I am now flying from JFK Airport in New York to São Paulo, Brazil. Since this is my first post in English, I am going to explain the purpose of this project, provide some background information about how I developed this idea, why I chose Paraguay for the project, and how I plan to execute this project. 

The purpose of my study is to examine what is impeding Guaraní migrants from becoming self-supporting through the establishment of a small business or attaining a job in Asunción, Paraguay. Most of you reading this blog probably are not terribly familiar with Paraguay and are wondering how on earth I decided to pursue this project. So I will first explain how I came to be connected to Paraguay.

In 2009, I applied to the American Field Service (AFS), an organization that arranges intercultural exchanges all across the world. My first choice was a summer soccer program in Paraguay because I liked the idea of combining cultural immersion, a sport I loved, and learning Spanish. The program accepted me and during the summer of 2009 I spent nearly two months in Luque, Paraguay, playing soccer and living with a host family with which I eventually became very close. The soccer was certainly enjoyable, but spending time with my host family and making friends with the other AFSers was definitely the highlight of the summer. By far, the single most memorable experience was a week-long expedition through the Chaco with a group in which my host father was an active member. In short, on this expedition we covered over 2,000 kilometers of land in Paraguay, Bolivia, and Argentina. The purpose of this trip was to commemorate the Paraguayan war heroes from the War of the Chaco and distribute goods to some of the struggling indigenous people. During this expedition I learned a lot about Paraguayan history, but what really caught my attention was seeing the indigenous communities. I had never seen such a society: they lived in simple structures of large metal shards and had no sustainable way of producing food. After we returned to the capital I witnessed hundreds of this indigenous people protesting in the capital. After asking around and doing some research, I found out that many of these indigenous communities were being displaced from their land because the government was selling off their land for agricultural development, thus forcing them into the capital in search of work. I left Paraguay with this knowledge three years ago, but it was not until February of 2012 that I realized that I might be able to help.

In February I received an email from the Levitt Center for Public Affairs at Hamilton College about funding for projects related to public affairs. During the same time period I was looking for something to do during the summer and had recently talked to my host mother from Paraguay. During our conversation I told her that I was dying to return, but the flight was just too much money. Two weeks later I realized that I just might be able to create a project related to public affairs and get funding to spend the summer in Paraguay, where I could continue to learn about economics and government while possibly helping these indigenous migrants, and also get to spend time with my Paraguayan family. I am absolutely ecstatic to be on my way to Paraguay and honored to have been chosen for a Levitt Grant as a freshman. 

Now that you know a fair amount about how I ended up where I am today, it's time to learn a little more about my project and how I am going to carry it out.

The basic premise of my project is to identify what are the barriers of  entry to establishing a business or become part of the labor force in Asunción. Although this question seems simple, I believe it is important to search for its answers because understanding how to start a business or get a job in the urban center may be the only means of survival for displaced Guaraní migrants.

I actually began my preliminary research and work for this project about a month and a half ago. The bulk of the work I did prior to leaving consisted in developing three questionnaires in both English and Spanish directed at three groups of people that I need to interview for my study: People in business and bankers, nongovernmental organizations, and the Guaraní migrants. From each of these three groups I will gain crucial information. From the bankers, I mainly want to learn about the availability of capital for projects other than construction. Obviously, the entrepreneurs are going to need start-up capital, but the question is: How much? The bankers will be able to address all questions related to this topic. The people in business will provide insight into how they established a business. The process in which one creates a business varies immensely from country to country and I am depending on their insight and firsthand experience to gauge what it is like to establish a business in Paraguay. I want to hear how they became successful and what obstacles they had to overcome. Nongovernmental organizations are going to help me understand what resources are available for Guaraní migrants. It is probable that after moving to Asunción from the Chaco, many Guaraní people do not know about the services that are available to them. Therefore, I want to see how these organizations advertise their services. Some of the organizations with which I am already in contact specialize in micro-finance, education for entrepreneurs, and services for indigenous people. Lastly, I also need to talk to the migrants themselves. Their stories will undoubtedly be interesting. I am interested to see what kind of education and skills they have. Math and language skills, as well as experience, will be used as a proxy to gauge entrepreneurial potential. After collecting information from over 50 interviews with the migrants, about 10-15 NGOs, and 15 bankers and business people, I will synthesize information to evaluate the market for micro-finance in Asunción, Paraguay and provide NGOs with information to help out the Guaraní migrants. My findings will identify some of the major problems impeding the Guaraní population of Asunción from starting small and successful enterprises in the urban center. My goal is to draw attention to the situation of these migrants and to make recommendations that can help them become successful small business owners by providing information based on the survey results. I will make my research available to appropriate NGOs, local agencies, and civic organizations.