Ecoventura, which operates small expedition vessels in the Galapagos region, has teamed up with “Pack for a Purpose,” a charitable organization whose mission encourages travelers to save room in their travel luggage for five pounds of school or medical supplies to donate to communities they’re visiting.
What a traveler brings is determined in advance with the tour operator. For example, in the Galapagos, Ecoventura’s team notes that one youth organization needs computer equipment, digital cameras, scanners, a sound system, pens, pencils, pencil sharpeners, rulers, English teaching books, English/Spanish dictionaries, software and ecology-focused teaching aids. Another organization for physically and mentally challenged children needs puzzles, rubber balls, crayons, modeling clay and colored pencils.
“We invite people to ask us what they need to pack,” said Doris Welsh, Ecoventura’s director of sales and marketing, adding that 400 pencils and five deflated soccer balls can add up to five pounds to help poor communities.
As an ecology-minded and socially responsible tour company, based in San Cristobal, Ecoventura supports various initiatives that benefit the local population in Puerto Baquerizo Moreno, San Cristobal. With a population of 5,600, San Cristobal has the second-largest population in the islands after Santa Cruz. It is the fifth-largest island and the only island with fresh water and an airport in town.
Through the foundation “Gotitas de Esperanza” (Drops of Hope), Ecoventura has pledged to sponsor the salaries for teachers and physical therapists who work at the Alejandro Alvear School on San Cristobal Island. During the day, the school provides therapy for children with Down Syndrome and other physical disabilities. In the evenings, the school serves the adult population through programs such as teaching sign language for the hearing impaired. For more information, call 800-644-7972 or visit www.ecoventura.com.
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