The recent earthquake in Chile has shaken awake the medias interest in the infamous “Ring of Fire”. From local weather men to the big network scientists, all have vaguely scratched the surface in their explanations of one of the most dangerous areas on Earth.

The Pacific Ring of Fire stretches from South America, where the Nazca plate dips beneath the South American Plate, and runs north along the pacific coasts of Central and North America up to Alaska. It then crosses over to the coasts of Asia all the way south to New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. It is along these fault lines that 75% of the worlds active and dormant volcanoes rest. It is also where 90% of the worlds earthquakes occur. [Continue reading...]

Volunteering your time to an organization and dedicating some of your time to a cause is one of the most noble and meaningful things a person can do. Whether assisting the poor, taking care of abandoned children or helping communities grow, the simple and generous act of participation is a rewarding experience to both the volunteer and the people they help.

Being that our own volunteer program is only months away we thought it a good idea to highlight why volunteering in Peru is such a special and rewarding experience. Right now there are thousands of volunteers preparing to travel to Peru for the Summer and hundreds of organizations taking applications. Whether volunteering in a coastal city, a small Andean village or in the jungle, the same reasons hold true for all who decide to journey to Peru and help make a difference. [Continue Reading...]

Often I go back to the date of September 13th, 2007 as the birth of the Karikuy Organization, that’s when the original website launched under our previous name of Manchakuy. Since then I have been blogging annually about the organization and the progress we’ve been making with our programs. So you guessed it! this is one of those posts and below you can read about each one of our programs and where they are at right now. You will also read about some new programs and how you can help in achieving our most important goals. So Happy New Year from Karikuy, we see a bright future ahead for the organization, we hope you can join us for the ride! [Continue reading...]

Two weekends ago Sophie and I went to Chimbote to visit Jen, a friend of mine from college who is working there as a missionary. I’m not sure exactly what a missionary’s job entails; all I know is that Jen will be living there for the next two years in a house with other missionaries, working with a parish in the city.
While I was growing up (although let’s be honest, I’m still nowhere near “grown up”), I always imagined that I would do something like that with my life. I thought that I would end up living in areas of poverty and amongst marginalized communities, fighting injustice and saving the world. But while I was studying abroad in El Salvador, living with a group of students and focusing on living [Continue reading...]