Project Launch:

In the heart of the Cordillera Blanca in the Andes Mountains of Peru lies a rural, traditional community called Huashao where the children suffer from malnutrition, illnesses caused by improper hygiene, and environmental contamination. The Campaña Wamrakuna Kushi Paqakushqa, which is the Quechua translation for Campaign for Happy, Healthy Children, is a long-term campaign to promote improved nutrition, hygiene and environmental habits of the students from this rural Andean village. By combining classes, activities, and games, the children of Huashao are learning to use healthy habits through doing rather than listening. With World Connect’s support, the students of Huashao built an organic vegetable garden to support a more varied diet at the schools. The students are maintaining the garden, empowered through the ownership of their own project at the school. To improve the environment of the school and the surrounding community, the students also led regular trash cleanups and installed trash bins in their classrooms. By separating their inorganic and organic trash, the students have been able to use their organic trash to make compost to fertilize their organic vegetable garden. This project is improving nutrition and the local environment for the children and community of Huashao, and placing kids at the center of leadership.