“Voces Bolivianas” (Bolivian Voices) is a projectthat teaches the use of citizen media such as blogs, digital photos and videos to under-represented groups in Bolivia. These groups include indigenous groups, women and groups from the rural areas. These new bloggers become a part of the Bolivian blogosphere, where they connect with other Bolivians regardless of ethnic, geographic or class lines. This creates a digitalcommunity based upon mutual respect and understanding, something that is difficult to establish in “real life”.
The common goal of “Voces Bolivianas” is to teach the use of citizen media to under- represented groups so that they can become a part of the local, national, and global conversation. The internet can become a great equalizer in a very polarized country. It allows people regardless of ethnic, racial, geographic or class lines to connect with one another without the filter or stereotypes often found in Bolivia.
The project finds way to connect the community virtually but also physically. In January 2009, “Voces Bolivianas” organized its first summit, where 27 members of the community from across the country came together in the city of Cochabamba to meet and learn from one another. They also took part in a planning session to determine the project’s future.

Links: http://www.vocesbolivianas.org

Voces Bolivianas started in September 2007 with a series of workshops in El Alto, Bolivia, with young people of Aymara descent. Each of the participants created and maintained their own personal blogs, which allows them to express themselves and represent their own communities. The project started with a small start-up grant from Rising Voices, but is now operating on many hours of volunteer labor. From there, interest grew and with the help of volunteer bloggers it spread to other cities across the country including six of the country’s nine departments.