“Maíz is life, it is happiness, it is parties, it is everything,” said Raúl, a campesino from the state of Hidalgo who we interviewed at the “¿Transgénicos? No, Gracias.” conference this week in Guadalajara. “When the contaminated [genetically modified] corn came into our are[...]
Archive for the ‘Mexico’ Category
Don’t Forget to Breathe! Why Yoga is Useful for Travelers
The sun comes up right as we do our sun salutations, like magic. There’s nothing like doing yoga outside in the morning, under trees filled with flitting hummingbirds, to start one’s day. One of the reasons I decided to volunteer at Tashirat, an orphanage located in Tepoztlan, Morelos, Mexico (a[...]
Neighborly Relations
“How can we improve the relations between the US and Mexico and be better neighbors?” Whoa. Big question, right? This is one of the questions we ask every interviewee in the documentary we are creating in Guadalajara, Mexico. US/Mexico relations are embarrassing and sad, and we want to help [...]
What the Locals Say: Taking the Plunge
Isabel Arguelles was born in Mexico City, where she currently resides. She has also lived in Canada for a year, Florence, Italy for half a year, and spends summers in NYC. Isabel is still in college and when the time came to choose her major, she was a little confused and didn’t know which one [..[...]
How to Fundraise With No Funds
This week I was really impressed by another volunteer here at Tashirat. Some of us (myself included) are intimidated by fundraising events, by the thought of all the time, energy, and resources spent resulting in little or no money raised. And, being in a rural community in Mexico, one may think: If[...]
Nerd Notes: Navigating New Ways of Living
I’m a straight up nerd. I love technology and am on an undying quest to expand people’s access to information. Moving to Guadalajara, Mexico from San Francisco, CA to get Adapting to Scarcity off the ground has proved to be an… interesting transition for me. For years I’v[...]
A Lesson in Life: Accepting the Unknown
One of my fellow volunteers here at Tashirat is having a hard time. She’d never been to Mexico before and crossed the border with ideas of “efficiency” and “order” that just don’t apply here, let alone in a struggling nonprofit organization. I love her presence because it’s helped me r[...]
The Perks of Being a New Volunteer
I’ve been at the Tashirat orphanage just outside of Tepoztlan in the state of Morelos, Mexico for about a week and a half now. Tashirat is a very interesting place, because not only is it an orphanage, it’s an ashram and a school as well. They are also beginning an ambitious garden/greenhouse pr[...]



