Greetings. This is my first journal entry in Peace Corps -- Ecuador. I have been in training with the Peace Corps in Ecuador since mid-February 2003.
I am in the Natural Resources Conservation Program. My responsibilities will entail carrying out projects in the following areas: agroforestry, reforestation, tree nurseries, soil conservation practicies, permaculture, native forest management, ecotourism, environmental education, and income generation.
My site will be based in the Amazon rainforest of Ecuador, starting in mid-May. The site consists of a small village, in which approximately 250 inhabitants live. Approximately 20% are Shuar indigenous peoples, 60% are Saraguro indigenous peoples, and 20% are Mestizos.
The community is in the province of Zamora, 5 hours East of the Andean city of Loja. The community is a rural mix of cattle ranching and farming, and it is surrounded on all sides by mountains of primary rainforest. Inhabitants in the area are deforesting the rainforest for firewood and to make way for more cattle ranches.
Nevertheless, there are still hundreds of thousands of acres of primary rainforest that can be sustainably managed, via a number of permaculture and ecotourism techniques.
Currently, I am based in Santo Domingo de Los Colorados for Community Based Training. I am taking a variety of technical courses to better prepare me for the rigors of natural resources conservation in the Amazon basin. In addition, I am taking Quichua classes, given the high numbers of Saraguro indigenous peoples in the area in which I´ll be living.
I expect to report to this journal once per week. I hope to provide you with details on the Amazonian lifestyle, the people, the food, my projects, and anything else of interest.
Thank you,
Supernova
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