Yanapuma

Yanapuma Foundation is a cooperatively run non-governmental organisation whose aims are to facilitate sustainable practices in poor urban and rural communities throughout Ecuador, and to encourage intercultural exchange that fosters mutual benefit and learning in a globalizing world.
Yanapuma works with communities in the Amazon rainforest, in the sierra, and at the coast, as well as offering options to work with projects in Quito.

Founded in 2006, its mission is to help indigenous populations to manage their development in a way that allows them to protect their environment and their cultural heritage, and to manage and maintain control of their resources as they adapt to the demands of a globalized world. The situation for many indigenous communities throughout Ecuador is that they are being forced into an alien form of development, without the tools, knowledge, background, education, connections, or understanding that they need to manage this transition well. This causes problems such as:
- A lack of quality education for indigenous children
- Depreciation of indigenous culture in the face of uncontrolled economic development
- Problems of waste management and lack of recycling options
- Destruction of the environment for quick economic gain
- Exhaustion of water supplies through deforestation and destructive agricultural practices
- Impoverishment of diet due to increasing reliance on imported foods and poverty
- Health problems due to environmental pollution and poor practices
- Breakdown of family ties due to forced migration.
All the communities that Yanapuma works with have requested their help and are eager to receive volunteers and visitors. Yanapuma offers them a solution by taking an integrated approach to working with communities, partnering with other organizations and NGOs to deliver all the necessary services and programs that are needed to make a community truly sustainable, socially, environmentally and economically.
Their vision is that each community should have appropriate services for its culture and environment in terms of water and sanitation, a sustainable agricultural system, a good educational system, sound environmental management, and maintain a keen sense of its culture and history.

In addition to normal volunteering programs, Yanapuma also offers cultural exchange visits. These programs are for those with less time to offer, and are oriented towards helping communities that are developing community-based tourism projects. Visitors on this program will have the opportunity to experience daily life in an indigenous community, off the beaten tourist path. The presence of the volunteers acts as an encouragement to the community's tourism project, and offers them an opportunity to learn about other cultures and the needs and preferences of foreigners.

For more information, check out the website: http://www.yanapuma.org/