TWP Welcomes New Staff!

By Sebastian Africano

Last quarter we had the distinct privilege of adding two new talented members to the Trees, Water & People (TWP) team: Patricia Flores-White as Development Director, and José Chalit as Marketing and Communications Manager.  These two positions are critical to our operations, as they are the voice that connects us to you, our donors.

 

Patricia Flores-White, Development Director

José Chalit, Marketing and Communications Manager

Patricia comes to us from two organizations that she founded in Canoa, Ecuador – The Betty Surf and Yoga School, founded in 2010, and the Vive Sin Miedo earthquake recovery nonprofit she founded on the heels of a 7.8 earthquake in April 2016. Her experience living in Latin America and dealing firsthand with the challenges communities face after a natural disaster helped her jump right into action when Volcán de Fuego erupted in Guatemala during her 3rd day on the job. Previous experience leading International Service Tours in Ecuador and working as an Aquatic GIS analyst for the CO Division of Wildlife make her a versatile and multi-faceted addition to our team.  

José is a Documentary Filmmaker from Denver, CO that came to us from Seattle University, where he produced several independent media projects addressing local issues of social justice, gender, and racial equality. Having spent the first years of his life in Mexico City, and visiting family there every year, he took a particular interest in the plight of Mexican and Central American farmworkers in the United States. José embedded himself as a videographer with a group called Familias Unidas para la Justicia helping migrant farmworker leaders document and disseminate moments from their historic tour of the west coast which helped them win a union contract at their workplace.

Both of these individuals struck us as important torch-bearers for TWP’s message, having an intimate connection to Latin America, being fluent in Spanish, and having both embarked on personal journeys to bridge the gap that often exists between North and South America. The perspective they bring to the team is new and diverse, and we look forward to getting them into the field as often as possible, to capture the essence of our work in fresh new ways.

Please join me in welcoming Patricia and José to the TWP staff!   

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Grounding Our Work Across Cultures: Indigenous Perspectives

by Eriq Acosta

Personally, I feel really sensitive and protective of our tribal communities. Although I am not a direct descendant of the Lakota I still feel responsible for keeping our communities safe.

Solar Training in 2017

One can attempt to understand my hesitancy of bringing strangers to the reservations who want to “come see the native folks and their culture”; the thought of doing this didn’t sit well with me at first. The world, obviously not all, has historically held very skewed perspectives of Indigenous people. On one side of the spectrum, we are described as these glorious people who ate all of the buffalo and roam the plains, moving our teepees from here to there, and living off of the land. On the opposite side of this are descriptors like drunkards, poor, sickly and “without”.

The truth is not all of us live in teepees and eat buffalo. When traveling throughout the United States, one will find many differences and similarities between life on or off the reservation: poverty, disease, or corruption as some examples. These are not exclusive to the reservations, it is everywhere. Being an urban Mexican-Indian myself and having lived with people from urban settings and on reservations, I have seen so much beauty. Beauty in the people, the culture, and the land – it’s all around.

It’s not that I choose to turn my head to the struggles, rather I choose to fuel myself with all of that beauty so that I can continue to do the hard work that needs to be done. In Leonard Peltier’s words, “What you believe and what you do are the same thing. In Indian way, if you see your people suffering, helping them becomes absolutely necessary. It’s not a social act of charity or welfare assistance, it’s a spiritual act, a holy deed.” 

With that said, I was hesitant to host TWP tour groups to Pine Ridge Reservation. However, this is the second year I have hosted the folks from Lansing Michigan Catholic High School and the second year that I have been overly impressed. Volunteers were asked to provide an evaluation of the most recent trip and one person wrote:

“It definitely made a mark on me. Being able to help people who are definitely in need and not only being welcomed like we were but also being able to partake in their amazing culture was an experience of great significance”.

They came to Pine Ridge to learn, to be of service, to enjoy the plains, and most importantly learn the story of Indigenous people from Indigenous people! I am honored to call them friends and family of the human race!

Thank you to all who came and offered their time and energy. Your efforts are much appreciated and we look forward to more opportunities like this in the future.

Setting sun over rolling hills of Pine Ridge

 

Learn more about our U.S. Tribal programs and how you can help here.

Trees, Water & People Welcomes New Executive Director

by Sebastian Africano, Executive Director

I have long believed that people have the power to craft their own future. While each journey is unique, we all have the capacity to identify what we value, versus what we don’t, and to forge a path that produces more of the former and less of the latter. If we’re lucky, we have a moment where self-awareness, opportunity, and circumstance intersect, and we take that first step toward the future we want to live.

In 2005, I launched into a career in International Development by accepting an internship with Trees, Water & People (TWP) in Tegucigalpa, Honduras. There were more “unknowns” than “knowns” in the offer, and the pay would have barely covered my utility bills in San Francisco at the time, but as I stood at that intersection of introspection and opportunity, I knew this was a path I needed to follow.

Sebastian Africano got his start with Trees, Water & People as an intern helping with clean cookstoves in Central America in 2005.

Now, 13 years after my first conversations with co-founder Stuart Conway, and almost 20 years since the organization was founded, I am happy to take the next step on this path by accepting the role of Executive Director of Trees, Water & People – effective May 15, 2017. This shift comes after years of thoughtful succession planning and several deep conversations and interviews with TWP staff and board.

TWP set me on a path to discover the world through the smoky lens of traditional cooking practices, giving me an intimate, ground-level introduction to what life is like on the margins of global society. Through this experience, I’ve acquired a broad perspective of the uniqueness of life on our planet, and have made hundreds of allies who value our planet and global community enough that they have dedicated their lives’ work to protecting them.

After many years of working in the field in Central America, Sebastian Africano will be spending more time in Fort Collins as Trees, Water & People’s new Executive Director.

Despite the hard truths inherent to our work, I find tremendous inspiration in the grit, hustle, hope, and smiles exhibited by the people we serve, both in Central America and on Tribal Lands in the Great Plains. Only by working together can we achieve a more sustainable future for our planet, and I’m privileged to support their struggles and aspirations daily through my work at TWP.

In this new role, my goal is to engage more meaningfully with you – our community of generous supporters. None of the impact TWP delivers would be possible without your support, and I know that together we can redouble our efforts to improve the lives of people and the planet.

I’m ready to craft our future together. Will you join me?

Richard Fox, Trees, Water & People’s co-founder and former Executive Director will be stepping down after 19 years but will remain on staff as the National Director through the end of the year. When asked about the transition, Richard had this to say, “I am honored to step down and for Sebastian to become the next Executive Director of this great organization. He has been trained for this position for many years, and we could not ask for a more compassionate, capable, and competent person to provide the next generation of leadership for Trees, Water & People.” Following his retirement, Richard will remain involved with TWP as a board member.

Trees, Water & People is excited to welcome our new Executive Director, Sebastian Africano! 

Job Opening: Development Associate

 

The Development Associate aids the Development Director in raising funds to support all the national and international programs of Trees, Water & People (TWP), as well as fundraising for general operating expenses.

To learn more and to apply please visit our website.