Eulalia Flor, Pierre Johnson and Agusti Nicolau Coll were in Mexico to prepare the fifth issue of Caravan. They met with a number of partners of the Alliance and visited many artists before finally choosing Demetrio García Aguilar (see Meeting The Artist).

Demetrio’s work on the cover draws us into a charged atmosphere of lively colours, to ever present myths and persistent fights. These elements also appear in the articles sent by allies from Equador, Brazil, Mexico and Argentina (see Quito Meeting and Oasis of the Alliance). They reflect the vivacity of current social struggles in Latin America and these people’s tremendous will to re-appropriate their destiny.

After returning from Mexico, the team was convinced that Caravan should also be published in Spanish. Thanks to Agustí Nicolau Coll who devoted much energy to this to happen, we actually made it! We are now proud and happy to be able to publish CARAVANA because we feel we are fulfilling our mission better by making information on the Alliance accessible to the Hispanic world. More important, it is also a means for the Alliance to benefit from the thought and experience of this world.

Allies are now exposed to a new world! There are yet other areas to be explored: soon after we published the fourth issue of Caravan prepared from Algeria, the idea of a supplement in Arabic was put forth: Mounir Bencharif, Mira Chalal and Gues hope to make this project a reality by this year end; a discussion with Yu Shuo (animator of the Alliance for China) led to the possibility of Caravan in Chinese from the year 2001.

A new section on the activities of the Youth Workshop of the Alliance (see articles) is something your will notice in this issue; Tijana Zivanovic (Yugoslavia) has joined the Caravan team to infuse some of the dynamism associated with this initiative ever since its inception.

And finally Caravan has inspired to create CARAVAN’ART, a cooperative for the promotion of art products for a responsible and united world at Barcelona. With the initiative of Maria Sacasas, Magnus Ovik and Philippe Guirlet, this venture seeks to reproduce works created for Caravan on T-shirts, posters post-cards etc. Through this initiative, we hope to spread the message of responsibility and solidarity to a wider public, bring in royalties for the artists and generate a fund to partly finance Caravan.

"Wait a minute! Don’t go too far!" says our sponsor who sees our growing financial needs with apprehension. "And keep in line with the global dynamics of the Alliance!" Such is the meaning of the new convention signed for six months ('til the 6^th issue-- June 2000) with the Charles Leopold Mayer Foundation (FPH).

We must acknowledge it! This reminder to reality -- our pecarious situation and the need to constantly justify our existence -- was necessary. While we are not more than 18 months’ old, when we are launching ambitious and costly projects, are we really sure that Caravan is useful to the Alliance and that it is truly shared by allies who get a free copy of this newsletter? Is it possible to finance this newsletter, at least in part, by a good number of readers?

The FPH wishes to see activities supported by it within the framework of the Alliance, progress towards a greater autonomy. We have decided to adhere to this principle after discussions within the team and are ready to face this challenge.

We have taken the initiative to make an editorial project 2000-2001 to be submitted by April 14 to the Council of the FPH asking it to continue giving us a helping hand during this transition period; in other words, asking for financial support for another 18 months till we find the necessary structure and means towards a greater autonomy and our development.

The objective is very clear: by the end of 2001, we would like to be able to publish 12,000 copies of Caravan in three languages (French, English and Spanish) along with two supplements in Arabic and Chinese (at least half of this number would be sold at a price of 5 US$); then, have four issues each year from 2002 onwards.

Our editorial project is mainly based on the continuity of the Caravan venture. Through the coming issues, we will continue to show the wealth and diversity of partners and experiences inscribed in the dynamics of the Alliance. Further, we will attempt to increase the visibility of the extent of the Alliance particularly through a cartographic work on its workshops, working groups and local initiatives. We will also closely follow the preparations made by the allies for the 2001 Assembly through the section ‘Alliance in motion’ (see articles).

We intend doing this project by preserving and improving the basic characteristics of Caravan: respect for cultural diversity (articles from various destinations); interest for discovery and authenticity (by traveling); belief in artistic expression (creation of original artworks); ecological responsibility (by using handmade and recycled paper).

It is undoubtedly an ambitious project for a newsletter. We would like it to be so and ask your involvement towards mobilizing the necessary means to achieve this goal. We invite you to become a partner of the Caravan venture in 2000 and 2001 through an associative structure started in France. Some of you have already decided to join (see form).

Our ambition for Caravan corresponds to a large ambition for the Alliance: an Alliance which according to the International Facilitation Team that met at Bangalore from 19^th to 25^th March (see communiqué) has "evolved into a broader, unexpected and diverse social dynamics." In fact, the Alliance that began in 1994 with the initiative of the FPH, is currently crossing its borders (about 2500 allies in 120 countries) and is becoming more concrete; it is not a mere utopia or a faraway dream but a living, active and diverse reality that leads towards a responsible and united world.

The Alliance’s maturity is well reflected in the pages of this issue. Firstly, we notice a great degree of involvement shown by numerous allies from Africa to Australia, from Canada to Latin America. Secondly, the depth of debates and the quality of proposals made by workshops is of great interest, notably the Yin Yang workshop on man-woman relations. Nadia-Leila Aissaoui has compiled for us a special ‘thought-provoking’ report devoted to this workshop (see articles). Finally, it is clear that diverse sectors are well represented: youth, religious orders, teachers, academics, women from working class districts, political and social leaders etc.

This passage to a realistic utopia has been possible because of you. Today, we ask all of you to support Caravan in order to make it stronger, autonomous and sustainable.

The correspondents: Aurélien Atidegla, Mira Chalal, Kerry Ann Cochrane,
Philippe Guirlet, Pierre Johnson, Agustí Nicolau Coll,
Michael Ochieng’, Pradeep Sebastian
For the International Editorial Team

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