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We invite you to change lives in PeruProposal

2008

Nexos Voluntarios

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Nexos Voluntarios is a non-profit organization which promotes social volunteering in Peru

Objective

Nexos Voluntarios aims to promote development and foster an understanding between the Northern and Southern Hemispheres by promoting high quality and effective voluntary activity by foreign and local caring individuals in Peru.

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Nexos Voluntarios*

We base our activity on a network model to provide comprehensive services to our visiting volunteers

Local Universities

•Participate through their student bodies, who act as peer volunteers to visiting volunteers

•Volunteers receive support from faculty to strengthen their project

NGOs and non-profits

•Incorporate volunteers within their projects

• Disseminate the program within their members

Foreign Universities

Inter American development Bank

•Sponsor the program and support volunteers with materials, advise and technical assistance

Cooperation agencies

Corporations

•Transfer their knowledge to volunteers by acting as mentors

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We would like to invite students related to CDAS to join our volunteering program

• Participation in an impact-driven social project as a volunteer

• Room and board with a Peruvian host family

• Contribution to the NeVo Social Fund

• Cultural and entertainment activities (tourism, excursions, workshops)

• Local peer volunteer program and local intellectual mentors

• “Fire-side chats” with a coach

• Conversations and round-tables with experts in different topics tables

• Comprehensive on-site support (access to the NeVo house, permanent coordinator)

Components of our Group Programs with Partnering Universities

Media Luna (ML) is a community situated 7km from the district of Urubamba, (in the province of Cusco) that was founded in 1985. With a total population of 600 people (approximately 145 families) Media Luna has electricity and running water but lacks many components that will help it develop and progress out of poverty, such as:

•Adequate infrastructure

•An adequate educational level for its population (children and adults)

•Adequate health services and public health capacities to promote good health in the population

•A culture that promotes equity among men and women particularly in the real of reproductive health and labor rights

•An economic activity that is profitable and sustainable

Specifically we propose for the CDAS group to work in a community development project in Media Luna Urubamba (Cusco)

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To promote the integral development of this community, Nexos Voluntarios promotes working on diagnosing 9 areas of development

The environment

Education

Economic activities

Public Health

Transportation and communications

Housing and basic services

Community-based organization

Public safety

Family life and domestic violence

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33

44

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Key questions

What is the current situation of media Luna in regards to the area of development being analyzed?

What are the main issues encountered?

What possible solutions do we oversee?

What is the timing an resources needed to work on these solutions?

Are these solutions feasible to implement?

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Issues found

. . . and immediately addressing four of them

The environment

• ML* has degraded the environment by engaging in extensive tree-cutting

• There is no culture of recycling or an adequate waste disposal

Education

Economic activities

Public Health

Focus of the intervention (initiatives)

• Reforestation • Recycling and “ecological bricks”

educational campaign

* ML: Media Luna

• The primary school has only one teacher overseeing all age groups; she is committed but overwhelmed

• Participation in classes to support the teacher

• Strengthening of basic English language skills

• There is no sustainable economic activity in the community and they are not benefitting from the tourism boom in Cusco

• There are cave-paintings in the community that could be a tourism attraction

• Cleaning and signaling the area where cave-paintings are located

• Implementing a “marketing” campaign to increase awareness of the cave paintings among tourists

• There is a major public health issue due to unwanted pregnancies particularly in teen-agers and very poor community members

• Implementing a reproductive health educational campaign targeted at: primary and secondary schools and community adults

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The group would work for a period of 10 to 12 weeks in two efforts: a diagnostics and planning effort with a long-term vision and an

immediate needs initiative

Situational diagnostic

Addressing immediate needs

Community developmen

t plan

Long-term vision

Immediate-needs vision

Focusing on the 9 areas of development, defined by the United Nations methodology, develop a diagnostic of the situation identifying main challenges and develop a community development plan to address these challenges

Focusing on the 4 areas of development, address the immediate needs facing the community by implementing previously-defined initiatives

10 – 12 weeks

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The program will cover all the groups needs

• Room and board including lodging with a host family or the NeVo House (shared room, 2 people per room) and 3 meals per day; Mon-Sun except for 1 “free night” per week

• Water and daily snacks

• Transportation to and from lodging to Media Luna Mon – Thu

• Weekly cultural activities, including visits to major Inca and Pre-Inca sites with a professional tour guide; (visit to Machu Picchu is not included)

• Transportation to cultural activities

• Donation to the project

• Full time coordinator assigned to the group

• Duration: 12 weeks

Group of 8 people: US$ 3,000 per person

Group of 10 people:US$ 2,860 per person

Group of 12 people:US$ 2,710

Fees do not include:Air ticket Montreal-Lima-Cusco-Lima-Montreal

Full coverage health insurance