Interview: Nancy Santullo’s Crusade For Clean Water In The Amazon Rainforest

By Stacey Gualandi

Twitter: @rainforestflow
Facebook:  rainforest-flow

Nancy Santullo calls the Peruvian rainforest her home.  As the founder of Rainforest Flow: A House of the Children Project, she has gone deep into the Manu rainforest to bring clean, healthy water to the indigenous people who live there.

  “Our lives are interconnected…as we help one child, we help all children.”   Nancy Santullo

In 2000, this former fashion photographer embarked on a journey that she says not only transformed her life, but also the children who can now drink safely.  Within eight years, Nancy says her organization served approximately 450 adults and children in remote areas of the rainforest. 

Rainforest Flow has successfully brought clean water and reduced diseases in two remote villages, and she is about to return to help yet another one.

With the chidren of Huacaria, Peru/2009

Nancy puts her life in danger for up to nine months at a time.  To reach these villages takes several days – by plane, by jeep, by boat – with snakes, mosquitoes, and disease always posing a threat. 

The rainforest is the last place I would think of for a life-altering career change, so I wanted to see why Nancy won’t stop until there’s enough drinkable water for all the tribes of the rainforest… 

Interview: Susan Edwards’ New Film Salutes Environmental Crusader Marion Stoddart

Filmmaker Susan Edwards

By Pamela Burke

Thanks to Susan Edwards’ new documentary “Marion Stoddart: The Work of 1000,”  we get to meet one of  America’s most dedicated environmentalists.   Sue spent four years piecing together the story of how Marion and her supporters took on the challenge of restoring the Nashua River in New England, one of the most polluted bodies of water in the country. 

As we celebrate the 100th Annniversary of International Women’s Day, we honor Marion Stoddart who proved one person can make a difference.

Marion Stoddart kayaking down the Nashua River, 2009

The river in Massachusetts above where you see Marion paddling went from “a hopeless, toxic sludge pit” in the sixties to a waterway filled with fish, birds, and kayakers twenty years later. 

I grew up near this river that winds through the center of the state to southern New Hampshire and couldn’t believe how polluted it became.  When I heard about Marion’s environmental triumph, I had to find Susan and ask her about her fascinating film and this one woman warrior…  

Annie Leonard Examines Stuff and Overconsumption

Photo: Eros Hoagland/NYT

Annie Leonard is the author of “The Story of Stuff”  and host of a twenty minute film of the same name.    Dedicated to transforming industrial and economic systems, she’s been investigating environmental health and justice issues for nearly twenty years.

To read the article:

NY Times

To see the website:

Story of  Stuff

Do you think you consume too much stuff?