Thanks for checking out our blog – it all starts here! Below are little blurbs each of us wrote abut ourselves and what we are looking forward to in our time in the Amazon.

Hi, there. I’m Mikaela Fitzwilliam and I am more than excited to take off to Peru. Starting the McGill Nourish Chapter this year, it has been hard work getting to this point and having the opportunity to be a part of the Project we all have worked so hard for is going to be an experience I will never forget. I’m a people person so, I am most looking forward to the people – meeting them and learning about who they are. Building relationships with them will change both of our lives. Moreover, Speaking and learning Spanish (and all other languages) is something I am passionate about and I look forward to developing my skills 🙂 By the end of the trip I know I will be sad to go but will be even more intrigued to see how the communities work to maintain and sustain the programs we initiate and the practices we develop together!

I am Alec Tilly, and hailing from New Mexico, I have passed 20 years on this Earth. I have always been a positive, optimistic person (a quality I inherited from my mother), and these days I try as hard as I can to be aware of the world, as well as of my actions and their affects on other people. That is not to say I’m always successful, as it is all a learning experience of course, a process of sorts, and I’m so overjoyed to have the opportunity to work with people in a completely different environment. I know we will learn so much from the many perspectives, from getting away from society a bit and stepping into a different way of life. For me, some of the most exciting aspects are practicing Spanish as well as getting our hands dirty as we gain a greater appreciation of our planet through working in the incredibly diverse Amazon. It will be amazing to learn first ha
nd how the earth provides us with medicine, how these communities have utilized this in the past, and I sincerely hope that we can aid in keeping these sustainable practices around. However, as long as we can be of some help, and both parties benefit in some way through this interaction, I will be beyond happy with our work this summer. Cheers!

My name is Alessandra Venier, and I am oh-so-excited to arrive in Peru! I have always been very attached to Latin-America, as I was born in Guatemala but had to move away at a very young age. This time, I will finally be able to immerse myself in the most authentic way! As an International Development student at McGill, I am so happy and looking forward to seeing what we will learn in and from Peru during our exciting experience. The rainforest has always been fascinating to me, and the use of traditional medicine as an alternative to biomedicine is intriguing me and I cannot wait to learn more about it. Finally, working “on the field” and applying what I have been learning for the past two years in University will surely be an insightful experience, and seeing the impact that our group will make with Project Amazonas is also an important achievement I am eager to accomplish!

Yo! My name is Sally and I’m SUPER STOKED for our project in Peru. I am an environment student at McGill and I am the projects director for our Nourish chapter. Our team has been working for months on preparing for these next 6 weeks and I’m excited that they’ve finally arrived! The one thing I’m most looking forward to is meeting and building relationships with the community members and school kids we’re working with.

Other things I’m excited about:
1. Exploring the Amazon!!!!
2. Practicing mi español
3. Learning about traditional herbal medicine and shamanism
4. Being immersed in Peruvian culture
5. Eating delicious food
6. Escaping the grid
7. Hanging out with spiders bigger than my hand

Hey there! I’m Krislia and I am going into U3 Anatomy and Cell Biology with a minor in Indigenous S
tudies. As I am writing this, with less than two days until we are off to Peru, words cannot describe exactly how I feel but I’ll give it a try. I’m excited, nervous, I’ve packed and re-packed a few times and I’m still convinced I’ve forgotten something! Most of all, I am honoured to be part of such a passionate group of students and I am looking forward to helping and learning from each community.

Hellooooo. I’m Anna, and I’m currently studying International Development at McGill. This is the first time I’ll be traveling to the southern hemisphere, so safe to say I’m both excited and a little hesitant about what to expect! That said, working with Project Amazonas will present me with the incredible opportunity of applying my studies to the development project we’ll be working on. Being able to test out my high school Spanish skills is also something I’m excited about. Learning about the variety of plants with beneficial medical qualities present in the Amazon is definitely what I’m particularly interested in. The fact that the Amazon claims over half of the world’s remaining rainforest, with 25% of Western pharmaceuticals coming from rainforest materials yet only 1% of these materials actually being explored, means that we’ve got a lot of work to do. Working alongside members of the community with extensive knowledge of the forest will be an indispensable tool for both our project and our personal knowledge. Of course, building a relationship with the locals and strengthening the wonderful relationships I have with the rest of our Nourish team is all I could ever hope for! Thanks.

My name is Lena Courcol and I have a passion for the environment! I am entering my third year of university, studying Environment and Economics with the hopes of becoming an environmental consultant. The Nourish trip will give me the opportunity to explore the Amazon (life goal reached), learn about indigenous culture and engage with these communities in order to encourage sustainable development. Having grown up in China, I have had the opportunity to pursue many different experiences but I have a feeling that this is going to top them all!! I am really looking forward to working with the Nourish project team, along with Project Amazonas to make a meaningful impact and learn more about what needs to be done to protect this valuable ecosystem. I am excited to bring back tons of new knowledge, a unique experience and 47 types of parasites.