Reducing Child Malnutrition in Rural Communities 

We’re tackling child malnutrition in San Juan de Llullundongo by empowering mothers through hands-on cooking and nutrition workshops. Together, we can give children the healthy start they deserve.

Introduction

In the rural community of San Juan de Llullundongo, Ecuador, almost 8 out of 10 children under the age of 3 are chronically malnourished. For families here, this crisis is a daily reality. Challenges such as unsafe drinking water, limited access to nutritious food, and poor sanitation make it nearly impossible to give children the healthy start they need.

Malnutrition stunts physical growth, weakens immune systems, and prevents children from reaching their learning potential. These effects last a lifetime, keeping families locked in a cycle of poverty and forcing many to consider leaving their home in search of better conditions elsewhere.  A clear result of this is cultural erosion through migration resulting in perpetually decreasing living standards, community cohesion and wellbeing.

Yet there is hope; families in San Juan are resilient and eager to learn. With the right tools and knowledge, they can break this cycle and give their children the opportunity to grow up strong, healthy, and ready to thrive in their own community.

Who I Am

My name is Toby Walker, and I’m a university student at Loughborough in the UK, studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics. I am currently an intern at El Terreno, working on water and nutrition projects. I live and work alongside families here and I see both their challenges and determination for change every day.

This project is important to me because I want to dedicate my career to humanitarian aid and NGO work. More importantly, I believe every child should have the right to equal opportunities in life. Malnourishment robs children of that chance, and I want to help change that. Through my education and extensive background in volunteer work I hope to provide a unique viewpoint and outside view whilst including local organisations and stakeholders in every step to make this as appropriate and culturally sensitive as possible. 

Previous interns have laid an incredible foundation by applying their skills to explore options, test solutions, and build a detailed research database. Their work has identified reliable approaches to some of the community’s biggest challenges. I now have the opportunity to carry this forward, expanding the projects and turning their hard work, along with the community’s own efforts, into tangible results that make a real difference.

The Solution

We will run 7 interactive workshops for local mothers in San Juan de Llullundongo. Some of the topics covered will be:

• Nutrition basics

• Food preparation 

• Hygiene & sanitation

• Pregnancy nutrition

Every mother who completes the program will earn a qualification in nutrition. This not only improves their children’s health but also opens up better employment opportunities for them in the future. Mothers are a multiplier of knowledge within their communities - the impact will not end at the 20-25 participants but will trickle down into the entire community. With the success of this project, the El Terreno Foundation will look to run more within the surrounding communities.

This course is being implemented alongside efforts to improve water quality in the area. Water filters, reforestation and community collaboration projects, the development of which I am also overseeing, will be put into effect throughout the area to lay out a holistic and multi-faceted approach to this community’s nutrition development.

Impact

Your support will directly benefit:

• 25 families in San Juan (~20–30 mothers and children)

• A measurable reduction in child malnutrition through height and weight.

• Healthier pregnancies and families.

• Increased job opportunities for mothers
  
  

This means healthier, stronger children who can learn, grow, and thrive and  mothers with new tools to build a better future for their families.

Together, we can break the cycle of malnutrition. By supporting these workshop, you are giving children in San Juan the chance to grow up healthy, happy, and full of potential. 

Even if you can’t give, please share this campaign.

Fundraising Targets

It takes $660 to deliver these workshops to the highest possible standards, which I have broken down into 3 levels:

Essential: $130

This is enough to cover the basic costs of the workshop, like food, stationary and printing costs.

Ideal: $550

This provides funding for an additional expert facilitator and translator which will greatly enhance the effectiveness of the workshops, as well as a graduation celebration at the end with some completion gifts.

Stretch: $660

This will allow us to provide the mothers with some quality kitchenware like aprons and tupperware, to improve hygiene and motivate them to continue