Las Lomas and their Impoverished Neighbors

Much of my time here in Peru will be marked by my work with A Rocha Peru. A Rocha is an Christian international conservation organization which is now present it 19 different countries around the world. As a student at Wheaton, I was actively involved in our student chapter of the organization and affirmed its mission to study and steward creation as a response to our Biblical mandate to "keep and serve" and earth in Genesis 2:15. While each chapter is united under the same mission,  the work each one does is different depending on their cultural and ecological context. Here in Lima, we are working to develop a project in "Las Lomas" surrounding the city and stretching along the coast. 


What is a loma? Literally translated, a "loma" is a hill. These hills, however, are a unique ecosystem which is borne out of the trade winds which bring mist from the Pacific ocean to the tops of these hills where it hangs from June to November. During these winter months, the mist provides an abundant supply of water to the area and creates a landscape of lush vegetation and a habitat for birds, mammals  reptiles, and amphibians. Some of these species are endemic, meaning they can only be found here in these ecosystems. Considering that Lima lies along the dry desert coast, these lomas provide a haven for life which would otherwise not exist.


Since the time of Spanish colonialism, the lomas have undergone significant stress and destruction. Overgrazing by goats and cattle, invasive species, and climate change are just some of the threats which are isolating the remaining lomas habitat and undermining its ecological integrity. Therefore, one aspect of A Rocha's conservation project, is to determine the current state of the lomas in order to deduce what kind of management actions should be taken to restore these ecosystems. A Rocha Peru has biologists which are working on this now and part of my job is to go out with Jose Luis to assist him with biological analysis.


This, however, is not the full story of the lomas, nor can biological integrity be the only focus of a successful conservation project. As your eyes travel down the slopes of the hills you see the green slowly transform into a dusty brown. Clinging precariously to the hillside are thousands of rugged shacks made from whatever material their tenets could find. These slum communities are some of the most impoverished in Lima and the problems which plague these people are deeply systemic. As urban sprawl continues, these communities will build homes higher and higher up the hills. They have little to no fresh water due to contamination and patchy support from the municipalities. 


This reality begs me to ask how our conservation project in the Lomas will benefit these people? How can a healthy ecosystem promote a healthy community? How can these people be involved in the project in a way which both empowers them and gives them ownership of its protection? Without this relationship, I fear the long term goals of our conservation efforts will go unmet. The lomas will continue to be destroyed and the conditions of the communities around them will go unchanged. Neither of these outcomes reflect the hope of reconciliation and redemption which Jesus brings to his entire created order. 


Although A Rocha Peru is primarily a team of dedicated biologists, they too recognize the importance of identifying the socio-political barriers to restoring the lomas. And, since I am here with a willingness to serve wherever A Rocha needs me to, I get to throw my hat in the ring with the bull. I get to tackle this problem. Obviously there are more connections and intricacies involved here than four months could even begin to process. However, I think the opportunity for me to ask questions, identify relationships and look at the project through a fresh lens, will ultimately be helpful to A Rocha Peru as they carry on this work long after I am gone.


The day to day aspect of my work is a little ambiguous. Each day is different. Over the next month I will be traveling to some lomas along the coast, going on environmental education field trips with Amparo, and working to form a more succinct plan for my Socio-Political Independent Study. The rest of my time is happily spent cooking with my family, learning to navigate the transportation system and picking up Peruvian slang. 


I'd say I need to keep learning to be patient as I have the tendency to want to go all the time instead of just learning to be. When you spend your life running through each day just to get to the next one, you miss out of the beauty of the present. And it is in the present where you are shaped and equipped to be a disciple. It is in the daily conversations and interactions with others that you realize life is too precious to wish away on thoughts of something "more important" in the future. Yes there is a metanarrative going on, a master plan which we are amazingly a part of and which gives our lives greater purpose.  But, I think the outworking of that narrative is in the day to day aspects of life. And, for a big picture thinker like me, this is sometimes easy to forget. 


So, rejoice in the hardships and blessings of the day because God is using them as much in the present as he is to shape you for some "other" purpose in the future. 

A chicken farm at the base of the Lomas

The typical mist at 400 meters 

Zapatita de Bebe - Baby's Shoe

Teaching the students about the birds in the Lomas

Are you from the Jungle?

So, the title of this blogs leads me into a story from this past week involving 90 six and seven year-olds. Amparo is pursuing her master's degree in Environmental Education and runs a small business with 9 other women which  provides hands-on learning experiences for grade-school children. The women don their matching outdoor vests and hats and look ready to lead these chicos on a wild adventure through the back-country of Peru. However, considering that we are located in a city with 11 million people, our teaching locations are a little less primeval. On this day we met the children at El Parque de los Anillos (Park of the Rings) where there were various exhibits with alpaca, peacocks, free-ranging Peruvian chickens, and raucous Macaws. The guides (of all ages and backgrounds) would lead the children through the park telling them about the animals and encouraging them to ask questions. Most of the time I observed, took pictures, and helped "herd" the little ones in the right direction.

Obviously when I talked with the children, I didn't quite sound like a Peruvian. In fact, I think my origins were a greater point of curiosity for them than the animals most of the time. It was always fun for me to answer the question: "where are you from?" with a "where do you think?" Occasionally a child would venture to guess the United States but often the answers were more amusing. My favorites include England, Spain, France, Cusco (a Peruvian city in the mountains) and yes, the jungle. So there you have it, I may not be a native but, I am still a little exotic. 

There is no real routine to my days here but it keeps each day interesting. Some days I will go with Amparo to help the women teach children about the environment. Some days I will be visiting the lomas with Jose Luis from A Rocha and figuring out my independent research project. Some days I will be visiting with the neighbors and learning how to make Peruvian dishes. Cooking has become one of the best ways to connect with Esteban, my new 11-year old friend. This weekend both of his parents were gone for various reasons and it was just the two of us at home. Of course we made all of his favorite foods including taquenas which are chunks of cheese wrapped up in Wonton wrappers, fried, and eaten with guacamole. In my family we call these delicious and unhealthy treats "lumpias". He also made what he referred to as a "super ensalada" with bananas, yogurt, cornflakes, and algarrobina (kind of like honey). Not quite a "salad" but it was still pretty tasty.

Today at church the pastor introduced me to the congregation and had me stand-up and give everyone a wave. After the service I received muchos saludos from everyone which meant lots of kisses on the cheek. The pastor told me to consider the church as my home and family for the next four months. On Saturday, I attended a service for the youth and met quite a few people my age. I exchanged telephone numbers with some of the girls and will probably see them more this week. The service went for nearly four hours and since it ended at 11:30pm, I had to be escorted home even though the church was only a couple of blocks away. Safety on the streets seems to be a real concern for many of the women here and it takes some adjusting for me, Ms. Independent. I am learning to consider my constant escort as traveling companions and to patiently await the day when I may be able to explore some of the city myself (of course always in the daylight).  

One final comment on Peruvian life; there are fiestas for everything. Every day I can hear some band playing on the street corner and many nights there are firecrackers. Usually I enjoy watching all the commotion and observing the Catholic rituals celebrating sainthood. It just so happens that one of our neighbors is having quite the party right now and it is expect to last for three days straight. The traditional music of Peru is pretty catchy but I think my earplugs are going to come in handy tonight. 

Me and the Environmental Educators

One of my curious 6 year-olds

Teaching children at the Park

Place of Justice in downtown Lima. They had a free exhibit on one of the
ancient civilizations of Peru so we were able to go inside!
  

Life from the Southern Hemisphere

Well, I am going on my 6th day in Lima, Peru and as with any new place, I am full to the brim with new sights, smells, words, and faces. As I engage my surroundings every day, my eyes begin to see new things as the macro-impressions of "the city" of Lima become more refined and detailed. I have begun to recognize the names of my neighbors, the relative locations of the surrounding districts, the streets that run around my neighborhood, and the landmarks which  help me know when to get off the bus (my little casita is across from the red Pesca gas station). As I begin to see this place more fully, the beauty and the brokenness will no doubt become more poignant. I will say, however, that they people I have met so far, including my host family, and their extended family and friends, have extended a warm hospitality to me and express a precious and overflowing joy. 

I live with Ronald, Amparo and their 11-year-old son Esteban in a suburb or district of Lima. I was asked to bring a couple of X-box games for Esteban (I know, video games right?!) and so we have been playing a couple of them together. Actually one of them is a sports game in which you have to move in front of the screen like you were actually playing the game. You get more exercise than you might think, especially when playing the Track & Field part of the game where you have to sprint and jump hurdles. This basically involves running very fast in place and then jumping as high as you can. I can't say I have spent much time playing video games before now but, all things considered, this is at least a little more active and actually kind of fun! Regardless, it is an initial venue for building a relationship with Esteban. He seems like a sweet kid and I am looking forward to getting to know him better. 

Right now Ronald is away in Bolivia leading a seminar for World Relief so it has given me a chance to talk with Amparo one-on-one and get to know her pretty well. She is a biologist who volunteers with A Rocha and has a passion for creation care and encouraging other Christians to take initiative in supporting and leading conservation efforts around the country. She is by nature a teacher and especially loves children. Every Wednesday, she and a couple of professors from a nearby university take students on "field trips" to rivers, wildlife areas and other natural reserves around Lima to aid their learning experience and help them engage with the natural world around them. She says I will be able to join her this week! During my first couple of days in Lima, I went with Amparo to a conference on sustainable development and was introduced to some of most active environmental professionals in Peru. What a way to begin this whole adventure. I even met the new Minister of the Environment! I also met many women who were professors or organizational heads doing some amazing work in the jungle, the mountains and along the coast. I hope to be able to talk more with them in the future and ask them lots of questions about their work and life.  

I don't start my work with A Rocha until Thursday but we will be working in los lomas or literally, the hills, surrounding Lima. I actually saw them for the first time the other day when we were walking to the bus stop.  The weather here is remarkably like Seattle and is often very overcast but, the sun had burned off the clouds just enough for me to see vibrant green hills in the distance. The Lomas seem to have both ecological and cultural significance and face quite a few challenges in their conservation. During the winter, which is from July to September here, the hills receive the mist/moisture from the trade winds that come across the Pacific and are stopped by the Andes. This provides an explosion of life in an otherwise dry desert. Despite the rich biodiversity of these unique ecosystems, the lomas have been plagued by deforestation and overgrazing by the cattle brought by Europeans during colonization. Traditionally these hills were also home to many native peoples including the Inca. I hope that during my internship I will be able to engage both the hard science of conservation efforts in the lomas as well as help determine strategies for understanding the social, economic, and political constraints of their protection.  

I have ridden the "bus" multiple times now and each time is a wild ride. There are rules to the road but I haven't quite figured them out yet. I also find it somewhat amusing to see how many people they try to pack into one little van. It isn't really that expensive to ride around on it and it is the primary form of transportation that my family uses. There are very few private cars and those that exist are often owned only by the rich. Amparo has been helping me learn to navigate the system by asking me to tell the driver where we are going and when to stop. I can probably get to two or three different places by myself if I had to but, I think it will become a little easier and more comfortable with time. That brings me to the biggest challenge: the language! Yes, I have been able to communicate fairly well and I have been able to understand more as the days go by. But, it is a little tiring to be engaged in Spanish conversation all day long and as was the case with church yesterday, my brain seems to check out at a certain point. Amparo is a patient teacher and has been faithfully teaching me Peruvian slang. As Ryan in the HNGR office says, laughter and risk are two excellent ingredients for improving language skills.  I have had plenty of opportunities to use both of these in the last week! 

I think this week will continue to be one of "firsts." I ate chicken liver for the first time today and apparently cow heart is on the menu in the near future. I guess we will have to see what is next :)

Please continue to pray for this time of transition and that I would be open to taking risks and stepping out of my comfort zone. God has faithfully brought me this far and I know he will continue to reshape my preconceptions of the world in order to teach me more about Himself and what it means to live as his disciple in this world. Today was a full day of rest which I so desperately needed. I was able to read, write, process and just enjoy my new family here. I pray for more of these along the way. 

Rachel  

A handful of photos from my house: 

This is the view from the rooftop

This is the view from my front window, we live on the second floor with the in-laws below us. 

Street vendors in our neighborhood cooking Antecucho and Picarones (cow heart and fried donuts)

Esteban with the fresh and hot picarones we bought from the street vendor!

Amparo cooking in the kitchen. The houses have no heat so everyone wears their winter coats inside.