Located in Urubamba, Peru, Valley Camp is a nonprofit organization that empowers local and international youth with environmental experiences across the Sacred Valley. Their vision is “to be a thriving, inclusive community that, through regenerative practices and mutual support, gives back to the mother earth we call home.” Through centering intercultural connection and local values that prioritize Indigenous Quechua understandings of the earth, Pachamama, and community collaboration, Minka, Valley Camp seeks to uplift youth voices with connection, education, and hands-on experience. Through these interviews with both Valley Camp staff and youth participants, the importance of place and community emerges as a primary motivator for nourishing the next generation of change-makers.
Cole York founded Valley Camp in 2017 with the goal of providing new experiences for the children of the Sacred Valley. With over 15 years of experience working with camps in the U.S. and Peru, she sees the outdoors as a space where young people can connect more deeply and believes that this kind of learning shapes confident, compassionate leaders.
Julián Restrepo Monroy, program director of Valley Camp, is from Caldas, Colombia and is a passionate educator with a deep love and appreciation for nature, science, and art. He believes that education is the engine of change that Latin America needs.
Madai joined Valley Camp in 2024 through the Leadership Club in her high school. She was immediately a fun, expressive teen that we witnessed grow throughout the course of the year. She also participated in our camp, Mountain School, in 2024 and continues to participate in the leadership club again this year.
Greyssy attended camp before participating in our leadership club in Pitumarca in 2024 and took the initiative to organize a group to come to our Eco-Leaders Camp in January 2025. She continues to be part of the leadership club in Pitumarca this year.
Ella Harris Perin spent time in a placement at Valley Camp during a semester abroad in Urubamba, Peru. Through these interviews, she wanted to understand how the camp’s goals center youth engagement, and how the young participants understand their environment. She provided the introduction, organization, questions, and translation from Spanish to English.
The original Spanish questions and responses have been left below the translations so that the participants, who contributed to this piece, are able to read the article.
Interview
Ella Harris Perin: How do you understand the role of Valley Camp in cultivating leadership within the youth of the Sacred Valley?
¿Cómo entiendes el papel de Valley Camp en cultivar el liderazgo de jóvenes del Valle Sagrado?
Cole York: Valley Camp works with youth in the Sacred Valley in two different contexts. One is through our leadership clubs, which are programs developed for local kids in the Sacred Valley and Pitumarca, another town within the Cusco region. We have decided to work in public high schools to reach youth who may not be aware of our programs in other contexts — many families connect with us through Instagram, word of mouth, or Facebook. Sometimes, local families are unaware of our existence, and we employ an educational methodology that differs from the standard approach in public schools here in the Sacred Valley. Families aren’t familiar with it, so to build these relationships with the families so they get to know us, it’s best if we work in their place, where they already are, which is the schools. And so, we have two alliances within the two schools, as I mentioned, one in Urubamba at Agropecuario High School, and the other in the community of Pampachiri, located in the town of Pitumarca.
What we aim to create is a safe space for kids to develop personal and social skills through hands-on experiences. We want them to feel secure within their peer group, to be able to identify, “What is my relationship with myself, what are my emotions, what are my values, what are my belief systems, what do I want personally? What’s my purpose in the world?” Then we move to the next step, which is, “How do I interact with those around me? How do I connect with my peers? How do I connect with my community, with my family? How do I show up and bring my skills and talents to this group, and then within the context of the environment here, what’s my relationship with this place, with these mountains, with these traditions?”
And so that’s one side of it, and the other side is our camps, which are multicultural with kids from different countries, different communities, all coming together. Personally, I believe that one of my biggest concerns with the world today is that we struggle to relate to people from diverse backgrounds, with differing political views, or with diverse religious beliefs. We all share this planet together, and I believe it’s essential that we learn to have empathy and relate to people who are different from ourselves. That’s why, in Valley Camp, it’s so important to me to create safe spaces for diverse groups of kids to come, learn, and grow together, where they can express their different opinions and share their diverse knowledge systems. Obviously, we have kids coming from Indigenous knowledge systems whose relationships to the environment are wildly different from kids growing up in the more Western environmental education setting. We want them to be able to come together and share all of these different knowledge systems, because that’s what helps form your belief system. That’s what helps create your worldview. If we’re able to be exposed to different ideas, different ways of thinking—wow, what a richness we’re going to have in the world. It’s a small piece of the world here in the Sacred Valley, but that’s what we’re doing with Valley Camp.
Julián Restrepo Monroy: I believe that Valley Camp contributes to alternative educational spaces that promote new experiences for the youth of the Urubamba region and the Sacred Valley, addressing the fact that there are not many opportunities for adolescents in the area. It is a challenge to get children, especially teens, involved in our programs — especially those between 13 and 17 years old — and to participate in new activities that connect with nature, develop leadership skills, foster teamwork, meet new people, and more. Even though Valley Camp is challenging, we are working hard so that many children, especially those between 13 and 17 years old, can participate in new activities that connect with nature, develop leadership skills, foster teamwork, meet new people, and more. We must take into account that the context in the Sacred Valley is very challenging. There are a lot of vulnerable communities, like many of the young people, that need to do other types of activities, such as working with animals or working in the chakra (fields). I believe that Valley Camp is contributing to providing alternative spaces for people to connect with nature differently, with their identity, and, above all, to give them a greater voice in leadership to transform their community.
Creo que Valley Camp contribuye a otros espacios educativos alternativos que fomentan nuevas experiencias para los jóvenes de la región de Urubamba y del Valle Sagrado abordando mucho de que en la zona no hay tantas oportunidades para los adolescentes. Entonces, Valley Camp viene aunque es retador trabajando muchísimo para que muchos chicos y chicas sobre todo de 13 a 17 años puedan engancharse con otro tipo de actividades relacionadas con la conexión a la naturaleza habilidades de liderazgo trabajar en equipo conocer a otras personas hay que tener en cuenta que el contexto en el Valle Sagrado es bien difícil retador. Hay mucha población vulnerable—entonces mucho de los jóvenes necesitan por necesidad hacer otro tipo de actividades como trabajar cuidar animales trabajar en la chakra entonces vale cam siento que sí está contribuyendo en dar otro tipo de espacios para conectar de otra manera con la naturaleza con la identidad de las personas y sobre todo por dar mayor voz de liderazgo para transformar su comunidad.
Ella Harris Perin: How do you see a young person’s environment contributing to the way they understand the world, and therefore how they can change it?
¿Cómo cree que el medio ambiente de un joven contribuye a su forma de entender el mundo y, por tanto, a cómo puede cambiarlo?
Cole York: Obviously, our environmental and cultural identities are so influential in how we see and connect to the world around us. Where you grow up really forms you—for better, for worse, but it’s always going to be part of who you are. We see many beautiful traditions here in the Sacred Valley, which embody Indigenous knowledge passed down within families. Unfortunately, it’s rapidly being lost due to the influx of more capitalistic ways of life. That being said, people in the Sacred Valley are deeply connected to their culture, the land, and their traditions. This connection is evident in their dances, the way they farm their land, the manner in which they communicate with each other, and the languages they speak. It is truly beautiful. We believe that it’s essential not only to acknowledge this as the only way, but also to help local kids and anyone living in the Sacred Valley understand these traditions and their richness. We definitely want them to be connected to the land, and that’s why we apply place-based learning. We visit, see, and experience different places within our community, connecting with them as opportunities to learn.
Once you know where you’re from, once you know your identity, once you know your culture, once you understand the place, you’re able to make contributions. You’re able to make changes, you’re able to be part of it. These kids, especially the local kids in our leadership clubs, are the future of this place. I’m not from here. I can leave whenever, and many people are coming in and out of the Sacred Valley. However, these are the future leaders, and they must appreciate the richness of both Indigenous knowledge systems and the actual land and environment around us. That way, they can include these ways of life as they prepare for the future.
Julián Restrepo Monroy: I feel that the context in which a young person grows up is critical in defining his or her identity. So, if it is a person who is consistently in educational spaces, spaces of personal growth, these young people can see much more broadly or see the much bigger picture of the opportunities they can have in their lives—whether in the academic world, the world of entrepreneurship, the world of self-management, or more. Of course, it depends on the context where people are growing up. I believe that, at least in Peru, in Cusco, and in the Sacred Valley, young people need more opportunities to broaden their horizons and explore the possibilities that exist in the world. I also believe that they need safe spaces, spaces of trust, and places where they can be listened to, so that they can make decisions for themselves that benefit both themselves and the community.
Siento que el contexto donde crece un joven es muy importante para que se pueda definir su identidad. Entonces, si es una persona que está en constante espacios de educación, espacios de crecimiento personal, espacios educativos diferentes, estos jóvenes pueden ver con mucha más amplitud o ver el panorama mucho más amplio de las oportunidades que pueden tener en sus vidas, ya sea el mundo académico, el mundo del emprendimiento, el mundo de la autogestión, bueno como un montón de oportunidades que pueden tener los jóvenes, pero por supuesto depende del contexto donde están creciendo las personas. Entonces siento que al menos en Perú, en Cusco, en el Valle Sagrado, los jóvenes necesitan otras oportunidades para que abran un poco más los ojos y las oportunidades que pueden existir en el mundo. También creo que necesitan espacios seguros, espacios de confianza, espacios donde se les pueda escuchar para poder tener esas habilidades para tomar las decisiones por ellos mismos y tomar otro tipo de decisiones que los puedan beneficiar a ellos, beneficiar a la comunidad.
Ella Harris Perin: Tell us a little about yourself: where are you from, what is important to you, what do you do in your free time?
Cuéntanos un poco sobre ti: De donde eres, que es importante para ti, que haces en tus tiempos libres?
Madai: I am Madai. I am from Ollantaytambo, Peru. What is important to me is my family, and I enjoy playing the zampoña in my free time.
Yo soy Madai, soy de Ollantaytambo, Perú. Lo importante para mí es mi familia y me gusta tocar la zampoña en mis tiempos libres.
Greyssy: My name is Greyssy and I am from the district of Pitumarca, Peru. For me, it is essential to learn and grow every day, and it is also important to make a positive difference in the world. In my free time, I enjoy practising music and playing the violin. I love reading books and enjoy hiking and exploring nature.
Mi nombre es Greyssy soy del distrito de Pitumarca, Perú. Para mi, es importante aprender y crecer cada día, también es importante para mí hacer una diferencia positiva en el mundo. En mis tiempos libres práctico música y toco el violín. Me encanta leer obras y me gusta hacer senderismo y explorar la naturaleza.
Ella Harris Perin: How do you participate in Valley Camp and the Leadership Club program?
¿Cómo participas con Valley Camp y en el programa de Club de Liderazgo?¿Cuáles son tus motivaciones?
Madai: I started going because my teacher told me to go to distract myself a little bit, and I was motivated to go because I found a safe place where I could express myself and be myself.
Yo empecé a ir por qué mi profesor me dijo que asistiera para distraerme un poco, y mis motivaciones fueron por qué encontré este lugar seguro donde me podía expresar y ser como soy.
Greyssy: I participated in Valley Camp and the Leadership Club because I was able to interact with people I didn’t know and make friends, and also learn more about environmental conservation, what it means to lead, and develop respect and values that will serve me in the future. I was motivated to participate in both programs because the teachers were very kind and made me feel very safe, even if I didn’t know anyone.
Yo participé en Valley Camp y en el club de liderazgo que ahi podia interactuar con personas que no conozco y hacer amigos y también aprender más sobre la conservación del medio ambiente también el que es liderar y el respeto y más valores que me servirán futuramente.Me motivo participar en ambos programas ya que los profesores eran muy cheveres, y te hacían sentir muy segura por más que no conozcas a nadie.
Ella Harris Perin: What role do youth play in engaging with and protecting the environment?
¿Cuál es el papel de los jóvenes para proteger y participar con el medio ambiente?
Madai: We young people have the duty to understand the problems that exist around us and seek solutions, especially in places like archaeological centres, to find ways to protect them.
Nosotros los jóvenes tenemos el deber de conocer los problemas que tenemos alrededor de nosotros y buscar una solución y más cuando es un lugar como los centros arqueológicos encontrar la manera de protegerlo.
Greyssy: The role of each one of us is to understand the connection between the harm we do to ourselves and how we must protect our environment.
El rol de cada uno de nosotros es conocer la conexión entre cómo nos hacemos daño nosotros mismos y cómo tenemos que darnos cuenta y proteger nuestro espacio ambiental.
Ella Harris Perin: What effect does your participation in the Leadership Club have on environmental conservation in the Sacred Valley?
¿Qué efecto tiene tu participación en el Club de liderazgo en la conservación del medio ambiente del Valle sagrado?
Madai: It has the effect of teaching others what we learned at Valley Camp, putting our ideas into practice within our community, and protecting the environment.
Tiene el efecto de enseñar a los demás lo que aprendimos en Valley Camp y poner nuestras ideas en nuestra comunidad y así proteger el medio ambiente.
Greyssy: My participation in the Environmental Conservation Leadership Club has allowed me to develop skills in leadership and teamwork, while helping to protect and preserve the natural and cultural heritage of the region. I have learned a lot about the importance of conservation and sustainability and have had the opportunity to work on projects that directly benefit the environment and the local community. My experience in the club has allowed me to connect with people who share my passions and values, and together we are working to make a positive difference for our future.
Mi participación en el Club de Liderazgo en conservación del medio ambiente me ha permitido desarrollar habilidades en liderazgo y trabajo en equipo, mientras contribuye a proteger y preservar el patrimonio natural y cultural de la región. He aprendido mucho sobre la importancia de la conservación y sostenibilidad, y he tenido la oportunidad de trabajar en proyectos que benefician directamente al medio ambiente y la comunidad local. Mi experiencia en el club me ha permitido conectarme con personas que comparten mis pasiones y valores, y juntos estamos trabajando para hacer una diferencia positiva para nuestro futuro.
Image Credit: Valley Camp
