Community-based Education

Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.

Amazonian riverside schools are deficiently managed by public institutions who have normalized poor, and at times, absent rural education. Our neighbouring communities from the Yanayacu river basin needed to send their children to the city of Iquitos 140 km upstream to attend boarding schools until 2020 where an American NGO (Nevada Hope Foundation) donated a Secondary school in this Amazonian tributary. This school was constructed in Ayacucho-Tipischa, with the help of their “moradores,” and now serves this community, as well as San Juan de Yanayacu and Junin, who arrive in a communal school-boat also donated by the American NGO. Being under public institutional jurisdiction, there are issues with curriculum enforcement, low teacher-student ratio and scare resource availability. As this has been the norm, we acknowledge that primary school students and community elders have endured the same educational experience, therefore Muyuna Foundation is determined in amplifying the educational experience of all learners in the Yanayacu River Basin to reach new heights of student expectations. How? Community-based education. By positioning local organizations, institutions, parents, and students, in supportive, safe learning environments that consistently compliment their learning efforts, learners are empowered to overcome these obstacles. Once these programs become sustainable through voluntourism and financing efforts, Muyuna Foundation is committed to expand this project to the other basins of the ACR.

Goals

Foundation aims to compliment the educational experience for learners from the Yanayacu River basin by programming long-term, consistent efforts centred around youth development, academic reinforcement, enrichment opportunities, and extracurricular activities.

Short-term- Reinforce secondary school’s capacity to serve its constituents through an after-school academic and extracurricular program, as well as serve as substitute teachers during times of institutional mismanagement. We also are starting English Classes for community elders and Muyuna Lodge staff, youth environmental education workshops, and funding artesinal handcraft workshops

Middle-term – Near and fully English/Spanish bilingualist students in the Yanayacu River Basin. Community- based education programs are increasing academic performance, interpersonal skills, and improving parent and community participation in consistent educational opportunities provided by Muyuna Foundation.

Long-term- Yanayacu River Basin learners all have opportunities to exercise their educational interests. The majority of students from the local high school are bilingual when graduating High school. Muyuna Foundation can scale this project outwards towards other river basins in the ACR to start community-based educational programs.

With the assistance of international partners, volunteers, and local alliances, the goal to reach all students of the ACR Tamishyacu-Tahauyo will be successful, but for now, we are committed to take the daily steps forward to .

One day at a time:

Even though educational outreach usually takes an extended amount of time to show meaningful results, organizational efforts to sustain this support should remain daily. Muyuna Foundation is committed to accompany learners throughout their time while investing in themselves because we believe this time is critical for the future of the Amazonian rainforest. Its is our goal to reach learners across the ACR tamishyacu-Tahuayo, but until we reach capacity, obtain financial sustainability, and gain the trust of parents by showcasing results from this project, we are currently working on assisting 3 communities from the ACR. Authentic experiences, role model companionship, and creating participatory, safe spaces are a few tactics the community-Based Education project keeps learners enthused to keep learning.

Primary school enrichment activities
Little league soccer training
Muyuna Foundation professional educators assist the local High School as substitute teachers when needed
English classes for community members of San Juan de Yanayacu
Enviornmental education workshops (such as birdwatching, conservation campaigns, Manati reintroduction data collection)
Book club with secondary school students of San Juan de Yanayacu
Arts & craft workshops for local artisans and students of San Juan de Yanayacu
After-school academic tutoring and extracurricular enrichment activities program at Barabara Land school in Ayacucho-Tipishca

Social

Education in rural Peru, and worse in the Amazon jungle, is a problem rather than an opportunity. There are many factors why, but the reality of the matter is that this is an every-day dilemma students presently face. Muyuna Foundation aims to design a community-based educational model that can compliment these students’ experience by posiviely influencing a variery of academic and interpersonal skills. This project has the opportunity serve elders to keep learning and/or start new ventures, empowering the community through education.

Enviornmental

There is no environmental regeneration without educational regeneration. Muyuna Foundation will implement agroforestry workshops, flora & fauna vigilance, and other ecological conservation practices through the community-based education project

Educational and Youth Development

Consistent tutoring services for secondary/primary school students, as well as extracurricular enrichment opportunities centered around youth development, will provide safe spaces of learning for the children of these communties. There is an immense level of respect for educators and need for material to calm their thirst for learning: for those reasons we’re committed to elevate their worries to excitement for the future.

Voluntourisim

We count with professional environmental and English educators who are readily accepting volunteers ready to take a leap into the Amazon and contribute to the educational experience of students and other learners in the Yanayacu River basin. Muyuna Foundation every day aims to inspire the youth to exceed their professional expectations and voluntourism allows us to increase our capacity to do so.

Muyuna Foundation has been actively working with San Juan de Yanayacu and Ayacucho-Tipishca students in community-based educative assistance. We have been received with much enthusiasm by the students, parents, and school staff for engaging in their academic experience, as well as the other activities conducted in the communities for all learners. For the moment, the impact is localized in the Yanayacu River basin, but we’re learning as well and designing a community-based educative model which we seek to extend to the rest of the ACR Tamishyacu-Tahuayo.

Summer Camp

Safe, Inspirational, Educational Spaces

During the 2023 High School Summer vacation in Ayacucho-Tapishca Muyuna Foundation funded an academic and student enrichment camp to incentivize educational engagement and prepare them for the next school year. We primarily reviewed core academic subjects, but we were excited in introducing interpersonal skill-centered workshops becuase of the need this need is needed in Amazonian children. The experience for the staff and volunteers was as wholesome as the students’s very own and Muyuna Foundation is commited in repeating it next vacation period.

4 volunteer educators from around world participated
3 weeks, Monday through Thursday summer camp engagemetn
2 communities participation
12 served breakfasts

Enviornmental Education Adventures

Birdwatching, Guided Tours, Data Collection, & More

Since November 2022, Muyuna Foundation consistently takes the “Regenerators of Yanayacu,” (learn more about them in the Sustainable Rural Waste Management project) out on environmental education-centred excursions to awaken their interests and feed thier curiorsity in mother natures wonders