In honor of Elena Garces’ doctoral tesis on women’s stories and testimonials, her children decided to create a project called Colomb!anas: una Biografía Colectiva (Colomb!anas: a Collective Biography). It was consolidated as a digital platform designed by Enrique Eder, with autobiographical narratives of Colombian women of diverse ages, ethnic backgrounds, occupations and beliefs. Since 2017, the platform has promoted social dialogue and built a collective memory of what it means to be a woman in Colomba.
Dissemination of these narratives and creation of a digital community of more than 53,000 followers who receive stories of women as a tool for their own introspection, helped Colomb!anas to evolve, becoming a project which promotes workshops and other in-person activities for women’s personal, emotional and work-related development. It incentivizes dialogue, autobiographical writing workshops and women’s circles, which continue to enrich collective history.
Currently, Colomb!anas has generated key partnerships to enhance its operation and results, such as work with the Johanna Ortiz School, which trains young women in skillsets for employment in haute couture, autobiographical writing workshops in Yumbo, in alliance with the Smurfit Kappa Foundation and Ángel Guerrera, and in Santander de Quilichao, with Empoderarte Foundation. A new partnership with Universidad Autonoma de Occidente, a local university, included four new voices on the platform that tell stories of women working in green industries.