Posted on March 31st, 2014 by Alex Newell Taylor

Today we ventured from Quito out into what we came here for – the Amazon rainforest. As we left civilization and headed into the wilderness, we were suddenly surrounded by massive waterfalls, misty mountains, vibrant wild orchids…and the ever present oil pipeline, which flows the road all the way from the oil pits in the Amazon to the coast of Ecuador.

This visual juxtaposition of nature and industry was a perfect reminder of why we are here. For the people of Ecuador, the oil industry has been a double-edged sword – an opportunity to improve the quality of life through economic opportunity, even as it destroys the very things that give that life quality. There are no easy answers to this paradox, no easy escape from the pipeline that dominates life here as much as it did our landscape today. It will take creative solutions from the entire world community – and I can’t wait to begin.

Alex Newell Taylor lives in Topanga, CA. She successfully mobilized her community to raise $20,000 for OTM’s 2013 Seva Challenge to support organizations in Ecuador working to protect the rainforest and uphold the rights of its people. For more information or to donate, visit: https://otmseva.fundraise.com/seva-legacy

 NOTE: The views expressed in this blog belong to the author and are not necessarily represented by OTM.