Finca Llurimahua

The lasty two weeks have been spent under the hot hot sun in the province of Imbabura at Finca Llurimahua, which is a type of large banana. Here they grow organic coffee, pineapples, platanos, yuca, papayas, lemons, mandarines, guavas and other tropical produce. Normally I am wearing a long sleeve shirt, long pants and a hat to minimize my exposure to sun, bugs, and sharp plants(to no avail, I have bites and scratches all over my body). I have discovered that though I love pineapple, my skin is allergic to the spines on their leaves. I live in the house to the left of the picture with other volunteers and workers who happen to be there and Patricio and Irma, a couple who help run the farm owned by Jose and Sonya. The little blond boy I am holding hands with is Jose and Sonya´s son, Orion. He squeels delightfully and is occupied for hours with a key and a lock hole. The farm is hours away from a large city, meaning the interenet.

I am learning intimately about coffee and learning to appreciate it even more. They sell their delicious coffee with an association of organic coffee growers in the area with the acronym of ACRE, under the label of Rio Intag. There are numerous local development projects going on in the area. Last weekend I traveled to a small village, of 21 famillies, called Rosal where, with the financial support of a Spanish organization, 6 women there have started a aloe soap, shampoo and creme business that they produce and sell locally and export through a fair trade store in Quito called Camari. These local development attempts are aimed as being alternatives for logging and mining in one of the worlds richest untouched biodiverse regions.

Also there is an intense mining battle going on in the area. In a nearby town called Junin, a transnational Canadian company called Ascendant Copper Mining Company, is trying to rip open the earth and destroy an incredibly biodiverse forest with the construction of a copper mine. The community is fighting back, not allowing Acsendant to enter their town. They have been threatened, shot at, prosecuted in court (they are also taking Acsendant to court) and bribed, and they are not budging. There are many battles like this one going on all over Ecuador and presumably around the world. To learn more you can google the company and go to www.decoin.org, the local website for current updates.

Tomorrow I go back to Finca Llurimahua to work for the week.