when you trek with apus peru 5% of your trek price is donated to Threads of Peru.

we support responsible, sustainable & ethical tourism...

"Every person must decide whether he will walk in the light of creative altruism or the darkness of destructive selfishness. This is the judgment. Life's most persistent and urgent question is, What are you doing for others?"
- Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Beginning in late 2008, Apus Peru has been collecting clothing from visitors to Peru who wish to help the high Andean communities. This is a simple way to positively contribute.

• Many visitors come to Peru with luggage that is light as they anticipate to buy many souvenirs and return with full bags. Why not fill your bags both ways and contribute to the high Andean communities?
• You don’t need to bring a lot – one or two items is fine, but a bag of used clothes is also gratefully accepted!

What type of items do we need?
(a) Clothes: Babies and children's clothes of all types, Adults clothes (mainly warm sweaters, jackets and waterproof clothing).  please no underwear, socks etc. All clothing must be washed and clean prior to donation. Please do not give anything that requires repair! Also, please consider that PRACTICAL clothes are more useful than DESIGNER wear.
(b) Toys: All types but not battery operated. A broken toy is of no more use to an underprivileged child than to your own child. If you would not give it to your own child then you must think twice about why you are giving to another. 
(c) Other items: Tents, sleeping bags, backpacks, walking boots.
PLEASE DO NOT BUY NEW STATIONARY, SCHOOL SUPPLIES, USED CLOTHES, OR BOOKS – they can be bought much more cheaply in Peru. 

Can I give the items directly to the children?
Please refer to our comments on responsible tourism. While its nice to give small gifts, remember that if a child asks you for something and you reward them with a gift, you are establishing a begging mentality.  If you give a larger gift (like clothes) to one child in a community but not another, then you have responded to their actions and you have probably created resentment amongst other children who will have a negative impression of visitors.  It is much better to give the items as part of an organized distribution. We will advise visitors when we will be having organized distributions and if people wish to participate they can contact us to discuss the options.

ariana with locals

local children wear a combination of traditional clothing and modern.

Can I still help once I am in Cusco?
Some people are traveling for a long period and can’t bring anything from home. There are many second hand tourist markets in Cusco where you can buy many clothes for a very cheap price. If you would like a member of our office staff to assist you with these purchases, please advise us via email in advance and we will organize an appropriate time and date.

How do you record donations?
We record items donated in a book in our Cusco office, including your name, email address and a summary of the items. We keep a file of our distributions and they are available for perusal in the Cusco office.  We also keep our website frequently updated with distributions.

If you didn’t know about our projects before your trip, how can you help upon return home?

• Tell friends and family about Apus Peru social projects, especially those that are planning a trip to Peru.
• Make a donation to our Community Chest
• Please do not send expensive packages of things – the cost of post, DHL or other couriers will probably be more than the value of the things and this expensive postage would be better sent to us (or another organization) where the funds will go directly to projects rather than spending a substantial amount on postage.
• Consider projects like Stuff your Rucksack or Carry for kids for your next holiday.

• Good planning, in keeping with the concept of Ayni is an important part of all of our social projects. It also plays an important part of the clothing distribution project. If we were to arrive at a village laden with clothes and proceed to give them out would end up in a “free for all”. Instead, we have a long term relationship with each of the communities we distribute clothes in, and know how many people (adults/ children/ babies) live in that community.
• Prior to a clothing distribution, we will talk to the President of the community as well as the teachers at the school to get an accurate idea of what the needs are, what clothing sizes are etc.
• Only one item is distributed per person, and each person is given a voucher to ensure that there is no duplication or doubling up. (Mothers are known to exchange babies in order to claim two sets of clothing etc etc)

The Distribution is carried out in a fair and calm manner with people required to queue and then select the item that they prefer.

Got some spare space in your backpack? Would you like to help people in need - then consider the Stuff your rucksack project.

APUS PERU Adventure Travel Specialists - we support sustainable, responsible and ethical tourism...

366 Cuichipunco, Centro Historico, Cusco, Peru - Email: apusperu@westnet.com.au

© A.Svenson 2005 - 2009. The design, content and photographs (except where noted) are 100% original. The majority of our treks were designed by Apus Peru.