We are a network of professionals in Latin America and the US. Some of the affiliated groups are formally organized; others are unstructured networks. Members of the Esquel groups have worked together for more than three decades . Over the years each Group has established and maintained its own networks among civil society organizations and governments in their respective countries.
The unifying theme of Esquel’s activities is the strengthening of civil society, specifically those citizen organizations that further democracy. Esquel seeks to facilitate and expand the engagement of civil society groups with policy makers, to bring their views into sharper focus as they also engage the broader public, and to create opportunities for groups in different countries to become familiar with useful lines of action and experiences undertaken by counterparts elsewhere.
Esquel’s core members are long in experience and professional linkages. They use their experience and existing networks to establish ever stronger relationships with and among other groups, to contribute to the effectiveness of civil society efforts, and to make policy makers, business and civic leaders more aware of these efforts.
In the context of the Summits of the Americas, Esquel was instrumental in moving the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to directly support civil society groups. Esquel has similarly worked with the Organization of American States and other international institutions. The US node of the network works to educate US policy-makers on issues related to civil society, mainly through the Washington DC-based Civil Society Task Force.
Other Esquel groups work autonomously in their own national contexts and are independently supported.
The Esquel network collaborates at times in collective efforts, the most recent being the preparation of detailed studies of civil society engagement in Latin American societies published by the IDB as Civil Society and Social Movements: Building Sustainable Development in Latin America. This work was initiated and coordinated by the US based Esquel Group with the collaboration of others in the network throughout the process.