropology at the University of Manchester, and linked to the Centre for Latin American Cultural Studies.

9. Mad Dogs art workshop;Ruth Fettis. Ruth Fettis's Mad Dogs exhibition at the Kirkgate Centre is about how extraordinary things happen in everyday lives. "The visit to The Memorial to the Disappeared in Santiago de Chile brought this home to me. Using drawings I made of family and places in Santiago I made this book of lino-cut prints". In the workshop Ruth will talk about the exhibition and lead participants in making images inspired by the day's workshops with ink and bleach.

10. Music and dance in Latin America Barbara Kempf and Ana Luisa Munoz. A demonstration of musical styles in Latin America, including learning a dance step. Barbara and Ana Luisa are members of the Latin American Folk band Mestisa, performing in the evening of Fiesta Política at the Kirkgate Centre (an Irregular Roots event: doors open 8pm).

11. Nicaragua's interoceanic canal: will the benefits outweigh the risks? Helen Yuill; On 13 June 2013, the Nicaragua National Assembly approved a law to grant the Hong Kong Nicaragua Development Company (HKND) a 50 year concession, renewable for a further 50 years, to build and operate a 173 mile interoceanic canal across Nicaragua. If this Project goes ahead it will be one of the largest infrastructure projects ever undertaken in Latin American history. The Nicaraguan government argues that the construction of the Canal will not only lift the country out of centuries of under-development and high levels of poverty but also significantly contribute to protecting the environment nationally and globally. Critics argue that the associated social, economic and environmental risks are far too high a price to pay. In this workshop we look at the arguments for and against this controversial mega project. Helen is one of the Nicaragua Solidarity Campaign’s four part-time staff.

12. Whatever happened to participatory democracy? Hilary Wainwright. from the late 1980's Latin America has been the place to look to for feasible utopias in real democracy : from the participatory budgets in Porto Alegre and other Brazilian cities to the new kind of 'movement party' exemplified by Bolivian MAS (Movimiento al Socialismo) . Over the past decade, as the corporate driven global market has dug its tentacles in to Latin America, these experiments have faced problems. What is the reality now and what insights for rethinking democracy can be learnt from their problems and achievements? Hilary is a Senior Research Associate at the International Centre for Participation Studies, Bradford University, a Fellow of the Transnational Institute and a founding editor of Red Pepper.