"The four of us came upon a ‘choza,' or small hut, that seemed to be camouflaged among a tiny clearing of stumps. A family of five lived there. They had been there for five years, but their progress on land had been as if they had been there less than a year," Cottle wrote. "The father invited us in and gave us something to eat, even though we carried our own food. The meal was a simple one of meat and rice. "They even gave up a rough hewn, mattress-less platform bed where we all four of us slept side by side like corded logs. The family shared the other bed. They went above and beyond to ensure that we were comfortable for the night. "My immediate respect for this family most definitely taught me there is another side of an issue to consider and understand before condemning the opposite view as unfeeling and unreasonable." The next morning, after the group left, the park ranger let Cottle know what the colonist family had sacrificed in being hospitable. They had shared their portion of horse meat with the group. "He went on to explain that their horse had collapsed and died a week earlier and they were still taking advantage of the fresh meat source and we were lucky to be offered some," Cottle wrote. "There was no chance for waste in the colonist's hard scrabble life. "It was experiences like this that changed how I viewed society and the world … I hope that I honor that colonist family in my life today with the way I look at life since coming home, with eyes and mind wide open."
Trevor Cottle's service in Ecuador helped calm his dissatisfaction with his forestry career
Overseas volunteers tell Peace Corps stories
By TAMARA BROWNING
THE STATE JOURNAL-REGISTER
Posted Feb 24, 2011 @ 11:01 PM
YEARS OF SERVICE: 1992-94
PLACE OF SERVICE: Ecuador, South America
CURRENT RESIDENCE: Beardstown
Trevor Cottle's service in Ecuador helped calm his dissatisfaction with his forestry career.
"I wanted to do more in environmental education and have an effect on how people see the natural world. I also wanted to see the world and learn a new language," Cottle wrote.
As a forestry volunteer assigned to Sangay National Park, Cottle helped bring conservation awareness to communities inside and around the perimeter of the park. Alternatives to sustainable subsistence and market agriculture/forestry practices were discussed.
"Many communities were newly established and were endangering the ecosystem and wildlife habitat unique only to this part of the world with slash-and-burn agriculture, grazing and poaching," Cottle wrote.
Cottle's experiences in Ecuador, in particular a trip into the interior of Sangay, allowed him to see another side of the conservation issue.
"An east-west road was being developed from Guamote to Macas, cutting a huge scar across the southern part of the park from the highlands to the upper part of the Amazon," Cottle wrote.
"I accompanied a Sangay park ranger, another volunteer and a friend to hike a patrol route of the area. The devastation caused by the road was massive.
"The establishment of this road had opened the door for colonists to come in and carve out a living on the land where nothing but tapir and spectacled bear frequented."
The travelers were appalled at the shame of the devastation, but in continuing their trek, they came upon something that tamed their environmentalist rage.
"The four of us came upon a ‘choza,' or small hut, that seemed to be camouflaged among a tiny clearing of stumps. A family of five lived there. They had been there for five years, but their progress on land had been as if they had been there less than a year," Cottle wrote.
"The father invited us in and gave us something to eat, even though we carried our own food. The meal was a simple one of meat and rice.
"They even gave up a rough hewn, mattress-less platform bed where we all four of us slept side by side like corded logs. The family shared the other bed. They went above and beyond to ensure that we were comfortable for the night.
"My immediate respect for this family most definitely taught me there is another side of an issue to consider and understand before condemning the opposite view as unfeeling and unreasonable."
The next morning, after the group left, the park ranger let Cottle know what the colonist family had sacrificed in being hospitable. They had shared their portion of horse meat with the group.
"He went on to explain that their horse had collapsed and died a week earlier and they were still taking advantage of the fresh meat source and we were lucky to be offered some," Cottle wrote.
"There was no chance for waste in the colonist's hard scrabble life.
"It was experiences like this that changed how I viewed society and the world … I hope that I honor that colonist family in my life today with the way I look at life since coming home, with eyes and mind wide open."
