The Tandana Foundation Blog

Listening, learning, and feeling useful again in Ecuador

This year, Hank Fincken, a long-time supporter of The Tandana Foundation, who usually teaches theater in the organization’s Summer School in Ecuador, had a new assignment: writing stories for The Tandana Foundation Blog. In the following post, he shares about his experience living and working in rural highland Ecuador.

Tandana strives to provide aid to longtime partner communities displaced by terrorist violence in Mali

For years, there has been ongoing insecurity in many parts of Mali. Now that violence has reached several remote communities that have been longtime partners of The Tandana Foundation.

20 Years of Friendship: What I’ve learned through shared meals with my host family

The following blog was written by Aaron DiMartino, The Tandana Foundation’s Senior Operations Director, who has been an important part of the Tandana community for more than 14 years. He reflects on his longtime friendship with his host family in Panecillo, Ecuador.

Something for everyone: Traveling to Ecuador for a family reunion with Tandana far exceeded our expectations

The following blog was written by Chelsea Rothert, who participated with her family in a Trip with Intention that was organized by The Tandana Foundation to Ecuador.

Better grades, higher incomes, rebuilt lives: The success of Tandana’s Displaced Student Program

In the Bandiagara Region of Mali, The Tandana Foundation’s support for internally displaced families continues to increase as demand grows and participants experience great results, with students earning top marks in the classrooms and partners flourishing in their income-generating activities. This year, Tandana is supporting 175 more students through its Displaced Students Program, up from 75 when the program began in 2022, and the organization hopes to be able to support more students and their families in the coming year.

20 Years of Friendship: A journey of growth and courage

Margarita Fuerez is The Tandana Foundation’s accountant and leader of its new Andean Cultural Journey program in Ecuador. Fuerez was Tandana’s first Ecuadorian scholarship recipient, and she discusses her personal growth following a trip to the U.S. in 2024, alongside other members of the organization’s global team, in the following blog.

What I learned during my year as a Tandana Board Fellow

Board meeting for the Golub Capital student fellows and their nonprofit partner reps

The following blog was written by Sarah Backstrand, who served as Golub Capital Nonprofit Board Fellow with The Tandana Foundation during the 2025-26 academic year through the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business.

Why we wished we could stay forever on our trip to Ecuador

The students and teachers from Stephen T. Badin High School had the most incredible experience with The Tandana Foundation in Ecuador!

20 Years of Friendship: Longtime Tandana partner Claudia Fuerez honored by Ecuador tourism forum

Claudia Fuerez, founder and owner of Kawsaymi Cocina and longtime partner of The Tandana Foundation, has received a well-deserved recognition from the National Tourism Forum of Ecuador for helping revitalize the country’s tourism industry through dedication, innovation, and leadership.

Go for it: Traveling to Ecuador was a life-changing experience

Groups from my high school, The Wellington School in Columbus, Ohio, have been going to Ecuador for many years on cultural exchange trips organized by The Tandana Foundation. Last school year, I made the choice to become a part of that legacy along with five other classmates.

Much more than a study abroad trip: Traveling to Ecuador with Tandana

Students and faculty from The Wellington School in Columbus Ohio recently returned from a trip to Ecuador with The Tandana Foundation. The following blog shares reflections from the trip.

Cultivating success: A scholarship student’s academic and professional journey

The following letter was written by Esteban Alejandro Castañeda Iza, a scholarship recipient of The Tandana Foundation from Ecuador. Each year, Tandana provides over 100 high-school and university students with scholarship support and in exchange the students participate in service projects that benefit their rural communities.

Continue reading “Cultivating success: A scholarship student’s academic and professional journey”

My trip to Ecuador: From uncertainty to mutual trust and partnership

The following blog was written by a student from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, about a week-long volunteer trip to Ecuador organized by The Tandana Foundation. The trip was led by Miami faculty members Juan Carlos Albarrán and Jenny Minier.

Continue reading “My trip to Ecuador: From uncertainty to mutual trust and partnership”

Scholar story: Excellent grades and a grateful heart

The following letter was written by Mayra Perugachi, a scholarship recipient of The Tandana Foundation from Ecuador. Each year, Tandana provides over 100 high-school and university students with scholarship support. In exchange, the students participate in service projects that benefit their rural communities.

Carrying out community work in perfect harmony

Blind, disconnected, cheated, and lacking opportunities. This is how some women describe feeling before they participated in The Tandana Foundation’s Literacy, Leadership, and Enterprise program in rural Mali. Now, with the skills they have learned through the program, they are empowered to shop and sell their goods confidently in the market, and many are organizing together and forming women’s associations that are proving very successful. In fact, the women’s association of Bine celebrated their accomplishments by having matching outfits made for themselves.

Thankful and proud: A displaced student aces the spelling bee

This year, The Tandana Foundation is supporting 175 students of displaced families to restart their education, and fourteen of their parents to launch income-generating activities, after they arrived in Bandiagara from other parts of Mali that are under ongoing threat from jihadist attacks. Since Tandana’s displaced students program began in 2022, the organization has now supported hundreds of students and their families with school supplies, food, and help acclimating into their new city.

Up close: In Kansongo and Dani, it’s much more than just a school

Once only the communities’ dreams, the new schools in Kansongo and Dani have created a positive and welcoming environment for hundreds of students since they opened in recent years. Built by local villages in partnership with The Tandana Foundation, the schools are receiving high praise from local leaders, residents, and the children who attend class there each day.

No worries: The women’s associations’ income-generating activities are thriving

Finding employment opportunities is not easy in rural Mali, and many residents have created their own businesses to provide for themselves and their families while also filling the needs of their communities. Some of the women entrepreneurs have joined together in associations and have requested support from The Tandana Foundation to start or expand their businesses. Tandana has now supported 53 women’s associations with training, tools, and a revolving fund to expand the income-generating possibilities of their work.

A new chapter: Women are empowering themselves by learning to read and write

After thousands of women have successfully learned to read and write, word continues to spread about The Tandana Foundation’s Literacy, Leadership, and Enterprise program – and more villages in rural Mali are requesting literacy centers of their own. The program teaches women to read and write letters and numbers in the region’s native language of Tommoso, allowing them to gain new confidence and the ability to overcome traditional gender barriers.

Scholar stories: Hear from two beneficiaries of the Dr. Ash B. Varma M.D. Scholarship Program

Each year, The Tandana Foundation supports students in rural Mali to learn professions that are in great demand in the rural communities, such as health professions and tailoring through the organization’s Dr. Ash B. Varma M.D. Scholarship Program. Not only do these students obtain needed skills in their villages, the recipients also engage in community service to share their new knowledge and gain practical experience in exchange for the scholarships.

Rising higher: Women are speaking up and stepping up after being trained in leadership

Women continue to face gender barriers in many parts of Mali, but in rural villages those perceptions are changing with the help of Tandana’s Literacy, Leadership, and Enterprise program. Through the program, women are learning how to speak in front of groups among other skills that are supporting them in becoming leaders in their communities and taking a larger role in local decision-making.

Hard work and cooperation make us all winners: Lessons learned from teaching theatre in Otavalo

The Tandana Foundation has been great for me and great for the citizens and students of Otavalo Ecuador, too. This nonprofit organization is all about communication and service to others. This summer will be my eleventh trip to Otavalo, where I teach theater to indigenous rural junior high and high school students for four weeks. The goal is to give these students the skills and confidence to continue their education through high school and college.

With continued success, the Olouguelemo Association demonstrates the value of reforestation and caring for trees

Fruits not seen nor tasted in a long time. Trees that produce enough to feed families and generate additional income. New perspectives on traditional gender roles. These are just a few of the benefits that dozens of villages in rural Mali are experiencing thanks to the reforestation and assisted natural regeneration efforts by the Olouguelemo Association, in partnership with The Tandana Foundation.

A ‘Force for Nature’ in Ohio, Ecuador, Mali, and beyond

The Garden Club of America has named Hope Taft, President Emerita of The Tandana Foundation, as the recipient of its 2026 Achievement Medal, which is given in recognition of outstanding achievement and creative vision in interpreting and furthering the club’s goals. Taft attended a pre-celebration in Dayton, Ohio, in March, and she will receive the award during a ceremony in New York City later this month.

My super week introducing community members in Ecuador to rug hooking

In February, I had a fabulous week in Otavalo, Ecuador, where I went to teach the basics of rug hooking to 12 highly motivated local participants – while learning all about The Tandana Foundation.

Q&A: Tandana’s Founding Director talks with principal of school for displaced students

An increasing number of families are seeking refuge in Bandiagara from ongoing insecurity and violence in other parts of the country. Through its displaced students program, The Tandana Foundation is supporting 175 of the displaced families with food, supplies, and remedial classes so the children can attend school and they can settle into their new city. However, more assistance is needed to ensure the well-being and academic success of the growing population of displaced students.

With a thriving new literacy center, more women are gaining skills and confidence

Last year, more than 330 women participated in literacy classes in 10 centers in Mali to learn to read and write numbers and letters in their indigenous language of Tommoso. After seeing their peers obtain new abilities, many more women are requesting to participate in the classes, which are supported through The Tandana Foundation’s Literacy, Leadership and Enterprise program in partnership with the local communities.

Empowered by a scholarship, committed to transforming lives

The following blog shares a letter written by Mikey Salvador Panamá Perugachi, who received a scholarship from The Tandana Foundation and recently graduated from his dentistry program from the Universidad San Francisco de Quito. Read on to learn how Mikey is putting his education into practice through rural dental care, community health education, and a deep commitment to serving others.

Travel with intention to Ecuador: What you may not know until you go

My husband and I set off on our first travel experience with The Tandana Foundation on Valentine’s Day in 2026. This was an adventure that we will never forget! We came to serve, but what we received in return was both unexpected and far greater than what we gave. Our hearts were expanded, and we learned and grew in so many ways.

Tandana’s Ecuador Scholarship Coordinator shares updates on the program’s start to the year

It was a very busy January for Verónica Pazmiño, who coordinates The Tandana Foundation’s scholarship program in Ecuador. The program, which provides scholarships to around 100 high school students and dozens of university students each year, supported a number of activities throughout the month, including exchanges that connected students across continents and cultures, a celebration of an inspiring graduate, and a unique form of student support.

Feeling at home on my gardening volunteer trip to Ecuador

Eleven people from the Ohio State University Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Program boarded various planes on January 31, 2026, with one shared mission: to experience, learn, and cultivate. After long hours of travel and building anticipation for the week ahead, everyone finally smelled the fresh and damp air of Otavalo, Ecuador. We were greeted with the ornate, charming, and brick-built building of our home for the week, along with our first introductions to the beautiful hospitality of the Ecuadorian people.

When erosion is no longer inevitable: The Olouguelemo Environmental Association is offering the solutions

Around the world, many communities are facing environmental challenges on an unprecedented scale. Faced with the forces of a changing climate, it has become the norm in places like Mali to feel disempowered and think of land degradation as an unavoidable consequence. For a long time, this deterioration seemed uncontrollable, leaving families uncertain about the future of their fields.

A song of appreciation: ‘Tandana, where our hearts come together’

My name is Boubacar Minta, the cousin of a Tandana Foundation scholarship student, who was one of the first health technician students at the Bouctou school in Bandiagara supported by Tandana.

With their community and international volunteers, women’s group in Ecuador realizes their dream

In the community of Yambiro, Ecuador, a group of women started to dream of a better future. Little by little, their ideas materialized until they succeeded in organizing themselves to establish the Yambiro Fish Farming and Irrigation Group (CPRY).

Whitman workshop engages students in how to effectively start and operate a global NGO

At Whitman College, the Transnational NGOs workshop brought students together to explore how NGOs work across cultures and borders. The workshop featured three guest speakers who are actively working in the NGO sector to share real-world experiences alongside case studies and discussion. Topics examined ethical partnership, inclusion, and sustainable impact while building a clearer picture of what it means to engage in nonprofit and development work.