Newsletter: ¡Season's Greetings!
- Joshua Holmes
- Dec 27, 2022
- 3 min read
Updated: Aug 8
The following is an El Terreno newsletter published on 27th December 2022
As we look back upon 2022, it's been year of much learning & change to find what works for the organisation & how to help the communities surrounding Atandahua.
We're excited to move into 2023 with even greater clarity and purpose. Thank you for helping us establish a strong foundation to grow from!
Festive greetings from all here in the Ecuadorian Andes,
Joshua Holmes
Founder, El Terreno
#Social Impact
A Christmas Celebration for our English Students
Our English classes are a cornerstone of our community work, not only to help them learn a language that can provide them future opportunities, but also to have fun and build confidence in region with low educational outcomes.
To celebrate the end of the year, our English teacher, Wilson Morales, ran a Christmas activity which included food, a quiz and the giving out of 20 certificates for participation and 5 certificates for students who have attained the level A1 in the language!
In 2023, we want to expand our English programme to reach the distant communities beyond Atandahua. If you do not do so already, please consider becoming one of our donors, to help us improve the lives of those that need it most.
¡Dutch Medical Student Develops Skills in Ecuador!
At the end of this week, Arthur Van Der Schot (Netherlands), finishes his 8-week medical internship here at El Terreno. During his time, he has been supporting the understaffed health centre in San Juan, participating in vaccination programmes in rural communities and help in the emergency room in Guaranda's public hospital.
"I came to El Terreno to practice my Spanish and learn new medical skills. During my stay I helped out attending patients in the health center and hospital and in the process observed a completely different relationship between people and healthcare.
This internship will help me put things into perspective in my future career as a doctor. I hope it will also help me when I do my years at medics without borders!"
- Arthur van der Schot, Netherlands |
If you're keen to see other cultures, develop your skills and make a difference to rural communities in the Andes, have a look at our 8 themes and arrange a call to discuss your internship in 2023, today!
¡Fun, Experimentation and Progress on the Build!
With our volunteering focus now firmly set on the construction of El Terreno's cafe/workshop space, we invited some passionate volunteers including Christian from Ecuador and Sofía from Uruguay to join us on further adobe experimentation and begin filling in our first walls on the build!
We've also collaborated with local artesans who make adobe bricks to learn a little about their process and to acquire some for what will be the chimney of the construction.
The building is beginning to take real shape. If you're a passionate craftsman with skills to match, come & join us in 2023 on an exciting build that will be a hub for social innovation & cultural exchange!
Supporting the Development of Local Tourism
The province of Bolívar has huge tourism potential; but due to a lack of education and resources, many businesses struggle to succeed.
Raffael (Germany) came to El Terreno for a Eco & Community Tourism Internship, to develop his experience in the field and support family businesses develop their tourism potential. He spent several weeks exploring the area and bringing his ideas to help local entrepreneurs.
Learn more about Raffael's experience through his blog post:
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