Will you be travelling next year with the Peruvian & Indian teenagers in search of the best pictures? The four trips for next year are now available online. Besides giving yourself a unique trip, you also give the same trip to one of the FairMail teenagers. That way giving them the opportunity to get to know their own country better and to take new pictures for their greeting cards.
On the 9th of February there is an information session at 15.00 in Oegstgeest (The Netherlands) for those who want to learn more. For more information or to register please contact us by clicking here.
Sometimes life can be so difficult for parents that the children end up just as much a victim of poverty as them. This is a story I lived myself, but of course couldn’t take pictures of at that time.
During times each day is a nightmare. My niece hopes for daily bread, but sometimes there is none.
That is why in these photos I choose to tell MY story through the eyes of my 5 year old niece called Annabel.
Enjoy while it lasts, because nice tastes of life come and go.
I want to show how she lives in poverty in the dessert on the outskirts of Trujillo.
Step by step reflecting on the injustice in life
Together with her mother and my alcoholic brother.
The best moment, because god came to her house and blessed her with food.
What her actual situation is and how she survives and maintains herself in a very complicated world filled with a lot of sadness.
Sadness starts when the perspective for a better life is lost
But despite the sadness I also see her strength.
Trying to regain the right to study
The strength to survive and to get out of her situation in a country where there is little support for children.
Below the look is the pain inside.
Through my pictures I like to show this inner strength many children do have.
A sweet look in times of sadness.
I want to show that children, with the help of organizations and other children can utilize this inner force to break the chain of poverty and create a better life for themselves and their families.
Happiness comes like opening the water tap once a week.
Because the world should be a happy place for everyone.
FairMail Peru photographer Elmer Machuca Chacon
I hope to become a lighting example for other children that this is possible, as it is my dream to study Cinema and Photography. I want to become a famous director and make a film like Slumdog Millionaire!
In August a few of the FairMail teenager travelled to the Peruvian cloud forest to take pictures of the organic coffee harvest for the German Coffee producer Rapunzel. Below you can read the trip report by photographer Betty.
The best part of the trip is the coopration with the other photographers, volunteers and the people we meet during the trip. But also the beautiful places of our Peru that we get to know. And of course the most important: take many great pictures!
What did you like about the destination compared to where you live in Trujillo?
What I like so much about Sicches is the peace and quiet and the nature. But also the friendliness of the people who live in the small village and give us a place to stay in their house.
Betty taking pictures of organic sugar
Why would you like more foreigners to come on a trip with you in the future?
I would like more foreigners to travel with us so we can learn more from them. But also because they give us the opportunity to travel and that way get to know more about other parts of our Peru. Thanks to them and to FairMail we get to know our own culture better and we can identify with it. And then take great pictures of the cultural things we see.
What did you work on this time during the trip?
During the trip we worked for a company that requested our services to take pictures of organic coffee. Of the production process the drying and the families that work in coffee production. But we also worked on general card themes like love, Christmas and light etc.
Which photo did you take during the trip which you think might make it to a FairMail postcard?
This one:
Betty
What will you do with the money you earn if it actually becomes a FairMail card?
With the money I would continue to pay for my education (business administration) to become a good professional. And that way not let my family down.
Why did only 3 teenagers get to go on the trip this time?
Because we didn’t have enough foreign travellers to support us. That’s why there wasn’t enough budget to take more teenagers to enjoy this great trip! Through a selection process 3 teenagers where chosen who could go.
“A unique way of getting to know the country because by travelling with the FairMail teenagers you don’t feel like a tourist at all and you get into very special situations where you can take great pictures.”
This is what an ex-participant of FairMail’s photography trip said when asked to explain what is so good about travelling together with the FairMail teenagers. Besides treating yourself to a unique holiday you also help the teenagers to take pictures for their cards. Both by sponsoring the costs of their trip, but also by giving your opinion (as an consumer from the west) about their pictures and what has to be improved so people like you will buy them on a FairMail card. Read more about the trips here.
Four trips to Peru and India are planned for the next 12 months. All with guaranteed departure! Click below to read about the new destinations.
If you want to learn more please feel free to visit the photography trip information session on Saturday the 25th of August in Amsterdam from 15.00 until 17.00.
In September FairMail Peru photographer Patricia Mariseta will turn 19 years old and therefor retire as an active photographer for FairMail. Of course she will be earning money with her pictures FairMail will keep trying to sell for her. Time to look back with her on the past four years she has been participating in FairMail and ask her how she sees her life as a retired FairMail photographer.
What do you like most about FairMail?
“What I like most is the teamwork which we always do. I like to share new ideas and challenges with my friends at FairMail. Also because they give suggestions and constructive ideas to me.”
What was the most beautiful moment in FairMail for you?
“The most beautiful moment was when I joined the group because in FairMail I found new challenges and new goals. But also unforgettable travel memories that I will never forget, friends that will always be there to support me and a family in which I can count on today and in the future.”
Were people around you ever jealous of you being in FairMail? And if so how did you react?
“Yes, there were friends who told me I was lucky and came up to tell me that they wanted to enter, but I told them there where only a limited amount of spaces in FairMail. When my friends talked in a jealous way about FairMail I just smiled and said: thank you God for letting me know about FairMail, meet new friends and have new dreams.”
What have you learned in FairMail, besides photography?
“I learned that life is not easy. It has many obstacles. But I also learned that I am a girl with dreams and goals. I can achieve what I want as long as I put much effort and strength into it. I learned to develop myself as a person and have values. That is the most important.”
Patricia at her school to become chef
What will you spend your time on when you leave FairMail?
“When I leave FairMail, I will devote my time on starting my own business. Either a restaurant or a little corner store. It will start as my own small business and of course it will grow little by little.”
What are your long term future plans?
“My long term plan is to organize events like weddings and get to travel everywhere. But first I will have to achieve my goal of having my own restaurant and making it well known and established.”
What you still need to make your dreams become reality?
“I need to learn more about the business of organizing events so I can continue to work on achieving my goal.”
Next Sunday is mothersday in many parts of the world. We thought it would be interesting to ask the teenagers in Peru to tell us how they celebrate mothersday and what their mothers mean to them. Read their answers below or watch the pictures from India too on facebook:
José Luis:
“In Peru we celebrate mothersday on the second sunday of May. On this day the whole family comes together and we give choclate, roses and houshold appliances to our mothers. People who lost their mothers go to the cementary to leave behind flowers.”
Betty:
“My mother is the best human being who I am thankful for giving me life. She is always there to support me at all moments with her big and unconditional love. The love of a mother can’t be compared to any other kind of love.”
Anidela:
“My mother is the most important thing in my life. She is my force, my will, my guide, my everything”
Yuli:
“I have the best mother of the world because despite all the problems in our life she has always fought to get ahead in life. I still remember her working so hard with my father with sweat gushing from their foreheads. Also when I am sick she doesn’t sleep to take care of me. Sometimes I think life will be too short to be able to thank her”
Patricia:
“I have the best mother of the worl because she brought me here healthy despite the many problems we had in life. I am very grateful to god to have my mother close to me.”
Yomira:
“I have the best mother because she is always by my side and helps me every day to become a better person.”
Jorge:
“I have the best mother of the whole world because she is always sweet to me and gives me all her love. I can always trust on her and also tell here everything. She is always there for me, also when I am sick. My mother is like a guardian angle for me.”
Sebastián:
“In Peru we give our mothers a gift during motherday, material or not. The biggest gift is a kiss, a hug or a smile. ”
This year you can surprise your mother with your own personalized FairMail mothersday card! Our teenage photographers in Peru and India made many pictures that represent the love for our mothers. You can choose from many different models on the Greetz website (click here for German) (click here for english). In a few simple steps you can choose the picture of your choice, design your card and write your own text. Greetz then prints and posts the card for you. If you make the card before 8pm this friday Greetz will deliver your card in time. Very easy and very nice to do!
Even more because in the inside of the card your mother will not only read jour sweet words, but also read the name, age and picture of the FairMail teenager who took the picture and earns money that way to finance his or her own education.
Below the teenage photographers tell how they celebrate mothersday in Peru and what their mothers mean to them:
Great news about the academic results from the Peruvian FairMail teenagers: Last month FairMail Peru photographer Yuli Silva Acuna passed the very difficult entry exam for Trujillo’s national university (only 1 in 8 applicants can enter!), Maria Flor finished first of her entire Communication Sciences faculty to earn a full scholarship and Elmer started private university to fulfil his dream of becoming a famous movie director.
FairMail Peru photographer Yuli during classes at the UNT
Yuli says about her successful admission exam “Apart from photography, in the past three years, in FairMail I have learned that I can achieve everything I dream of. I only have to believe in myself and everything that I can do. I have just reached a great goal, being accepted into the language program in the University of Trujillo. I am very grateful for not only the financial help but for the constant support provided by the members of FairMail.”
Mariaflor has an even better story explaining how she found out she got in first place of her entire faculty at the Universidad Cesar Vallejo: ”FairMail means a lot in my life. Besides photography training and workshops on important issues in our life such as self-esteem, sexuality, knowing how to make decisions and more issues we work on our personal development. The other day I received great news at the university when the lady at student administration asked me if I already knew that I ended in first place of my faculty? And that I would get a full scholarship for the next semester. I froze when I heard and asked her if she was kidding me! And if she could please repeat my name from the list as I did not believe her. But yes it was true, I was in first place! Wow, my face was smiling so much and I could not believe it. I am very happy for this news because the scholarship means a big saving for me I can no spend in the improvement of my mother’s house!”
The other teenagers in Peru are also doing great. Patricia, Yomira, Betty, Jorge, Clever, Sebastian and Anidela wrote that they are very happy to be learning more English from the volunteers, working on their personal growth and photography. And of course they are working hard on achieving their dreams to become an accountant (Anidela) engineer (clever), chef (Patricia, Juan Carlos and Sebastian), study human rights (Jorge) or business administration (Betty and Yomira) in university.
Hola my name is Sebastián and I live with my father and mother. I am their only son. My mother is housewife and my father digs holes for wells.
I love keeping animals. My favourite animals are cats. I study in the Corporación de Educación Popular school which is run by a priest. Thanks to the school I got to know FairMail. This is a company that gives teenagers like me the opportunity to develop the talent for photography and see the world in a different way. I love being part of this group. I already feel very different as now I have more friends and I enjoy the classes taught by the volunteers. I also feel very proud of myself that I am making good use this opportunity instead of letting it go to waste. I entered at the end of December 2011 and I already feel like part of the family. It is a warm group where I am learning a lot. Not only about photography but also in the “motivational workshops”. To be honest I don’t have much more to say except thank you to god for giving me this opportunity. And I promise you that I will not let it go to waste. Now I am putting all my effort in taking a picture for my first postcards or even better, many postcards!
Hi my name is María flor Alvarado Reyes I an 20 years old and live with my mother, 2 brothers and sister in El Milagro.
I got to know FairMail through and NGO called ACJ (Asociación Cristiana de Jóvenes) and through this NGO I managed to enter FairMail.
For mi FairMail is a big opportunity in my life. Why? Because they taught me how to dream and set goals for my future. In FairMail I learned to love photography and learned to see the world through the eyes of a photographer. In FairMail I learned a lot about photography like: techniques, details, portraits and much more. With FairMail and the pictures that I take I have many opportunities as my postcards are sold and exported. The earnings go into a personal fund that each participant has. With this money I was able to improve my house, by doors and even build my own room. And the most important thing is that I was able to pay for my preparations for university.
The room Mariaflor built for herself
During my time in FairMail we made many beautiful trips with the volunteers and foreigners. These trips are great. We share fun, smiles, fears, etc. And of course the most important: take picturs and that way have more postcards. Until now I still can’t beleive that with FairMail I was able to see the things differently (if you set a goal for yourself you can achieve it). I set as goal for myself to save my money that I earned in FairMail to go to university.
Mariaflor during classes
Ah, I forgot to mention that I entered the Cesar Vallejo University to study communication sciences. In the first trimester I feel very happy to be achieving my goals that I set a long time ago. In university I am taking many courses. Amongst them the course “audiovisual processes” where they taught me to work with film cameras, angles, movement etc. Now I am making a mini program with me colleagues. I thank god for having put FairMail in my life.
Mariaflor with her friends at the university
I also want to thank all the people that help us in one way or the other. And to FairMail both in Peru, India and soon in Morocco. FairMail is expanding a lot. We are very happy to be achieving all of this. Thank you!
Atte. María flor Alvarado Reyes
(Read more about Mariaflor, vote for her pictures, send her an email or buy her cards with this link.)
Pasquel with one of his cards in front of his house
At the end of September we received the sad message from the manager of FairMail Peru that Pasquel Saldaña Rodríguez had definitely been expelled from the FairMail Peru team. Unfortunately the 15 day suspension, the help of a psychologist and different sanctions did not have the desired effect: that Pasquel would be a responsible member of the team. We asked Renato Cerqueira Nunez, manager of FairMail Peru to explain how this was able to happen.
Why was Pasquel fired?
It is always a very difficult decision to take when you have to tell one of the teenagers there is no future for them within FairMail. But it is a decision that has to be taken in order to be consequent about the rules and treat everyone the same. In the case of Pasquel this was necessary because he was not attending the two photography classes per week regularly enough. Before the definite separation of Pasquel he had been suspended for 15 days as a warning and so he could think over for himself if he wanted to continue with FairMail or not. When afterwards he did not show up for classes a third time without warning it was clear he would definitely be fired.
Why are the rules so strict at FairMail?
We want FairMail to be a valuable working experience for the teenagers. This way FairMail is not only an important instrument for their personal development and to achieve their (financial) goals. But it is also the place where they learn to see and value the unique possibility they have in hands. At FairMail they can learn that through their own motivation, dedication and honesty it is possible that day by day they can work towards a better future for themselves.
What are the most important rules for the teenagers that participate in FairMail?
Because we want to offer work experience our rules look like the ones within any company. That means showing up on time for the activities that the volunteer photographer trainers organize. And give advance warning if they can’t make it . This is important for our operations to function normally. So we can acheive our common goals.
How long was Pasquel member of the team and what memories does he leave behind?
Pasquel was member of FairMail Peru for 1,5 years when he had to leave for disciplinary reasons. After his own request to be reincorporated he got a last chance until his definite exclusion last week. We will remember him for his happiness, energy and the creativity he had when dealing with his tasks. He will leave behind many friendships. Like with all photographers that leave FairMail the doors will always be wide open for him too. We will remain connected through his cards which we will keep selling (and he will keep receiving 50% of the profits made with them) and the friendship that will surely last. The rest of the group is sad that Pasquel has left the group, but are aware that is is part of the professional education that we try to give them. Also the rules we have are set collectively and democratically decided upon by the entire team.
Interview with Renato by: Cinthia Vega – Assistant manager FairMail Peru
