My work with Alma means I spend quite a bit of time traveling. The majority of the time these are one or two day trips to visit the communities we work in, throughout the Cusco region. However, we also have projects in the Peruvian Amazon, the Bolivian Amazon, and in La Paz. Wherever I […]
At the airport in Toronto we got news that Cusco had been shut down by a general strike: everything was closed and the roads were to be blocked for the next 2 days. President Ollanta decided to privatize the management of the archaeologic sites in Cusco province which upset everyone in this part of the […]
*Ver abajo texto original en Español Ruben David Condori Yujra is 10 years old, in 5th grade in the educative unit “Urkupiña II”. His family is composed of 2 girls and 1 boy and he has a father and a mother. Unfortunately his dad was diagnosed with acute renal failure, classified as a handicap and […]
“Our program director Ian Mcgroarty and his wife Maria de la Gracia (Gata) were in Toronto for five days last week for our annual Board of Directors strategy session. Because Ian is only here once a year, the 5 days cram meetings with supporters, advisors, a potential remote technology partner, a fundraising lunch and a […]
A few weeks ago I was heading to Huadhua to check in on the Biblioteca project. I was set to arrive much earlier than normal, so I decided to stop and enjoy the view of a nearby lake from which the community gets its name. I parked the truck and stepped out into the cool […]
I was in Bolivia last week, in part to check in on two of our new projects in the Bolivian Amazon. We are working with the Sirionó people to create textbooks in their native language, Sirionó, in their primary school in the village of Ibiato and their secondary school in Pata de Aguila. This year, […]
*Ver abajo texto original en Español Luz E. Condori Huanca is a 6 year old attending first year elementary school. She has a family of four, her parents and her siblings. Luz is a calm girl who is eager to learn, she likes to take responsibility in her every day activities. She has started to learn how […]
The 2015 Biblioteca Project is, academically, the most complicated project we’ve implemented to date. We are not only reinforcing regular curriculum subjects outside of the classroom, but more importantly we are creating a space where students’ creative and critical thinking skills can flourish. Getting to the point where students are sufficiently comfortable, and teachers are […]
*Ver abajo texto original en Espanol Some of the youngest kids in the community, less than 6 years old, who attend the Sariry program, have parents who, out of economic necessity, have had to leave for other places in search of work, leaving the young children in the care of their grandmothers. When these kids […]
On the last Friday of every month, all the teachers working in our Biblioteca projects throughout Cusco come together for a day to exchange experiences and training. During our latest training workshop, we discussed a very important, but often overlooked, aspect of our Biblioteca projects: the student portfolio. The student portfolio is a tool […]
*Ver abajo texto original en Español To benefit from the winter winds, kids from the Sariry Foundation, and the community, interacted in the holidays, constructing kites (also called comets). It was fun because they had to recover traditional games and make use of their creativity, imagination, perseverance, and independence in order […]
There are many obstacles to improving the quality of education in rural Peruvian communities. What we try to do, in partnership with students, teachers, and parents, is find paths around those obstacles. Nevertheless, as it is with everything, each solution leads to new obstacles, new possible solutions, etc. Our biblioteca projects offer a fun and […]
Kids are kids no matter what! I recently had the opportunity of visiting some of the Alma projects in Cuzco and interacting with many of the kids. Some of them were shy, some were very excited and spontaneous, some had special needs, and some were super smart! I have 2 young kids myself, and the […]
It was unlikely that I would become close with Vilma. She is one of the more shy students in Huadhua, where we run a biblioteca project. On the opening day of the project, the entire community held an inaugural event and everyone was in attendance. All the children were so excited to start that once […]
On the first day of the Biblioteca project in Huadhua, after speaking with the teachers and parents and playing some games with the students, the first thing we did was divide the students into groups and give each group an unopened digital camera. We then proceeded to open the boxes together and search for each […]
One of our newest projects is called Cultura Sirionó. The Sirionó people are an indigenous people in the Bolivian Amazon. Ian was there recently, to finalize the details of two projects we’re starting in the communities of Pata de Aguila and Ibiato. Like all of our projects, they will have a lasting impact on the communities. But this […]
On Tuesday, March 30, my dad and I had the pleasure of touring two of Alma’s projects outside of Cusco. We were greeted (nice and early!) in the morning by Ian, Alma’s program director, who drove us out to the first project on an incredibly breathtaking drive through the mountains. We were both thoroughly impressed […]
In Bolivia, it is a tradition to celebrate carnivals with dances and balloons. Tilata families and most of the families of the Sariry Foundation, usually perform “ch’alla” which is a ritual to thank the Pachamama (Mother Earth) for material goods such as house, car, furniture and etc. The goods are decorated with streamers and balloons […]
A couple of weeks ago I got the type of call that I love to get. One of our students from the Patabamba Academy Project was accepted to a government scholarship program called “Beca 18” that will cover 100% of his expenses to study Civil Engineering at the Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola in Lima! […]
Edgar is a 3rd grade boy who comes from a poor family. Both of his parents are illiterate. His father, by false accusation, spent three years in prison leaving his wife and 5 children without any support. As a result of the family issues Edgar’s performance in school has dropped significantly. Despite all difficulties, the mother did her best to […]