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As Democrats and Republicans in Washington, D.C., blame each other over the prospects of a U.S. government shutdown, U.S. citizens living out of the country, including in Ecuador, wonder how a shutdown will affect them? The biggest issue for most expat retirees is...
Cuenca fire chief Oswaldo Ramirez believes a short circuit was to blame for a Saturday night fire that destroyed one room and damaged two others in Iglesia Santo Domingo, on the corner of Gran Colombia and Padre Aguirre in Cuenca’s historic district. It was the...
By Walker Simon South American nations are jointly exploring the creation of a communications system to curtail U.S. spying in the region, Ecuadorean Foreign Minister Ricardo Patino said on Wednesday. He said the idea was to set up a common platform to "minimize risks...
By Aaron Morrison and Mimi Whitefield Delivering a harsh indictment of U.S. cyber-surveillance, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff on Tuesday called on the United Nations to get involved with helping nations safeguard themselves from cyber-snooping by other countries....
Speaking to members of the Cuenca Chamber of Commerce on Tuesday, Ecuador’s Coordinating Minister of Production Ricardo Espinosa said his office will enforce new rules that all packaged food products be labeled that they contain or do not contain genetically...
Quito’s sprawling Metropolitan Park remains closed as firefighters work to put out the last of the fires that have consumed more than 50 hectares. The city’s emergency operations office said that five fires continued to burn but should be extinguished on Tuesday. Fire...
As part of the International Day Without Cars, many of Cuenca’s streets were closed Sunday as thousands of walkers, runners and cyclists replaced motor vehicles. Acitivities included a 5K run with about 3,500 participants, several cycling events, organized hikes and...
Ecuador’s Spirits Importers Association reports that imports of alcholic beverages droped 41% from a year ago due high taxes and tarrifs. They also say that smuggling of foreign brands has skyrocked and government officials agree. Taxes on alcoholic imports have been...
By Paul Barrett In one of the most geographically profuse pieces of litigation in recent memory, Chevron has taken another step toward escaping a $19 billion pollution verdict imposed in 2011 by a provincial court in Ecuador. The U.S. oil giant’s victory came Tuesday...
Two of Cuenca’s private museums say they are in financial trouble and need public and private support to remain open. Two weeks ago, the board of directors of Museo de las Conceptas said it was considering closing the religious museum because of a revenue shortfall....
Mayors from 30 towns in the Amazon basin are urging President Rafael Correa to continue his plan to drill for oil in the Yasuní nature preserve in northeastern Ecuador. The mayors assembled in Quito last week, visiting members of the national assembly and members of...
Ecuador's Yasuni National Park was supposed to be saved from oil drilling via international donations. Environmentalists say China is partially to blame for the country now opting to go ahead with mining. It's been clear for nearly a month now: oil drilling in...
It took Cuenca transit police just three hours to fill a bus with speeders yesterday morning on Av. Loja. A speed trap between Av. Primero de Mayo and Calle Pichincha netted 32 drivers exceeding the posted speed limit by more than 10 kilometers per hour. Those...
Editor’s note: Nathalie Cely is Ecuador’s ambassador to the U.S. This article was distributed to U.S. newspapers and news websites in response to media criticism about Ecuador’s decision to drill for oil in the Yasuní. By Nathalie Cely The perceived trade-offs between...
Over the next eight months, Cuenca will welcome about 80 French families as project managers and technicians arrive to oversee construction of Cuenca’s new light rail system. The new arrivals are employees of French companies, including Alstom and Clermont Ferrand...
Following top to bottom restructuring, massive infusions of cash and a nationwide construction program, Ecuador’s Social Security health care system, part of the Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social (IESS), is making believers of many of its members. The...
President Rafael Correa has aplogized for comments he made last week about Ecuadorian singer Jaime Guevara. Among other things, Correa called Guevara "a drunk and drug addict." The comment followed an incident last Thursday in which Guevara shot a bird at Correa’s...
According to the Financial Times of London, Cuenca ranks number one in the western hemisphere in the cost - benefit category of its “Small Cities of the Future” survey. Other cities making the top ten are Guaymas, Colima and Nogales, México; Antofagasta, Chile;...
Ecuador’s Interior Ministry denies that Quito police used rubber bullets and tear gas Monday against protesters opposed to oil exploitation in the Yasuní National Park. The Confederation of Kichwa Peoples and Nationalities of Ecuador (ECUARUNARI), Confederation of...
Vilcabamba expats Laurie Miller and Larry Evans knew for years that they wanted to become more involved in their adopted community. “The people here have welcomed us with open arms and have enriched our lives. This is our home now and we felt we needed to give...
