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SalaamGarage Service Opportunity in India this September

Wednesday, June 3rd, 2009

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Flashback to SalaamGarage…

The other day I posted about the lovely voluntourism organization, SalaamGarage.  Today I want to talk specifically about their upcoming service trip to India this September.  They have 3 spots left for this trip and I want to get the word out so that any of my loyal readers that are interested can have the opportunity to sign up! 

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The 411…

Here’s the low-down.  The SalaamGarage journey to India will voyage to Rajasthan, India from September 18-October 1.  In Rajasthan, volunteers will work with the Vatsalya Nongovernmental Organization, a really lovely & altruistic nonprofit that seeks to bring opportunity to the underprivileged people of their city.  Some of their endeavors include housing homeless women and children in a group home away from the city; orchestrating educational, mental, and physical support systems; teaching HIV/AIDS awareness programs; and coordinating internships and vocational training for impoverished city residents. 

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How to learn more, an insider’s story…

To learn more about the details of the service involved with this trip, you should check out Salaam volunteer Simon’s website.  Simon has talked in detail about the specific project he will be working on, helping to coordinate Vatsalya’s Educational Van that tours some of the city’s poorest areas to bring the education to the children.  He talks with wonderful passion about his wonderful ideas and plans.  You should check out his site asap for inspiration! :-)

The cost…And the reason to choose SalaamGarage

Okay now for the details that make everyone groan…The price.  The total cost of the trip is $3300, and that includes all housing, 2 meals a day, all transportation, translators, in-country guides, and museum entries.  Also, 10% of the profits go directly to Vatsalya to help them in their endeavors.  ALSO, if you refer a friend, you get a $200 discount! :-) So spread the word!!  Keep in mind that the prices does not include air fare, spending money, visas, vaccinations, laundry, tips, 3rd daily  meals, beverages, and the necessary travel & health insurance (this is a big must!).  It definitely sounds like a lot of money, but if this type of hands-on service in this region of the world is something you are looking for, SalaamGarage prepares it all for you at the lowest possible cost. 

How to pay for this…

SalaamGarage includes lots of ways that you can raise money to support such a venture.  For example, the aforementioned volunteer, Simon, has a donation tab up on his website that is helping his readers and supporters donate to his cause.  Many of the past volunteers have similar stories of raising all the money they needed for their trip by putting the word out about their endeavors and collecting a little money from a lot of different places.  Anything is possible if you want it enough.  Good luck, and Salaam! :-)

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Posted in Children, Community Volunteering, Education, Family Volunteering, Service, Service Abroad | No Comments »

Ulaa Series: Welcome to Ulaa!

Monday, March 2nd, 2009

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This week my boyfriend~fellow Enchanting Challenge blogger Nicholas Cunningham~and I are in the Chilean paradise of Ulaa.  Ulaa is an organic farm founded by the Enchanting Group and run by the amazing Ulaa care-taker, MARTIN.

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Ulaa sits nestled into a mountainside overlooking a crystalline lake and river: Lago Puelo Inferior and Rio Puelo.  The Rio Puelo runs into the Pacific Ocean, carrying schools of 20-pound salmon in its streams.  The log cabin of Ulaa is heated by a wood-burning fire and electricity comes on for 4-5 hours a day.  The water for bathing is heated over the fire,and when it is not heated it is ice cold and pure.  The cabin’s main room has a wall of windows where you can sit by the fire, mesmerized by the blues and greens of the waves down below, gently moving the sea grasses in their wake.  With the smells of the fire and the gentle chill of the lake winds, you will feel so close to nature here.  No cell phones ringing, no pullution, no television blaring.  You are brought back into balance.  It is Heaven.

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The Enchanting Group wishes to open up Ulaa into a service opportunity where traveleres can come and stay in the cabins for no charge as long as they participate in the daily farm work.  The travelers can come back into nature and rest in the beautiful rustic Ulaa cabins as long as they help tend the potato fields, the pumpkin patches, the tomato greenhouses, the raspberry bushes, and the fruit tree orchards.  All the crops are organically grown and just need to be tended with loving care by those who are interested in learning more about our food and our Earth.  To serve at Ulaa is a beautiful opportunity, and if you are interested in agritourism and agricultural service and education, this may be the perfect place for you.

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This week, Nick, Martin, and I are working together to form a plan to bring service learners and workers to Ulaa.  During this week, I will write an Ulaa Series that will be updated daily, keeping all our readers notified of the progress and updates of the Ulaa plan.  As I mentioned before, we are working on constructing a service program for agricultural service, but we are also thinking and brainstorming for medical service programs, dental service programs, and even a service program for authors, all here at Ulaa!!  Please write me or comment on the blog if you have any comments, quetsions, and/or suggestions.  We would love nothing more than if our readers were a part of the planning process for this up-and-coming Enchanting Challenge-sponsored service trip!!

* All photos taken by Nicholas Cunningham *

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Posted in Animals, Education, Environment, Family Volunteering, Service, Service Abroad, Spring Break, Summer Break, Winter Break | No Comments »

Eco-Serve During Your Spring Break

Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

     ”Everthing would be great and everything would be good, if everybody gave like everybody could…”                                      ~My Morning Jacket~

As we all know, we have got to change our world.  And it won’t be one person changing the world; it has to be a collective action.  If we all do a little, the result will be a domino effect of positive change, the quintessential butterfly effect. 

So where can you begin?  With spring break just around the corner, I think this week-long vacation is a perfect opportunity for some community work.  I don’t mean you have to devote your entire, valuable and rare vacation time to service.  But maybe an afternoon of that free week?  Or even a day?  Imagine the change that could happen if all the university students across the country did a little service work during their spring break.  The results would be uncountable. 

Okay, so what are your options?  Well there are service trips, such as Enchanting Challenge’s Educational Ecological Service Trip to Tulum, Mexico.  There are also wonderful service trip opportunities through your university, Break Away, Sierra Club, and Habitat for Humanity. 

And if you can’t give your whole break to service?  Don’t worry–there are PLENTY of shorter-term options.  In yesterday’s post we talked about Leave No Trace eco-service projects you can get involved with, such as educational workshops and/or partnership initiatives with hiking groups and state park services.  Leave No Trace focuses on natural restoration, placing nature as the highest priority on our to-do list.  On their website they have the beautiful Frank Loyd Wright quote: “I believe in God, only I spell it Nature.”  If Mother-Earth is your bag, I recommend contacting Leave No Trace today!

leave-no-trace1(photo taken from the Leave No Trace website)

Another great place to go for eco-service is your state’s department of conservation!  Most of the 50 states have a Department of Conservation, and most of those departments ask for service work to help them accomplish their environmental goals.  For example, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources asks its citizens to help them in their forest clean-up efforts.  On their website they give their residents the following message:

We can only return our forests to their natural state if we work together to combine our time, energy, and resources to remove existing trash and stop the dumping in our forests.

pa-conservation(photo taken from the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources site)

Once again, a call to collective action.  No one can do it alone.  If you think you would like to help your state in its wildlife restoration efforts, I encourage you to visit your state’s department of conservation website and notify them of your desire to help!

Even if you feel that Leave No Trace and/or your state’s department of conservation do not offer programs just right for you, they may be able to point you in the right direction.  Another great resource to check out is the Sierra Club, as the organization has chapters in all 50 states and all of those chapters have lots of local opportunities for you to devote as little or as much of your time as you please. 

Below is a list of some great eco-service initiatives in the US.  Unfortunately, they are state-specific, so are not applicable to all of our readers, but it can help give you an idea of what is out there.

Get Outdoors Nevada (NV)

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Adventure Camp with the Colorado Youth Program (CO)

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Keep El Paso Beautiful (TX)

Kids of the Bay (CA)

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Kids vs. Global Warming (CA)

“Kids Adopt-A-Beach” Cleanup Day (CA)

Village of Round Lake Beach Beautificiation Program (IL)

 

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Posted in Education, Environment, Family Volunteering, Service, Service Abroad, Spring Break, Tulum Eco Spring Break Service Trip | No Comments »

Leave No Trace

Monday, February 23rd, 2009

The clock is ticking: it is officially 3 weeks until the service spring breakers arrive in Tulum, armed and ready for their ecological rescue mission.  We are so thankful for these service breakers (and so is Mother Earth!).  Remember to check the blog after Spring Break (around March 25th or so) for video footage catching the ecoteers in action!  The video clips will get you excited for future Enchanting Challenge service trips (destinations: Mendoza, Puerto Madryn, Patagonia, and MORE!).

BUT, hold the phone: Enchanting Challenge service trips are not the be-all and end-all to service.  Rather, they are exciting opportunities within the realm of service.  Through this blog and through our website, we seek to show you the world of service, and that world stretches far beyond our borders.  Our goal is to bring information about the world of service to your fingertips, and allow you to choose which paths of volunteerism are meant for you.

With time and budget constraints, doing an eco-service trip is not always attainable.  Have no fear though, because there are plenty of eco-service opportunities right in your own backyard.  Honestly.  And one of the best programs is the Leave No Trace State Advocates Initiatives. 

leave-no-trace(photo taken from the Leave No Trace website)

The Leave No Trace nonprofit organization seeks to educate volunteers and its certified trainers how to care for the Earth and how to enjoy its natural earthly offerings in a sustainable and environmentally responsible way.  They accomplish their mission through a number of educational programs and training programs that equip their students, volunteers, and employees with skills needed to teach communities about sustainability and also to lead eco-friendly natural educational adventure missions.  Pretty cool, huh? 

leave-no-trace-2(photo taken from the Leave No Trace website)

 More than likely, the Leave No Trace organization has a state advocacy initiative close to you, as they have partnerships in almost all 50 states!   I urge you to visit their state advocacy listings here and see if your state is listed as a partner.  If it is, go ahead and contact the represenative point of contact linked next to your state name to find out more about the Leave No Trace activities goin’ on in your neck o’ the woods.  And, if your state is one of the few not listed, again–have no fear!!! Simply contact their advocate, Dave, at dave@lnt.org for information about programs available to you in your locale!

 Examples of environmental community work that you can partake in through Leave No Trace State Advocacy activities include the following:

  1. Training courses to become a Leave No Trace workshop instructor
  2. Working with Leave No Trace to partner with local scout troops, hiking groups, and state parks to help each organization become more environmentally aware
  3. Blogging for Leave No Trace

If any of these activities sound interesting to you, then you should contact your state Leave No Trace rep today!!  It is a GREAT opportunity for local community ecological service!!

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Posted in Education, Environment, Family Volunteering, Service, Service Abroad, Spring Break, Summer Break, Tulum Eco Spring Break Service Trip, Winter Break | No Comments »

Service Trips Coming Out of Our Ears!!!

Friday, February 20th, 2009

24 Days Until Tulum!

We are busy bees here at Enchanting Challenge, little elves working away in our service-trip workshop!!  Plans have come underway to finalize the itinerary of the service spring breakers in Tulum, which is looking action-packed with awesome eco-work!  We have exciting news of a partnership with the Amigos de Sian Ka’an , meaning that Enchanting Challenge service breakers will work to fulfill some of the Amigos’ projects, such as wildlife management, bird conservation, and community-based natural resource management.   It will be a week filled with fun AND important activities!  Enchanting Challenge will film this week of eco-service and post videos on our blogs and websites, so that our readers can learn about these service trips and be inspired to take part in the future.

amigos(photo taken from the Amigos website)

Coming Up Next: Mendoza!

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As mentioned in yesterday’s post, if you can not make it to the Tulum service trip in March, do not fear that you have lost your opportunity to embark upon an Enchanting experience!!  Our next service trip opportunity will take place in August in Mendoza, Argentina! 

Service Trip to Mendoza with Enchanting Challenge

& Fundación Viviencias Argentinas

 

Attention all study-abroad students, backpackers, ex-pats, and tourists!!!  Come join Enchanting Challenge and their Mendocino (meaning from Mendoza) partners at Fundación Viviencias Argentinas this August for a two-week service trip in the Mendoza province.  As a re-cap, this is what the trip will entail:

 

Week One:

Week One will be spent in the city of Mendoza, working with the disadvantaged children of this community.  All English-speaking volunteers will stay with a Mendocino family for this week, learning about the Mendocino culture, sharing in the language experience, and eating meals with their host family.  During the day, volunteers will work with the children, participating in the following activities:

  1. Organizing a donation drive for shoes, clothing, toys, and games
  2. Coordinating and participating in recreational activities
  3. Assisting children with their school work
  4. Addressing any health-care needs that are not being met

 

Week Two:

Week Two will be spent in the Desierto Lavalle, working with the indigenous Huarpes community on various community development projects.  20-25 Mendocino volunteers are expected to go—all school children between the ages of 15-18 from the Colegio San José de los Hermanos Maristas de la Provincia de Mendoza.  English-speaking tourist/back-packing/study-abroad/ex-pat volunteers will work side-by-side with their Mendocino counter-parts, taking part in the following activities:

  1. Organizing a donation drive for shoes, clothing, toys, and games
  2. Teaching and demonstrating methods for sustainable living and farming practices, such as cooking in a solar-powered kitchen
  3. Coordinating a donation drive for items necessary in a rural region, such as electricity generators, vaccines, and medications
  4. Collecting items for school children, such as computers and clothing for uniforms
  5. Participating in community cultural events and festivities

 This experience has the ability to turn your stay in Argentina into something more than just a vacation.  It can help give you a profound sense of place, and Argentina will leave its mark upon you as you simultaneously leave your mark upon it.  There is perhaps no more rewarding way to travel than through service travel.

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Posted in Children, Education, Environment, Family Volunteering, Language Study, Service, Service Abroad, Spring Break, Summer Break, Tulum Eco Spring Break Service Trip | 2 Comments »

Countdown to Tulum: 25 Days!

Thursday, February 19th, 2009

ECOTULUM HERE WE COME!!!

2 students have officially bought their plane tickets to MEXICO for the Educational Ecological Service Trip!!!  Hurray!!  We are on our way to rainforest reconstruction, learning lessons in sustainability from the ancient Mayan culture, and so much more…4 more students are looking into plane tickets, but there are more spaces awaiting, so just let me know if you want to join in this exciting ecological mission!!!

The students will arrive in Tulum on Monday, March 16th.  At the resort, they will be met by the lovely Gabriela Miranda, who will welcome them and help them to settle in.  The service breakers will eat a scrumptious dinner on the evening of their arrival, and then will go to sleep in their cabana, getting ready for the first day of service on Tuesday, March 17th.

Service activities will be planned for Tuesday, March 17th; Wednesday, March 18th; Thursday, March 19th; and Friday March 20th.  Saturday, March 21st will be a free, do-as-you-please beach day.  Go splash in the Caribbean Sea and reward yourself for all your eco-accomplishments during this wonderful week!!  The specifics of the service activities will be planned in the upcoming days ahead.  (Join in the planning: the first meeting is on our Facebook Group: Tulum-Bound, tonight at 5:30 pm CST!)  The options for the activities include a beach clean-up at the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve, volunteering in a Mayan hospital and/or Mayan library, a day in the jungle (perhaps accompanied by a biologist!), a day learning and participating in Mayan cultural activities, and a day visiting and learning from Mayan ruins!!

INSPIRATION

Check out the amazing site “Imaginative Traveller” for inspiration on why service vacations are the MOST rewarding and the MOST fun!!  As the volunteer-trip organizer Bruch Haxton sums up, “There is a huge amount of fun [in service trips] and people don’t always understand that.  It is about having fun & doing something worthwhile at the same time.”

MORE ON THE DOCKET…

If you can not come to the Educational Ecological Service Trip in Tulum this March, do not despair, for there are a handful of other exciting Enchanting Challenge opportunities just around the corner!  The next one takes place this August in Mendoza, Argentina.  Here is a profile of the Mendoza program scheduled for August.

Fundacion Viviencias Argentinas

For the Mendoza service trip, Enchanting Challenge will partner with Fundacion Viviencias Argentinas, a foundation that has been running service trips for the past 10 years in Mendoza.  This year they have decided to open their doors and welcome anyone to do service with them, which is where Enchanting Challenge comes in!  We at Enchanting Challenge want to invite any interested parties in joining on this lovely adventure to serve the Mendoza community.  Together on this trip we will spend one week working with orphans and disadvantaged families in the city of Mendoza.  After one week we will trek out to the nearby Desierto Lavalle (also in the Mendoza province) for another week, where together we will work with the indigenous communities, participating in various community development activities.  Read below for a list of activities that will be covered in these two weeks.

Working with Orphans and Disadvantaged Families in the City of Mendoza

During our one week in Mendoza, we will do a number of community-enriching activities with the children of Mendoza.  These activities will include the following:

  1. Helping with school work
  2. Helping with health care needs
  3. Organizing donation drives for clothing, shoes, toys, games, and more
  4. Organizing and participating in recreational activities

Working in the Desierto Lavalle

For the second week of the Mendoza service trip, our group will head into the Desierto Lavalle, where we will work with the Huarpes Community, an indigenous community native to this region.  We will participate in the following activities:

  1. Organizing donation drives for shoes and games for more than 35o children (a tall task, but one that I know we can accomplish)
  2. Organizing donation drives for the fundamental elements necessary for rural life, such as electricity generators, medicines, and vaccines
  3. Organizing donation drives for school-children’s needs, such as clothing and computers
  4. Helping to teach energy efficient living and farming practices, such as cooking in a solar kitchen, sustainable planting and harvesting methods, and methods to increase the quality of the drinking water
  5. Participating in the important cultural events of this region

Contact Me if You are Interested!!

The two core parts of the Mendoza service trip–the week in the city and the week in the desert–come together to create a rejuvenating and rewarding experience.  Volunteers on this trip will stay in homestays, making it a cultural experience as well!!!  For more information on the Mendoza service trips, check out Agustin’s blog here.  If you are interested in joining this trip, please contact me at sarahannmaxwell@gmail.com and I can give you more details!!!  And, most touching and exciting of all, check out pictures of this service trip here and here.  They will melt your heart!!!

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Posted in Children, Education, Environment, Family Volunteering, Language Study, Service, Service Abroad, Spring Break, Summer Break, Tulum Eco Spring Break Service Trip | No Comments »

Why the Economic Crisis is a Good Time to Embrace Service

Wednesday, February 18th, 2009

With the economic crisis affecting us all in some way, and with scary headlines sweeping our newspapers everyday, it may feel like a pretty dark time.  However, although it might be hard to believe, this is also a time of unlimited opportunity.  As the saying goes, “a crisis is a terrible thing to waste” (Paul Romer, economist).  Let me explain.

This week, Luke Russert interviewed former President Bill Clinton.  And you will not believe the advice Bill Clinton gave to young people who are about to finish their 4-year degrees!  Read it and get excited:

  • Stay in school if you can or want to
  • Volunteer
  • Go abroad
  • Any combination of the above options

Because of our shaken-up economy, now is most likely not the moment you are going to find the career that allows you to save millions of dollars.  Though that may seem to be a gloomy fact, that reality also frees you from obligations of normal societal expectations, such as embarking upon your career path.   Now is the time that you have nothing to lose, which awards you the freedom to take risks, to follow your dreams and to do the things that seem unwise and unsafe when you have a secure office job at stake.  A crisis truly is a terrible thing to waste, as it allows you to remake and redefine the reality of your life. 

So what are your options?  If you are graduating, programs like AmeriCorps and PeaceCorps are amazing options.  So are shorter-term volunteer opportunities, such as Visions in Action .   

peace-corps(photo taken from Peace Corps website)

americorps1(image taken from the AmeriCorps VISTA site)

There are also some certification programs that you can embark upon either before or after graduation that can lead to altnerative career opportunities, such as a job within the emerging and highly-demanded green economy.  One of the best of these programs that I can recommend is Green For All, a vocational program (for which you DO NOT need a 4-year college degree!) that trains people and helps to place them somewhere in the alternative energy field.  Another interesting option in this genre is Green Corps, a very cool one-year program that teaches its trainees to organize environmental service and volunteer drives within communities, campuses, and more.  Let me know if you are interested in any of these programs and I can help to give you more information!

green-for-all(photo taken from the Green For All site)

And of course, what else can you do?? Enchanting Challenge service trips!!! We are getting ready to embark on the first one next month in Tulum, Mexico; we are busy plotting away the second one in August in Mendoza, Argentina; and we are putting together the pieces for the third one scheduled to take place in October in Puerto Madryn, Argentina.  Get ready for tomorrow’s post, as it will be a re-cap on all of these amazing service destinations!!!

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Posted in Animals, Children, Education, Environment, Family Volunteering, Language Study, Service, Service Abroad, Spring Break, Summer Break, Tulum Eco Spring Break Service Trip, Winter Break | No Comments »

How to Join the Local Food Movement

Monday, February 16th, 2009

As mentioned on Friday’s post, perhaps the healthiest way to serve the world (and yourself!) is through eating locally.  This can be, of course, accomplished through farmers’ markets and growing a small (or large!) amount of your own produce right at home.  However, there are also some other pretty cool ways to become even more involved in the local food movement.  If you have an itch to more deeply understand the journey of our food from seed to meal, then you might want to consider becoming involved in Community Supported Agriculture or volunteering on an organic farm.

Community Supported Agriculture

Community Supported Agriculture, or CSA, is a process by which a patron buys a share of the farm, thereby becoming farm members or shareholders.  The members/shareholders then receive a weekly share of the farm’s in-season produce.  Shares typically cost around $500 for a seasonal membership (depending upon your agricultural region, usually somewhere around 20 weeks), and can usually provide enough produce weekly for about two people.  Check out this YouTube video about CSA to learn more!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUBf_a3EtQU]

Work-for-Share

A $500 membership fee is quite a steal for a duo.  However, if you are a struggling college student, the work-for-share program is probably a better option for you.  As its name suggests, this set-up involves paying for your share of the farm by working.  Generally, farms will probably ask for an 8-10 hour/week commitment from you in exchange for your weekly produce (perhaps the perfect part-time summer job!).  To find a list of CSA farms near your home, click here.

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(photo taken from the Local Harvest website)

 Organic Farm Service Heaven

Another way to get involved in the local food movement is by volunteering on an organic farm.  WWOOF, the World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms, is an amazing network of organic farms spanning 6 continents.  By signing up to become a WWOOF member, you can apply for placement on an organic farm in your preferred region, whether that be the sandy farms of the Middle East, or the foresty greens of Germany, or the savannas of Africa–it’s up to you!  Programs are generally set up as a home-stay, with the volunteers living with and as part of their host family.  Volunteers are expected to help in the daily farm work, and in return are well-fed and provided with clean, safe, and dry living quarters.  There is no cost besides a small contribution to WWOOF to help them maintain their organization.  If you are interested in learning the ins-and-outs of organic farming, WWOOF may be the perfect opportunity for you.

wwoof (photo taken from the WWOOF website)

The local food movement is healthy for our world and for our own bodies.  It is a wonderful way to help move our world into the hopeful and healthy direction we are now moving.  CSA and WWOOF are just two ways to get involved.   There are many more options out there, so don’t hesitate to email me with any questions you may have on this topic!!

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Posted in Environment, Family Volunteering, Service, Service Abroad, Summer Break | 1 Comment »

Three Ways You Can Serve the World Everyday

Friday, February 6th, 2009

The Must-Must Read

I am currently reading–and madly in love with–Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, a page-turning memoir recanting the Kingsolver/Hopp family decision to move from their urban Tucson life to an agricultural life in Appalachia.  I can not put it down.  I’ve even gone so far as to devise writing exercises for my students (I work as an English teacher when I am not blogging :-) ) so that I can sneak in some pages during class while my students scribble away.  It’s that good!

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(That’s me curled up with the book!)

In Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Barbara Kingsolver discusses how and why her family took a vow to only eat what their own or their neighboring farms could produce.  In summary, they took on this challenge in order to be closer to what they ate, in order to keep their refrigerators from being gasoline carafes storing food that consumed countless gallons of fuel over the course of its transportation history.  Over the course of the book, the Kingsolver/Hopp family learns how to eat richly from the harvest of their own community, saving countless barrels of oil over the course of the year,  and also becoming healthier themselves as they only eat the freshest of foods, unharmed by poisonous pesticides and fertilizers.  They get back to nature, improving the health of their own bodies as well as the health of the environment along the way.  (All the while learning some delicious recipes!)  A pretty much win-win-win situation, wouldn’t you agree?

However, it is not feasible for us all to quit our city lives and move to the country.  But Barbara Kingsolver is the first to admit this, explaining that she herself could not afford to do such a thing until she was middle-aged, economically stable, and liberated by a creative profession as a writer.  So she takes the time to really illustrate how all of us can really serve the environment everyday in our normal, hectic, urban lives.

Ways You Can Give Back to Mother Earth Through Your Diet

  1. Grocery shop at your local farmer’s market: Since vendors at the farmer’s market will only sell locally-produced produce, your purchases will not include over-consumption of fuel.  Moreover, since it is fresh and local, it will not be packed with preservatives.  Animal, Vegetable, Miracle advises to check out the USDA website for a list of your nearest farmer’s markets (page 37).
  2. Grow your own garden: I read in the book that 1/4 of all American homes boast a produce garden!! I couldn’t believe it.  It was such exciting news!  Growing some of your own produce is the cheapest, most environmental, and one of the healthiest ways to get your fruits and veggies.  All it takes is a little TLC to green your thumb, and ba-da-bing, you are making yourself and the environment healthier!  To take Barbara Kingsolver’s advice, my boyfriend and I are now raising a lavendar and a rosemary plant to get some of our spice from our own patio (and don’t worry, we plan to expand this horitcultural horizon quite soon!).  Here are our lovely plants: enchanting-challenge-0032
  3. Know where your food comes from: It is too much to ask of you to suddenly get all of your food from the farmer’s market or to grow it yourself, but to be aware of the history behind many of the supermarket’s products is very important.  To know the journey of a food item will change your buying behavior, and over time, change the selling behavior of the grocery stores.  For example, if you start buying fair trade coffee and chocolate, it can do a world of good, for yourself, for the farmers, and for the environment!  Once again, as a personal example, I have decided to replace sugar with locally-produced honey in my shopping cart.  Honey is just as sweet, and it is from a near-by hive.  Moreover, it is not bleached with chemicals, produced with back-breaking low-paid labor, and hauled off on airplaces and trucks spitting out fueley fumes.  A little change can go a long way, and step-by-step, these changes are definitely doable!!

In Conclusion…

Our world needs us now more than ever, especially in regards to the environment.  Service trips like our Educational Ecological Service Trip to Tulum aim to open your eyes and inspire you to live more in harmony with nature.  However, it is not only about the 6 days of the trip.  Rather, it is about serving on the trip, coming home, and making changes in your life to give back to the environment everyday.  Books like Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle show us how we can really begin to do that.  Start reading it today!! 

Website of the day: the Animal, Vegetable, Miracle recipe index!

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A Little Inspiration

Wednesday, February 4th, 2009

Did you know that the world now has two up and running social stock exchanges, or stock exchanges where private donors contribute to philanthropic causes?  Sao Paulo, Brazil is home to the first one, and since 2003, its donors have contributed $5.5 million to 71 philanthropic endeavors!   South Africa is home to the second social stock exchange, and England and Germany plan to open up their own altruistic exchanges later this year.  India, New Zealand, Thailand, and Portugal are also planning their own (click here for a full article on this awesome topic).  This idea sounds so radical, but its founder, Celso Grecco, realized that profit, economic markets, and social progress can go hand-in-hand.  Imagine if he had given up on his idea, imagine how many philanthropic endeavors would go unfunded, and how much potential for future philanthropic endeavors would be lost. 

Our world today is full of examples like the Sao Paulo stock exchange, full of beautiful institutions that started with one idea that was pushed to fruition.  From Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank, to Bunker Roy and Barefoot College, to Dr. Ibrahim Abouleish and Sekem, social entrepreneurs are crossing the globe, readjusting and fixing previously harmful structures.   Watch this video (click here for full the full webpage) with Muhammad Yunus for some inspirational insight:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJsWSwf43Ps]

The most beautiful words from the interview are the following:

 

“You can create your own world…You dream of a new world…Write it down, and make it happen.” 

And Muhammad Yunus is right.  You can create your own world, you can make your dream world our real world.  All of the most amazing and altruistic endeavors that you can think of started with one idea.  If you read the book The Power of Unreasonable People, a book that is filled with inspiring information about people like Muhammad Yunus, you will see how so much of our world is changed by those who simply refuse to abandon their dreams, simply refuse to forget that they can make a huge difference in the world.  So let your ideas free, and pursue them with passion and commitment.  Service and service trips are the perfect opportunity to see what moves you most, to see what you would most like to change.  Travel to Tulum with Enchanting Challenge, or to any of the places offered by organizations such as Break Away, and you too will begin your quest to help the world…And you too can eventually become one of your very own heroes.  Together we will be the Volunteers of America.

Website of the day: Barefoot College

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Posted in Animals, Children, Education, Environment, Family Volunteering, Interviews, Service Abroad, Spring Break, Summer Break, Tulum Eco Spring Break Service Trip | 1 Comment »

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