Main fundraiser photo

Arajuno Road Community Center

"After 8 years of operation, ARP is set to move its small office and volunteer house to form a much needed community center."

About ARP:
The Arajuno Road Project (ARP) / Proyecto Ruta del Arajuno  supports healthy communities and a healthy natural environment in the Ecuadorian Amazon. ARP began its work in 2007 and was officially created in 2008 with the goal of improving the opportunities available to the children living along the road located between the small city of Puyo and the rural community of Arajuno – a culturally and ecologically diverse and unique region.  

ARP offers an array of programs year-round to improve community capital by providing quality educational activities, improving the infrastructure and learning environment of schools, enhancing food security, supporting community health, and promoting forest conservation.  These core programs include:

-  Community Health, a newer program that aims to increase quality of life and well-being of individuals and communities.  In 2015, ARP volunteers have collaborated with schools on water security and health promoters in partner communities to implement a medical literacy curriculum.

-  Forest Conservation, which encourages conservation of the region's forest through environmental education, reforestation and promotion of sustainable agroforestry.  Over 30 students participated in weekly eco-clubs this year.  Approximately 20 participants are involved in our first reforestation nursery.  In July 2015, forest conservation volunteers and residents of partner community Chuya Yaku completed workshops on natural resources and community planning to create a high-quality zoning map that will act as a model for other communities to spearhead and maintain long-term natural resource planning.

Gardens & Nutrition, which improves food security and nutrition for children, families and communities by establishing gardens based on partners' needs. Schools hold weekly agri-clubs and/or community work days with support from ARP.  School/community gardens currently provide alimentation to approximately 60 students and their families through three separate sites. Two new sites, including the new community center, will formally enter the program in September. 

-  TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), which provides English instruction throughout each school year to ARP's partner schools, who are are rural and underserved and do not have the resources to teach the subject.  TEFL courses benefited approximately 130 students and an additional 30 participants received introductory English instruction this year. Between 60 and 80 children typically participate during each week of summer camp during school vacation.

-  Youth Development, a program launched in 2014 that continues to support children throughout secondary school and into early adulthood by helping them build life skills to be successful adults and contributing community members.  Approximately 60 youth have participated in our youth development courses to date and the program is set to expand each year as ARP's kids grow.
 
ARP typically conducts between 53-96 hours per week of active programming in these program areas partnering directly with 6 communities on site and 7 passive communities (community members are included in close-by programs). (Many hours more are spent on coordination, planning and preparation of programs.) 

Our request:
After 8 years of operation, ARP is set to move its small office and volunteer house to form a much needed community center.

The site is a recently closed school (due to changes in the national school system). ARP has a multi-year, successful history of community collaboration through the school that neither the community or ARP want to lose. It is a site that has a 60+ year history as the first school along Arajuno Road and also as the heart of the region, which will be lost without ARP's intervention.

While the community is providing the site in exchange for a continuation of direct programming from ARP, several infrastructure improvements need to be made to ensure dependable basic services, and a safe and secure environment.

The site will meet many of our program growth needs as far as physical space. However, we will need to increase our office and teaching equipment and materials to make the space functional. (For example: The partner community has specifically asked for computer classes, but ARP barely has a working computer.)

Lastly, with any change, transitional periods increase expenses, from hiring a moving truck to incurring double operational expenses during any overlap between headquarters to adapting programming and operations to a new routine.
 
2015 represents an important year of growth for the Arajuno Road Project. By donating in 2015, you will have a lasting impact on all partner communities served by ARP.  Your support will help ARP sustain existing programming while replicating our work in additional communities on the Ruta del Arajuno as we partner together on the path to creating healthy, livable futures for all.

Organizer

Laura Hepting
Organizer
Puyo, Ecuador
Omprakash Foundation
 
Registered nonprofit
Donations are typically 100% tax deductible in the US.

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