As a responsible travel agency and operator owned 100% by our partner non-profit MEDLIFE, giving back to local communities is at our core. MEDLIFE provides life-changing medical care, education, and development in impoverished communities in Peru, Ecuador, and Tanzania.
Did you know that 30% of all annual giving is done in December? This means that the giving season provides an important opportunity for non-profits like MEDLIFE to make an impact! This Giving Tuesday, we’re joining MEDLIFE to reflect on something we often take for granted: A safe home.
Keep reading to learn how you can support safe homes in low-income communities this Giving Tuesday!
The Project
Families in the communities MEDLIFE works with often lack a safe home to spend the holiday season. One of these communities is Union Santa Fe, in Lima, Peru. MEDLIFE has been working hand in hand with Union Santa Fe for years. They have brought healthcare, infrastructure, and even an education center to the community.
However, according to the latest advice from structural engineers, the safety of Union Santa Fe is at high risk. The families of this community live in a human settlement on a precarious hillside in one of the world’s major earthquake zones. Without retention walls to protect their homes, they live under the constant threat of disaster.
To protect the families of Union Santa Fe from being harmed by earthquakes, MEDLIFE is building over 400m (1312ft) of retention walls to make sure the community is structurally safe. To complete this project, MEDLIFE has a goal of raising $350,000 in the next six months.
Land Title
In addition to making the community safer, retention walls can bring Union Santa Fe one step closer to obtaining Land Title. This would benefit the community by giving them rights over their land and empowering them to access basic services, like running water.
How you can help ON GIVING TUESDAY
1. Donate
To donate for Giving Tuesday, visit the MEDLIFE donation page or text the code ‘WALLS’ to 44-321. With your generous contribution, you will join the Movement to create a world where everyone has access to have a safe home.
2. Travel with Good Life Expeditions
When you travel with Good Life Expeditions, the profits from your trip go towards MEDLIFE’s work bringing medicine, education, and development projects, (like retention walls) to low-income communities.
3. Give the gift of travel
Give your loved ones a truly meaningful gift this holiday season by purchasing a Travel Gift Card from Good Life Expeditions. Not only will you give someone an incredible experience, but you will also support MEDLIFE’s work!
4. Come on a MEDLIFE Service Learning Trip
A MEDLIFE Service Learning Trip is a week-long educational journey to Peru, Ecuador, or Nicaragua, where participants work hand in hand with the local community on development projects and mobile medical clinics.
5. Tell your friends
Share MEDLIFE’s work with your friends and family to support their efforts to bring a safe home to impoverished communities.