Project Amazonas

ORGANIZATION RECORD

Location: Loreto, Peru (Amazonian Peru)

Madre Selva Biological Station (Rio Orosa) (S3⁰37’30.6” / W72⁰15’11.5”) and nearby communities of Comandancia, Santo Tomas, Nuevo Israel.

Santa Cruz Forest Reserve (Rio Mazan) (S3⁰30’54.7” / W73⁰10’54.1”) and community of Santa Cruz (S3⁰31’04.8” / W73⁰09’19.0”)

Website: http://www.projectamazonas.org/

Mission:

To provide people in rural Peruvian Amazon communities with adequate modern health care and health education, while encouraging the adoption of preventative health care and sanitation, and the continued use of effective traditional remedies and practices.
To supply them with the necessary tools and education to sustainably use and conserve the natural environment of the Amazon rainforest.
To encourage self-reliance and self-sufficiency wherever possible, and to promote local solutions to local challenges.

Year Founded: 1994

Project information:

Future project ideas:
- Potential Project idea 1: funding and helping to implement a permanent waste disposal infrastructure for collecting garbage in the community to reduce pollution and disposal in community spaces.
- Potential Project Idea 2: fund and build a permanent school kitchen facility for the kindergarten and primary school at the community of Santa Cruz. The current facility is wood, aged, thatch-roofed and leaning. Cooking is done on a clay base on the floor. A new facility could have concrete floor, a clean water source, elevated cooking area, and tin roof (with rainwater catchment).
- Other project ideas are welcomed. Ongoing projects at the forest reserve itself include reforestation of degraded areas, bridge building, and an anticipated project that will start soon is the re-introduction and rehabilitation to the wild of woolly monkeys raised in captivity.
Ideal group size: 7-8 Interns
Number of groups: Two Nourish groups at different locations during the summer.
Skills: Spanish language skills desired. These skills will greatly enhance the quality of your experience, as well as the effectiveness of your interactions with community members. Consider enrolling in a Spanish course at your university, taking an on-line course (many free ones are offered!) or practicing in your training sessions with fellow interns.
Reported costs to interns:
- Program in-country costs (reported by partner):
  - Accommodations (does not include meals out, phone calls):
    - Santa Cruz site: $31/person/day
    - Orosa River site: $33/person/day
- Average Total costs (reported by interns – includes airfare, accommodations, food, vaccinations, misc.): $2,500
- Range of reported intern total costs: $1,800-$3,000

Partnership History:

Summer 2016
- Chapter: Indiana University
  - Project: Built a school kitchen that has concrete floors, a raised cooking area that is screened off in order to keep bugs out while allowing for proper ventilation, and that could double as a water collection area. Helped create teaching materials that can be implemented in the local schooling system
  - Investment: $3,000
  - Project team: 7 interns
- Chapter: McGill University
  - Project: Constructed a medicinal herb garden, establish tree nurseries and develop a scholarship program for environmental sustainability.
  - Investment: $4,950
  - Project team: 6 interns
  - Project blogs
Summer 2015
- Chapter(s): McGill University (Madre Selva Biological Station)
  - Project: Establishment of medicinal plant garden on the grounds of the newly constructed Orosa River clinic (a joint PA/community/Nourish Intl/other partner project). Development of a reforestation/enhanced agroforestry project in conjunction with local communities
  - Investment: $8,600
  - Project team: 7 interns
- Chapter(s): Rice University (Santa Cruz Forest Reserve)
  - Project: Contribute to strengthening the solar power electrical infrastructure of a local school as well as funding water pumps to provide better access to water within the community. Bridge building at the Santa Cruz Forest Reserve.
  - Investment: $1,300
  - Project team: 2 interns

Summer 2014
- Chapter(s): Rice University (Santa Cruz Forest Reserve)
  - Project: Repairing and rehabilitating school restrooms and the water delivery system at Santa Cruz school. Repairs to teacher housing at the school.
  - Investment: $2,000
  - Project team: 7 interns
- Chapter(s): University of New Mexico and University of Tennessee – Knoxville (Madre Selva Biological Station)
  - Project: Continued work on the Orosa River health clinic and began a clean energy program
  - Investment: $5,000
  - Project team: 5 interns

Summer 2013
- Chapter(s): University of New Mexico (Madre Selva Biological Station)
  - Project: Continued construction of the Orosa River health clinic and community health outreach
  - Investment: $8,500
  - Project team: 6 interns

Summer 2012
- Chapter(s): University of New Mexico (Madre Selva Biological Station)
  - Project: Initiated work on building the Orosa River health clinic and community health outreach
  - Investment: $5,000
  - Project team: 5 interns

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