This morning while heading into work, we dumped our garbage. Driven by our protected areas manager, Nat, two other volunteers and I assisted in the process by tossing bags and crates of rubbish on top of one of many exposed piles of trash along a road off the highway. Nat, jaded by his time in [...][...]
Posts Tagged ‘environment’
March 5th, 2010 - 2:33 pm § in Around Town, Nicaragua
I’m on a Boat: Joys and Sorrows of Pangas
A panga boat ride is similar to when your best friend takes dad’s Porsche out for a spin: fast, unnerving, uproariously fun with fist-clenching close calls. This is the Caribbean Coast’s main mode of transportation, and how blueEnergy can access our communities. Our two-hour panga ride on a rece[...]
Responsible Tourism: Coming to a Cloud Forest Near You!
I am happy to report that in the Intag cloud forest region of northern Ecuador, community-based tourism is heating up. Just two hours from the market town of Otavalo, Intag’s ecological reserves have begun to attract a steady stream of travelers. Organizations like the Red Ecoturistica de Inta[...]
When Microenergy and Microfinance Meet
Part of my role at blueEnergy is to manage our two loans through our local microfinance institution. Who would have thought a portfolio of a little over $1,200 would be so challenging? Earlier in 2009, blueEnergy received funds to subsidize individual solar systems for two communities: Set Net Point[...]
Pollution Matters
While I’ve grown accustomed to many of the changes of living away from my home country, one thing I have not gotten used to is the air pollution here in Ecuador. In any of the major living areas, you will discover that the constant stream of buses and trucks makes for a very smoggy experience. T[...]
January 20th, 2010 - 12:11 pm § in Mexico, Tips & Resources
Coming to Mexico? 10 Tips for Living Responsibly AND with Style
Greetings La Vida! I am stoked to be a new blogger, and for my inaugural entry I compiled a list of the essential advice for working/volunteering/traveling in Mexico responsibly and with style. I first came to Mexico as a student a few years ago, and for the last three and a half months I have been [...]
“Are You Peace Corps?”
As a foreigner meeting a resident of Southern Belize, the first question asked is always, “Are you Peace Corps?” Initially this came as a shock to me: I had never visited anywhere so impoverished that the mere presence of an American was automatically associated with volunteer work. Afte[...]
November 24th, 2009 - 12:11 pm § in Around Town, Guatemala
Farming Practices — Changes are Coming!
The old man in the field next to my house is hoeing his corn rows in his bare feet, Stetson hat, blue and purple tipica fabric shirt, and a woven plastic bag tied around his waist like an apron to protect his beautiful white embroidered pants. Fortunately, he is hoeing his corn residue into the [...[...]
Environmental Crisis, Community Opportunity
There’s an algae-bloom crisis going on right now in Lago Atitlan – one that has affected over 40 countries besides Guatemala – and because people in this community bathe and wash clothing in the lake, it’s a crisis that intimately affects everyone. The community is responding accordi[...]
