First thoughts on consumption

Traveling through South America, from top to bottom, by bicycle and bus, has given me a surplus of time to think about and analyze the environmental issues we encounter.

An especially ubiquitous issue is consumption and even more obvious, it’s consequences.

The first few weeks riding through Ecuador I was struck by the amount of trash collected on the side of the road. Frequently there were partially burnt piles of bottles, diapers, and food wrappers. We quickly learned that in some communities, trash was disposed of in one of two ways, either it was burnt or it was deposited in the river. This continued through Peru, to an even greater extent, and is still a problem in Chile, a significantly wealthier country.

I started to realize that the problem was not just the trash, nor the unsatisfactory disposal system, but a problem in the mindset of the people consuming the goods, a problem that is not unique to Ecuador, South America, or the “developing world” in general. This mindset is an issue common to people all over the world and I believe that it is directly related to the desire to “increase ones standard of living” without considering the consequences of doing so.

According to an article in the New York Times titled, “What’s your consumption factor?” on average, a citizen of the United States consumes 32 times that of a citizen of a developing nation. It is in turn the goal of the average citizen of a developing nation to match the standard of living of someone in the developed world, which often translates directly to an effort to consume more goods, whether they be packaged food goods, fuel for a vehicle, gizmos or gadgets.

In thinking about what it means to develop, I am scared to imagine what will happen when the rest of the world catches up to the United States. In an effort to discuss solutions instead of problems, my questions are these:

A) How can people increase their standard of living without greatly increasing their consumption of goods?

B) How can we encourage and support developing nations in their efforts toward improving quality of life while also developing and utilizing technologies that are more sustainable?

C) How can we adjust the definition of “quality of life” and “standard of living” so that they are less centered on consumption?

Cusco: A City of Conquests

Qusqu, or Cusco, or Cuzco is the capital of the Inca Empire with cobblestone streets, Inca stone masonry, and Spanish colonial churches. The city is located in southeastern Peru near the Urabamba Valley. The mountains in the area are rugged and breathtaking. They are challenging to overcome by bike, horse, foot or even bus. This city has been the emerald of culture after culture, conquered and conquered again only to continue to be changed throughout the centuries.

The earliest known culture that occupied the area was the Killke. They occupied the region from 900 to about 1200 AD prior to the arrival of the Incas in the 13th century. The Killkes were highly skilled architects, similar to the Incas, and built massive fortresses, temples and irrigation systems. They built the fortress Sacsayhuaman that overlooks Cusco.



Not long after the Killke built Sacsayhuaman, the Inca came and took over the region that included Cusco and expanded the Killke’s fortress and irrigation systems. Many people believe that the Inca built Cusco to look like a Puma, a sacred animal among the Inca culture.








Cusco became the capital of the Incan empire. The lncan empire was divided into regions which corresponded to the way Cusco was also divided. The four sections were: Chinchasuyu (NW), Antisuyu (NE), Qontisuyu (SW) and Collasuyu (SE).

In 1527, after the death of Emperor Huayna Capac, the empire divided and Huascar, son of Huayna Capac, conquered Cusco. After the city was conquered a third time, the generals of Atahualpa (the last Inca emperor) captured the city. Only nineteen months later, the Spanish conquistadors invaded Cusco.





Francisco Pizzarro, the famous conqueror of Peru, arrived in March of 1534. Pizzarro and his men went to work building over the Inca city. They destroyed many Inca temples, palaces and other buildings. They used the remaining Inca walls as foundations for their new city. The city is a combination of Spanish and Inca structural design.

“Cusco stands on layers of cultures, with the old Tawantinsuyu built on Killke structures, and the Spanish having replaced indigenous temples with Catholic churches, and palaces with mansions for the invaders.” (http://www.cusco.eu/view/spanish-invasion-in-cusco.html)

The Spanish made Cusco the center of colonization and spread of Christianity. They built the Plaza de Armas, or the center plaza, with a church and a cathedral. The city prospered and it became a favorite of the Spanish colonists. Similar to how the Incas built on top of the Killke buildings, the Spanish used the Inca foundations to build their churches, universities, convents and cathedrals.





As I stand in the Plaza de Armas of Cusco, I recognize how much it has changed since I was here 10 years ago. I notice that there is a McDonalds, coffee houses and development spreading its long fingers all the way up the rugged mountains. I can’t help but think that the city is now being conquered by Western culture. Just as the Inca conquered the Killke, the Spanish conquered the Inca, and now western culture is conquering this Peruvian city.

However, I recognize that places change with time. I understand that different people come to inhabit this amazing emerald of a city. It is easy to see that some people want to bring a bit of their own culture to their new home. Perhaps we can find a balance of preserving the past civilizations and bringing in new ways of life.

By: Rayna

Discussion Questions:

Do you believe in preserving your own historical culture? If so, why?

How would the world be different today if European settlers did not arrive to South America?

Do you have any suggestions on how Inca culture can preserve their historical significance?

The girl in the orange dress

There are a wide variety of projects available at PSF, and they all require several steps that aren’t visible to the untrained eye. For building projects, folks come to the office to ask for help, they have an initial consultation which allows us to take down there information. After, we set up a time to visit their home to see where specifically they’d like assistance, and how we might be able to help. After the initial assessment, we decide if we are actually capable of helping and, if it seems so, the last two steps are a technical assessment to make an official (and flexible) building plan, and then we can send out a team to start the project.

Like any good non-profit, this is not a quick process. I’ll start by pointing out how difficult it is to make decisions about who needs help, who deserves help, how we can help and how much time, volunteers and money we can put into any given project. There are a few situations that make it particularly difficult. Two different families we encountered had family members who lived in brick houses with concrete floors. What I mean by this is that the majority of the family lived in the brick house with tvs and beds and dressers and then, just outside the home, there was a shack with a son and daughter in law or vice-versa. In one case, the son and pregnant daughter in law were living on dirt floors, without proper walls, while the remainder of the family lived in the brick house, unwilling to rearrange things inside their home in order to make room for the couple.

Today we visited a few sites for an initial site assessment, 6 sites to be exact.
The first was not a situation that required our assistance. The family lived in a small house with concrete floors, brick walls and a plywood roof. There were beds, a kitchen, running water and electricity, in fact, there were two TVs. They wanted help fixing up their roof but it was something that we felt they could do with a little bit of team effort.

The second family we visited took a bit of work to find. Addresses are not organized logically and streets are unmarked. As a result, triangulating or estimating based on the addresses of homes nearby is a lost cause. For example, if I were driving down the street in most US cities (except for Ward) I could expect that the house after 52 would be 54 and on the other side of the street would be odd numbers such as 51 and 53. These rules absolutely do not apply here. After asking several people on the street if they knew the family or at least the Manzana (something like a block, but more like a neighborhood, I think) we were looking for, we made it to the right house, or chozita. According to the fellow sitting next to me, a chozita is a, “[poorly built] house made of plastic, cardboard and estera.”

I knew we were in the right place when I saw a small girl just up ahead of us in a beautiful and bright orange dress. She had long dark hair that flowed midway down her back. Shortly after her followed her mother and in her mothers arms her younger sister, buck-naked, interrupted mid-bath.



They welcomed us into their home through a flap in the tarp. Some light shone through the holes in the black tarp and the heat radiated off it to a point of discomfort.

The tarp was unsupported and sunk so low I had to duck or hold it aloft with my hand.

Water was sprinkled on the floor so that as we tread upon it, we did not kick up dust. Because they had no running water, they borrowed water from their neighbor.

Inside their home were only a few things: a large pile of unidentified objects wrapped in a large sheet, a couple of plastic yard chairs, a made bed, and a small table and chair only large enough for a child.

The mother explained that their other belongings had been stolen at various times. People had easily cut a hole in the tarp wall and taken her other furniture: tables and chairs. What we saw when we entered was all that remained.

As was our obligation, we asked the mother several questions to get a better idea of the extent to which she was in need of our support. She explained that she was hoping for some poles to better hold the tarp.

In just a few minutes her mother (for the sake of avoiding confusion, I’ll call her Abuela from here on out) popped up in a pink halter top, purple fleece pants rolled to the knees and a white bucket hat advertising a nearby radio station. She smiled and laughed and helped answer our questions politely and thoroughly.

I liked each of them.
I liked the older daughter in her orange dress, I gave her my orange headband to match.
I liked the tiny daughter whose bath we interrupted because she smiled and was beautiful and still oblivious.
I liked the mother because she was young and doing her best. Her partner was out of the picture because he had issues with drugs. At times he came around to rustle up trouble, but she handled it and moved forward on her own. When asked if she worked to support her family, she said, yes.
I liked the Abuela because she was strong and independent and when asked if there were men around, she smiled triumphantly and explained that they were single women, that they could do things themselves. The Abuela took us to her home where she showed us the bathroom she was constructing herself with the nails she had pulled from boards in other peoples trash. She had a bowl of them. She didn’t know how to do the plumbing herself and didn’t even have running water, but she has a head start.

It seemed clear to me that these women weren’t asking for handouts, they were asking for support.

The mother asked if we would bring her wood to better secure the tarps. Of course, we said.

I hope we can bring her much more. Maybe even a modular home with windows, a concrete floor, and a door that locks.

Looney Ludoteca: laughing with and being inspired by kids

By: Tierra Entre de los Ojos (Emily)

Intro
For the last three weeks we were at Pisco Sin Fronteras, I spent most of my time volunteering at the Alameda Ludoteca. A ludoteca is similar to a daycare center. At the ludotecas in Pisco, Peru kids from 1-16 years old come to play and learn. There are so many children in Peruvian public schools that they can only take half the students in the morning and half in the afternoon. The Alameda Ludoteca provides a place for kids to come when they are not in school.

Have you ever sat in the middle of a room with your eyes closed and only been able to hear the sound of laughing children? If so, what and how did it make you feel?

My Story

The first day of work at PSF, I did not yell my name loud enough to get onto any of the projects I desired. Alas, I was stuck going to a place called the “Alameda Ludoteca,” where I was told I would be attacked by 20 screaming children who would want to climb me like a tree, pull my hair (what little I have now), and paint my face, arms, and legs. Having worked in a daycare, ski coached a group of 13-year-olds, and done a significant amount of babysitting, I was not entirely worried. Kids are kids right? They may have a lot of energy, but they are fun!

What I did not know going into they day´s work was that Vitalina, the Professora, was sick. This meant that we, 3 volunteers who spoke little to no Spanish, would be attempting to keep the children not only entertained, but also under control for the day. Needless to say, I felt like a substitute teacher from another planet. For the first hour I was able to play volleyball with a group of girls while the other two volunteers drew and worked on puzzles. However, childrens´ attention eventually grows weary and they want new things to do. Additionally, children in the neighborhood can come and go as they please, so those we were to oversee grew from about 10 to 35 by the end of the day. At this point, we were not only spread too thin to be able to play with everyone, but also unable to keep materials from being scattered and toys from being broken. In addition, a boy who I was told was troubled started picking fights and when I tried to break it up he swore at me in English.

Its true that kids will be kids, and I have never seen a substitute teacher that wasn’t taken advantage of at least a little. Regardless, I felt there was something more that I could provide. At the end of they day one little boy came up to me and asked if I was ever coming back. He looked a little sad and said, “Susie nuca regresa,” which means Susie never came back. I enjoyed all the hugs I got that day, and I loved playing with the kids, no matter how rowdy, but I could see there was a lack of stability as volunteers come and go.

That night, I expressed my concerns at PSF’s bi-weekly “all hands meeting.” After the meeting Bryan, PSF’s grant writer and now a friend of mine, asked me if I would like to help run a new project that would be starting at the Ludoteca in just a couple weeks. It seems I arrived at PSF at just the right time. Recently, Bryan wrote and received a $5,000 grant to fund the Alameda Ludoteca. The funds, which were granted by the Mandala Trust, would provide a salary for Vitalina and a weekly budget for project materials.

Christelle, a volunteer and friend at PSF who set up many things for the Ludoteca, sat down with Bryan and me, and we discussed how we could best use the MandalaTrust funds to create a better Ludoteca for the children of Pisco. Our goal with the new project was to set up a more structured schedule with art projects, music, activities, English classes, passport day (a day dedicated to learning about places around the world), and a project leader.

I was the project leader off and on for the last three weeks and it was an incredible experience. We made paper maché balloons, friendship bracelets, decorations for a Christmas tree, taught about the seasons in English, learned songs about bananas, and traveled to Cuzco and Arequipa, Peru and Spain. Passport day was the most exciting. To start, we made pretend passports for all the kids and put their pictures inside. On this day a volunteer comes to the Ludoteca and talks to the kids about a place they have been or where they live. The volunteer shows pictures of this place, talks about the culture there, and makes a food native to city or country. When we talked about Peru, we made arroz con leche (rice pudding), and when our friend Carlos from Spain visited, he prepared a Spanish omelet made of potatoes and vegetables.

We are here in South America to help students in the United States gain a broader global perspective, but I constantly find my perspective being broadened. And what I gained from the students in Pisco, opened my mind. I see children who grow up with next to nothing. While I have heard about places like the poor communities of Pisco, I have never had the opportunity till now to really see how happy the children are. I think the help I provided at the Ludoteca added to the fun the children had for a few weeks. They were excited when I brought in elaborate colors of string, and their attention was glued for hours on making bracelets. When my friend Elise taught them The Banana Song, one boy insisted on writing all the words down and singing it over and over again. I saw their eyes light up when we taught them about the places they had never seen in Peru and the places they had never imagined, across the Atlantic in Spain. One boy told me he would have to ask his dad, but that he thought it would be fine to go on a trip with us to wherever we would take him. This made me smile.

In fact, I think I was smiling much of the time I was at the Ludoteca. Just hearing the children laugh and seeing them so happy made my day, every day. Rayna and I created PEDAL for Change because we want all children to have the same opportunities we did growing up. I am glad I could make some kids in Pisco happy for a day. But I continually remember the saying, “Feed a man a fish, he eats for a day. Teach a man to fish, he eats for a lifetime.” Thus, even more so, I hope I sparked their interest, even one student, to do more. I hope that the excitement they showed during passport day lasted for longer than that moment, and that they will be inspired to take advantage of the opportunities the world has to offer.

I see how happy these children are, living the lives they have always known. I also see how excited they get about what else is out there, beyond Pisco. I hope they will reach those places and those dreams. I know it is much much harder for these children than it is for those in a challenging situation in the United States. I also know that with enough inspiration and drive, anything is possible. And Pisco Sin Fronteras proves that every day.

Grassroots: A way to organize our efforts towards a better Pisco?

By: Rayna

We often hear the word grassroots when talking about environmental action, civil rights and political campaigning. In all honesty, many civil rights movements and environmental campaigns started at a grass roots level. Martin Luther King Jr., Eneresto (Che) Guevara, Mother Teresa, Ghandi, and Rosa Parks are all examples of people who used grassroots lobbying effectively. But what does grassroots mean anyway and where did it come from?

According to Dictionary.com, grassroots refers to people who come from the country or rural areas. Grassroots is defined as:

The common or ordinary people, especially as contrasted with the leadership or elite of a political party, social organization,etc.; the rank and file.

Therefore, grassroots movements begin with the people of the land as opposed to political power or the economically wealthy.

Ever since I started working, I have always worked for organizations that function as a hierarchy, from the top down. For example, my boss would explain my duties to me and the boss of my boss would explain his or her duties to him/her. Never in my working experience have I seen the the “entry worker” position make the calls. I have never seen a “grassroots” organization until I came to Pisco Sin Fronteras.

Pisco Sin Fronteras is entirely a volunteer-run organization. Yes, there are staff members that organize the volunteers, take care of finances, and maintain general order, but it is the volunteers that run the projects. Even the people in administrative positions began as volunteers and ended up as staff because they chose to stay longer and wanted to try being a staff member. Staff positions are non-paid, but do earn free room and board.

Volunteers have the opportunity to run the show at PSF. In fact, the volunteers are the only ones who run the show. Even if you have been at the organization for less than a week, you can take on a project as if you have been working there for years. For example, when PSF realized that their building efforts may not be able to withstand another earthquake, a volunteer came up with an idea to use a building technology that is more resistant to earthquakes: earthbags. PSF set up a team to build a wall out of earthbags. After seeing the success, PSF decided to build a community center out of earthbags. The volunteer who brought this idea to PSF was here for only two weeks.

I quickly realized that PSF has the labor to go forward with building the community center, but they do not have the money for the materials. Because of this kunundrum, my good friend Eduardo and I decided to throw a fundraiser in Lima. Not only did PSF fully support this idea, but also they organized a team of people to help pull it off. About 25 people showed up to attend and help run the event, which was 3 and a half hours away!

Now the community center construction is being carried out, and if it is successful, PSF is going to continue building homes with earthbags. This could change the face of construction in Pisco.

Volunteers have the ability to run a project as if they were one of the managers. It is amazing what can be accomplished because of the different skill-sets, experience, and perspectives of all the volunteers.

However, it is not always easy working with 60 other people who all have equal say in an organization. When changes need to be made, instead of one or two people making the decision, there are 60 different opinions on what is best to do. How do organizations get anything done when there are 60 different ideas about how to do something?

PSF attempts to curb this madness by having organized discussions such as the “all hands meeting.” This meeting is meant to be a venue where people can bring up ideas and others can offer their opinions on the matter. After about 10 to 15 minutes of discussing the issue, all the volunteers take a vote.

Although this does help organize volunteers thoughts, many ideas are brought up but never executed. To add to this lack of execution, a volunteer arrives at the organization and brings ideas with them but then leaves only to pass that idea onto someone else. Many important aspects of the project are lost in translation.

Everyday PSF has to struggle with this anarchy. However, even with all the disarray, PSF continues to do great work, and gives thousands of volunteers leadership opportunities that they could only dream to have after five years of working for the same corporation.

Discussion
What are some ways that grassroots organizations can improve?
Is grassroots the only way to run an organization based off of egalitarianism?

Sweat for Smiles: rebuilding a home

From left to right: Melisa, her daughter Luz, and her daughter Nacha standing in the back of the house area where we have dug up her old pipes and built the new pipe trenches.

By: Tierra entre de los Ojos

The first thing you need to understand is just how hard it is to get in on a construction project here. Volunteers at Pisco Sin Fronteras (PSF) are amazing. Every person is looking for hard work. Every individual wants to make a difference. And everybody sweats buckets just to see the smiles left on the faces of the people with whom we work.

Two weeks ago I was finally able to edge my way onto a project called, “Melisa’s Pipes.” Melisa is a woman living in Pisco with her husband and four children. A few years ago she inherited a small plot of land and a modest home from her mother, though modest doesn’t do justice to the bamboo walls and tarp-roof under which the family lives. In the 2007 earthquake, the pipes running below Melisa’s home burst. For three years the family lived over open sewage; and toilet water and waste seeped to the surface of the dirt floor on which her children sleep. Over the last three years, each of Melisa’s children have suffered from typhoid fever, which is a disease caused by the ingestion of fecal matter.

When I arrived at Melisa´s home for the first time, I looked at what lay before me and my heart sank. The dirt floor upon which they lived and slept had three huge puddles filled with trash and sewage that had seeped up from below.

Her children sat in the back yard playing and laughing, and Melisa greeted us with a smile. When we began to dig the trench for the new pipes, I felt as though I was digging into a landfill. With every shovel full of dirt, came candy wrappers, chicken bones, and old clothing. As we uncovered the old pipe system, we were overwhelmed by the stench of rotting feces and urine. With the hard work of 14 volunteers, we were able to dig the trenches and replace the pipes in a week and a half. What is most amazing though, is that every volunteer helping Melisa for the last two weeks has done so, every day, with excitement and without a single complaint. The first day digging the trenches, I don’t think I put my shovel down for 3 hours straight.

When I finally looked up, I saw a line of volunteers covered in dirt, dripping with sweat, and laughing. One boy had taken a break to put on a dance show while three others backed him up with a song in cock-eyed harmony. Another had gone to get us all cold, sweet, delicious orange soda (my favorite!). We were having a great time, and all the while Melisa dug hard, raked evenly, and sweat by our side.

As volunteers we are here to help. We are enthusiastic because we know it makes a difference. When I leave Melisa´s house at the end of the day she smiles so wide she can barely open her eyes. She kisses me on the cheek and I can just barely see the hint of a tear in the corner of her eye.

We finished Melisa’s pipes last Thursday. When we were in the process of leveling the floor, PSF’s director, TBC, came to give Melisa news. PSF volunteers had raised enough money, including a large donation from two volunteers who started the project, for Melisa to also have a concrete floor and a new modular home built for her. Shortly after TBC left, Melisa came to me, thanking me, the rest of the volunteers, and PSF for helping her and her family. I could tell she was fighting back tears as she gave me a hug and said, “gracias, son mis angeles” (thank you, you are my angels).

Last week I had a skype conversation with the Edge Academy students. One student asked me if I believe in Karma and if I believe that the work we do helps people to be happier and, in turn, they pass on their joy to others. My answer was yes, and Melisa helps reinforce this belief everyday. Since our work started two weeks ago, more of Melisa’s friends and family have shown up to help everyday. Her neighbors offered us their bathrooms while we were fixing Melisa’s pipes, her sister cooked lunch for us, and her father-in-law helped us fill buckets of water for concrete today.

When we walk through Pisco, everyone recognizes us as PSFers. We are pretty much the only gringos in the city and we are always covered in dirt from head to toe. They stare because we are dirty, sweaty, and different, but they always smile and say hello because I believe they appreciate the help we offer in rebuilding their city.

The Earthbag Project: PSF’s builds a more sustainable Pisco

By: Tierra entre de los Ojos





PEDAL for Change has embarked upon a journey this year in order to help our classroom partners learn about sustainability across the globe, and particularly in South America. Our goal is not only to see and write about sustainability throughout our journey, but also to experience and help collaborate on sustainable projects as we travel, meet new people, and get involved with new communities. The job of our students, YOU, is to read our blogs, give us feedback, and come up with innovative ideas of your own. Most importantly though, your job is to get involved and realize you are as big of a part of this project as Kether, Rayna, and myself. Here is a project that you can all be a part of! The Earthbag Project at Pisco Sin Fronteras.




What are Earthbags?
Earthbags are bags filled with earth. Most commonly, recycled rice bags or woven polypropylene sacs are used and filled with soil, sand, gravel, or whatever earth material that surrounds a particular building site.





Why build with Earthbags?
Millions of victims of wars and natural disasters need low cost housing and temporary shelter. More durable than tarps and more comfortable than tents, earthbags work perfectly since even unskilled workers can build their own shelters - all without destroying local resources. The structures are strong, make protective barriers, and can be used for flood control. They are useful in housing projects for the same reasons that they make good barriers. Since the walls are so substantial, they resist all kinds of severe weather and also stand up to natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods.
Currently, the only building material that is proven to endure 7+ magnitude earthquakes are earthbags. This method is favorable not only because the earthbags can move with the ground and absorb tremor vibrations, but also because the materials are cheep and easy to use; thus, they can be erected simply and quickly with readily available resources for very little money. In Haiti’s recent earthquake, earthbag homes stood strong while the earth shuttered during their 7.0 magnitude quake.

Something really neat is that earthbag homes can be built in almost any style or shape of imaginable: domes, vaults, structures with vertical walls, curved ‘organic' designs, roundhouses. This makes earthbag construction ideal for a variety of projects, from family houses to community centers.


Most importantly, earthbags are sustainable! Using materials surrounding the construction site means using abundant resources in the nearby area. Because earthbags move in an earthquake, walls of an earthbag structure should stand through even the worst conditions. In addition, earthbag home construction has a very little environmental impact.

PSF and Sustainability:
At the moment, most homes and structures that PSF builds are made from recycled tarps and pallet wood, have concrete floors, and are topped with bamboo roofs. While these buildings provide a temporary solution to living on dirt floors with open sewage systems, these structures are not made to withstand another major earthquake.

In many ways PSF does build sustainably. They use recycled materials, which reduces what they consume and what others throw away. However, building structures that will eventually be destroyed will ultimately produce more waste and leave people homeless once more. Recently PSF has adopted the idea of earthbag construction and working on converting all their projects to this method. Building with earthbags is the first step in PSF’s goals to becoming more sustainable. In the future PSF would like to build all their structures with earthbags and go on to teach locals how to adopt this method for themselves. PSF will become more sustainable not just through their building methods, but also through education and getting more involved with the community.

PSF’s first Earthbag Project:Volunteers here in Pisco have already started the construction of PSF’s first earthbag project. The structure being built is a community center. This center will be used to host community meetings and give members a place to come and learn. In addition to English classes, cooking classes, and fundraisers that will be held in the center, the people of Pisco can learn how to build their own earthbag homes.


This is a project that has a lot of potential in the community of Pisco. Not only will it build a nice community center, but it can potentially save lives. If the community members see that building with earth bags is indeed effective, others will begin to build with this new technology, making safer homes that will have the structural integrity to remain standing.

These two pictures (above and below) show volunteers building the bathroom for the community center. The volunteers leading the project are currently in Lima collecting supplies and hope to return by Monday to continue construction. They predict it will take two months to complete once construction starts again.



How you can be a part of the Community:By Thanksgiving, PSF needs to raise 4,000 soles in order to complete this project. If you believe in this project and would like to support sustainability at PSF and in Pisco, please buy a PEDAL for Change T-shirt. 75% of the proceeds will go to both the community center project as well as future earthbag construction projects. In addition, anyone who buys a shirt will have their name written on the wall on the community center once it is complete. Through other volunteers’ pictures and the PSF website, we hope you will all keep in touch with what is happening with the project and the progress it is making.

If any of you have other ideas for fundraising and/or want to promote the earthbag project on your own, please do! Let us know your ideas and if there is anything we can do to help!

Also! check out the PSF website for more information: http://www.piscosinfronteras.org/

And the following video/slide show will give you a little look at the devistation from earthquake in Pisco, how people live here, and what PSF does to help. Some of our upcoming blogs will address the projects that deal with some of the things you will see in this video.