This is the final episode from our 2012 community service and skiing adventure.

Enjoy!

Check back next week for our third and final episode of the 2012 project in which we say goodbye to our friends in Amaru and head south to Chile in search of snow…

This episode opens with a glimpse of the FullCircle crew’s skiing in Chile, then the episode travels back in time to our arrival in Amaru, Peru. In Amaru, we begin to learn about the people who live there, their ancient culture, and the troubles they face with modern waste.

Episodes two and three will drop on the next two Tuesdays! Enjoy!

Check out this blog post from the La Familia Channel.

We were able to raise almost $2000!  All of the money will go toward our Peru Recycling Center project.

Big thanks to our silent raffle winners.

MARKER DUKE:  Zach Simon

VOLKL SHIRO: Chris Dickey

DNA OUTFIT: Zander Felton

You’ll see these guys shredding all season in Jackson on this awesome gear!

There was a huge amount of support from local businesses! Thank you to…

The Calico Restaurant

Elevated Grounds Coffee Shop

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort

Terra Public Relations

Pinky G’s

Teton Gravity Research

Great Harvest Bread

Fine Dining

Wilson Backcountry Sports

Skinny Skis

Jackson Hole Movie Cinema

Wine Loft Liquor Store

Pearl Street Coffee Shop

We are already down in Peru and heading to Amaru to start construction on the recycling center.  We have a ton of work to do and are super excited to begin.  Thank you to everyone for making this project a reality.  We are going off the grid, but will update everyone when we reconnect in two weeks.

Amaru is a community where 220 families practice traditional subsistence agriculture on the steep Andean slopes above the Sacred Valley.  This is a poor area, where people have to get by on less than $1.50 a day.  Trash is also a big problem—without effective means to dispose of inorganic wastes, mixed refuse is deposited in an exposed pit where it contaminates the ground and is blown away by the wind.  FCP is working with community leader Gregorio Tacuri and local organization Ascend Adventure Travel to tackle both of these issues simultaneously.

We will be building a recycling and waste sorting facility in Amaru during August 2012.  The facility will sell recycled bottles and plastic rope for income, and create a line of natural products such as soaps, toothpaste, and shampoos to be sold in communities and to tourists.  The project will create economic opportunity in Amaru and work to reduce environmental contamination.

As well as spending two weeks working on the construction of this facility and living in the community, we will fund the $3000 cost of the plot construction itself.

We are partnering with The Hope Alliance, a 501(c)3 non-profit organization based in Salt Lake City.  This partnership will allow donors to make tax-free contributions to support our trip.  Our goal is to raise $12,000 to help fund the farm project and to facilitate the travel of our group.  You can donate here.  Thank you!

Resting on a wind-scoured perch at 12,000 feet in an amphitheater formed by the jagged peaks of the Urubamba Cordillera, the town of Maras seems an unlikely candidate for a large-scale agriculture project. However, the lifestyle of the community is shifting back to agrarian roots due to the recent completion of a 36km aqueduct.

Prior to 2007, a reliable source of water, carrying a surplus for use on crops, was an unthinkable luxury for the community.  Aside from a very small, sporadically flowing spring on private land, all the water for Maras was delivered by truck, along with maize, wheat, barley, apples, plums, oranges, and other staples that are now beginning to be grown locally.

With the newfound potential for crop productivity, the people of Maras are taking the initial steps to becoming more self-sufficient through the development of communally owned and maintained agricultural plots.   However, it is very expensive to carry out large projects of this kind in this poverty stricken region.

Among the many discoveries and realizations that occurred to us while living and working in Maras, is that the layout of the apple orchard plot is going to be used as a template for thousands of other communities in the Sacred Valley region that want to take the same steps toward self-sufficiency.

One of the most significant aspects of the orchard is that the project idea was developed by the community member’s of Maras for the community.  Born out of their desire to improve the quality of life for their children, the orchard is their vision and seen as a vital step in their development as a community.  The members of FullCircle, backed by generous donor support, were truly honored to not only provide resources and labor to help carry this project forward, but to have the privilege to live among the amazing people of Maras, listen to their stories, and experience the richness of their culture they’ve fought so hard to preserve.

The FullCircle Team