Peru
Overview
From mysterious Incan marvels in breath-taking mountain communities to modern cities etched with traces of the colonial past, it's the multiple layers of great civilizations that make Peru so fascinating.
Urubamba
The town of Urubamba is situated next to the voluminous Rio Urubamba in the heart of the sacred valley. This peaceful and intriguing town is surrounded by both historic ruins and snowcapped Andean peaks.
Nearly 18,000 people call Urubamba home and it serves as a central point and major market for the surrounding communities. While there are several indigenous communities that are a short distance away from the town of Urubamba, Urubamba itself offers several comfortable amenities such as hot water, electricity, restaurants, bars, and cafes.
Cusco
Cusco is the archaeological capital of the Americas and the oldest continuously inhabited city on the continent. Its legacy as the seat of the Inca Empire is readily apparent. Many of the city streets are lined with original stone walls and crowded with Quechua-speaking descendants of the Incas.
The word Cusco is the Spanish spelling of the Quechua word Qosqo. According to Inca mythology, when Manco Capac, the first Inca emperor saw the lush Sacred Valley, he struck a staff into the ground and declared the spot Qosqo which means "navel of the universe".
Social and Development Issues
Projects
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Volunteer Abroad
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Stop the Cycle of Poverty and Abuse
Description and Impact
Street orphans of Cusco and young girls from neglectful or abusive domestic environments lack basic necessities: food, lodging and education....
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Help blind, deaf, and physically challenged kids
Description and Impact
Because their needs can be both great and varied, children and adults with disabilities are often neglected the care and education they deserve...
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Description and Impact
Climate change, global warming, the greenhouse effect, waning resources- all of these problems are becoming more real every day. Our future is...
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Description and Impact
In the poorest neighborhoods of Cusco, quality education is hard to come by. Schools are overcrowded, resources are spread thin and the shortage...
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Run academic and enrichment programs
Description and Impact
Child labor is a hard reality in Cusco. In an impoverished family where every Sol counts, sending kids out onto the streets to sell candy,...
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Description and Impact
Encompassing a section of the famous Amazon Rainforest, the Madre de Dios region of Tambopata Peru is an internationally recognized biodiversity...
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Teach girls and women to expect respect
Description and Impact
Girls from impoverished backgrounds that are left on the streets with little resources suffer from malnutrition, constant stress and risk of...
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Teach young moms to support themselves and care for their babies
Many pregnant teenagers in Peru have no place to call home. This ProWorld program gives teenage moms and their babies hope for a brighter future through job training and...
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Description and Impact
Orphaned children need more than just a home. They lack the support provided by parents or guardians to provide the motivation to continue their...
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Read Stories and Play Games with Kids at the Library
Overall literacy in Peru has dramatically increased in the last 20 years; but, at 82%, it is still second to last of all South American countries. Children in poor areas...
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Description and Impact
Because their needs can be both great and varied, children and adults with disabilities are often neglected the care and education they deserve...
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Description and Impact
The Peruvian elderly often find themselves out of luck and with nowhere to go. Some have been abandoned by their families, while others have...
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Stop the Cycle of Poverty and Abuse
This ProWorld program provides refuge for women, children, and adolescents who are victims of exploitation and sexual violence. Guests are invited to stay as long as they...
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Help Foreign Prisoners Navigate Peru’s Jail
Description and Impact
This project works with women prisoners in one of Cusco’s local jails. The inmates range in age from 18 to 60, and have been convicted of...
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Experience Community-Guided Healthcare
Description and Impact
Meet local health care professionals. Learn basic Spanish medical terminology. See...
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Give the Gift of Clean Water
Description and Impact
Every year, diarrheal diseases caused by unsafe water are responsible for roughly 1.8 million deaths around the world. Most of...Build and Install Cleaner-Burning Stoves for Families in PeruDescription and Impact
Indoor air pollution is now the fourth largest health risk facing the developing world today. Smoke from primitive indoor stoves kills 1.9...Build and Install Cleaner-Burning Stoves for Families in PeruDescription and Impact
Indoor air pollution is now the fourth largest health risk facing the developing world...Give the Gift of Clean WaterDescription and Impact
Every year, diarrheal diseases caused by unsafe water are responsible for roughly 1.8 million...
Description and Impact
Although Peru has seen significant economic growth in the 21st century, this progress has yet to translate into a great reduction in poverty. In...
Intern Abroad
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Use your Spanish skills and your statistics programming experience (like SPSS) to improve development work around the world
This project creates and evaluates ideas that make development work in Peru effective. Analyzing the projects microfinance organizations have begun, in Cusco they focus...
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Cargadores Carry upwards of 250 lbs of Goods and Merchandise Around the City. Help Make Their Load a Little Lighter
Description and Impact
With the vast rise in migration from rural areas of Peru to Cusco over the last three decades, the city has seen a significant increase in the...
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Help People in Villages Around Cusco Feel Better
Description and Impact
Although the Peruvian government provides health insurance to all citizens with formal employment, this accounts only roughly a quarter of the...
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Help Improve Health and Wellness of Andes Villagers
In the high Andes mountains, villagers eat what they grow. Upwards of 10,000’, what grows best is potatoes. This limited access to a variety of vegetables...
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Description and Impact
Although traditional Andean weaving has been around since pre-Columbian times, it is now at risk of disappearing completely. As the younger...
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Experience the past and present of the Andes as you chronicle it for the future
Description and Impact
Although their culture and rich and storied, indigenous Peruvians are some of the poorest and most disenfranchised members of society. To many,...
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Description and Impact
The Peruvian elderly often find themselves out of luck and with nowhere to go. Some have...
Study Abroad
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ProWorld Summer Abroad students will study at the Centro Bartolomé de Las Casas (CBC) or Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola (USIL), depending on your level of Spanish...
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ProWorld Semester Abroad students will study at the Centro Bartolomé de Las Casas or Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, depending on your level of Spanish fluency. The...
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Study Spanish and International Studies in the Incan capital of Cusco, Peru and the UNESCO World Heritage site of Oaxaca, Mexico. Courses will be complemented by local...
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ProWorld Semester Abroad students will study at the Centro Bartolomé de Las Casas or Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, depending on level of Spanish fluency. The...
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- 29,000
Trees Planted
- 10
Countries
- 5,100
ProWorld Volunteers
- 22
Schools Constructed
- 6,100
Stoves Installed
- 18,450
Patients Treated
- 4
Centers Built
- $7,100,000
Capital Injected
- 860,000
Service Hours