Email: Katie Rains

Hey Everyone!

Well, I have officially passed the two-month mark here in Peru, and things are coming along for me. And I also have joined the world of gmail.

I am living in the neighborhood called Pueblo Libre in Lima with a host family. For the most part, we get along pretty well. My host mother's name is Lili, and she is a riot. We have a very similar sense of humor, so when I lost the key to my bedroom and she told me that was okay, I could just sleep in the hammock in the yard, I started laughing. She has one son who is 22, Carlos, and he is about to finish studying computer engineering at the University of Lima. Andrea, 18, and is in her second year at Catholic University studying accounting. She has two rabbits and a boyfriend, Julio, who is frequently at the house. They are both very patient with my Spanish, and I enjoy talking with them. The youngest is Ana Paula. She is 9 and a bit of a terror, though very sweet at other times. Lili's husband is in the United States working.

I am working in the office of the Red Uniendo Manos Peru (RUMP). I am enjoying this acronym very much, and use it whenever possible. With RUMP, I am working with the director to raise awareness about the Ica/Huancavelica water issues. Right now, we are preparing for the second annual Environmental Youth Congress. I am not much of a planner back home, and here there is an entirely different set of rules for planning things. Let's just say I am learning a lot. I am also writing a monthly newsletter called La Retama. It reports about different programs and happenings of all the members of the network. (If you would like to receive the newsletter, just let me know.) At some point I am going to update their Web page.

I am also working on a project called Bridge of Hope. This is a fair trade project that works with about 25 different artisan groups in Lima, Huancayo, and Huancavelica provinces. I do some basic things like take photos of new products for the Web and work in the fair trade store in Miraflores. But my absolute favorite part of fair trade is getting to work with the artisans. I am helping design new products and make current products more desirable to the U.S. market. I absolutely love standing around a table with women who don't pass my shoulder height talking about purses (I don't really use purses ever), but it is fantastic. We design things together and we laugh together. I love being with them. Though they are definitely struggling right now, as the U.S. economy (and world economy in general) is not doing so hot. Daniel, an artisan from Huancayo, asked me what he is doing wrong and why is no one ordering his products anymore. He and his wife are part of fair trade group, Llamcay Tuki, that dries and burns designs into gourds. They make piggy banks, candle holders, little jars for jewelry, a bunch of things that are incredibly beautiful.

It made me think back to before I left. I had decided to be a part of the "green" movement; I bought four reusable grocery bags (my mom has been using them for years). I heard the word "green" a lot before I left home. It always referred to being a responsible consumer. I didn't really think about the phrase very much at the time. And then, when I was in Kentucky for YAV orientation, a fellow YAV had a shirt on that said "I know who made my shirt, do you?" and all I could think was “I have no idea.” This brought the idea of being a responsible consumer a little closer to home.

And now that I am working with fair trade, I am in a completely different ball park. I understand being a responsible consumer in an entirely different way. Last year for Christmas, a good friend of mine decided to only give recycled and homemade gifts to her family and friends. I thought this was an amazing way to fight consumerism. But now, I see more. I think to be a responsible consumer we must reduce reuse and recycle (the mantra from my youth), but we also need to be aware of what we are buying and from whom we are buying.

I issued this challenge in the October issue of La Retama, and I want to challenge you as well. This Christmas season, if you can't find out who made the product you are buying, don't buy it. We vote for the kind of economy we want with every dollar. We tell the government that we support free trade agreements (which encourage corporations to move overseas in search of cheap labor, taking jobs away from Americans) when we buy cheap foreign-made goods. I have also seen the impact of fair trade on farmers in the Midwest. More than one family farm has disappeared before my eyes because they couldn’t compete with foreign sugar and wheat.

Point being, we can't change everything we don't like about this world, in fact, our impact may not even be seen. I just know that we can make a difference in the lives of artisans like Daniel and his wife Rosa. (When I met her she was days from having her third child, and I thought of my sister.) Maybe not all of the things you buy can be fair trade, but look for it. Google is an amazing tool. Also, Bridge of Hope does have an online store in the States that’s called Partners for Just Trade. We also work with a group called SERRV International, which carries products from around the world, not just Peru.

My Spanish is improving quickly, though there is so much I don't know. But I have nine months left, and I am hopeful that I can conquer the future tense and the subjunctive something.

The coolest thing I have noticed so far is that every job I have had in the last four years is contributing to this year. Working retail, training people, shipping things, eBay consignment, and even the convenience store—all have contributed to aspects of my job here.

Love you all and am missing you.

Thank you for your love and support and prayers and good energy.

All for me, for now,

Katie