El Fundo

El Fundo ("The Farm") is a study center serving as the heart of APECA activity where, surrounded by researched and tested models, villagers are provided a "Retreat-like" experience, which gives them time for study and reflection away from daily chores in their villages. This learning environment is dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of the Amazon Rainforest and her culture.

El Fundo, under the leadership of Pablo Guerra, Program Director, is the base of operations for APECA.  This solar-powered facility provides staff living quarters and shop space for woodworking, motor repairs, boat building, and general maintenance. It also houses the education and training center, and maintains working model projects such as Demonstration fish ponds, Vegetable gardens, Clean drinking-water systems, Trash pits for pollution control, Reforested areas, Natural medicine preparation and use, Tree nursery propagation and care, Turtle repopulation, and Layer Hens in chicken coops over fish ponds.  It is also the education and training center for natural medicine, midwifery, public health, community leadership, conservation, and reforestation.    

Sustainable community development is a top priority objective of APECA, addressed by local citizens who select representatives from their villages to become APECA-trained leaders (taught by professionals) using the working models at El Fundo.

Every APECA donor is part of this non-governmental effort.  When trained, these valuable leaders, with the help of supportive donors, are able to initiate projects that will bring a higher quality of life to families of their local communities. 

El Fundo serves as a demonstration farm and community center for El Fundo and the surrounding villages in the District of Fernando Lores, providing a place to observe and practice new sustainable farming and aqua culture techniques, including how to survive in high-water seasons when fresh produce is not available. Parasitic and waterborne diseases are endemic, and governmental services for education and health are available only in well-established large towns. Against this background developing continuing community leadership for sanitation, health, and nutrition are among APECA’S top priorities.

These projects are the "nuts and bolts" of what APECA is and does. It is a struggle with (at times) wearisome, upsetting, even repellent problems in one of the world’s few remaining Edens--a place where river, sky, and forest sustain the spirit and satisfy the heart. The effort is well worth it.  Adventurous and committed visionaries are invited to join in this opportunity to make the world a better place for all of us.

For more information, Contact APECA  Peru at:  apecaperu@apecaperu.org.