University of Vermont - Vermont Student-Athlete Spotlight: Varun Gopinath and Austin Davis

University of Vermont - Vermont Student-Athlete Spotlight: Varun Gopinath and Austin Davis

Alastair Ingram's story on our trip to Ecuador. 

Our Beginnings

Little snippets of Austin and I's trip to Ecuador which inspired the creation of Napo Natural. We went to Ecuador on a medical brigade with a student organization called MEDLIFE. MEDLIFE sends undergraduate students to parts of Latin America to help with health aid operations.  It was my second brigade to Tena, Ecuador which is at the heart of the Ecuadorian Amazon. Our experience showed us problems in the province of Napo that could be easily curable with proper sanitation and infrastructure. While there I rekindled my friendship with Jaime -- owner of hotel we were staying at -- and forged a lasting relationship between Austin, Jaime and I.

Friendship and inter-exchange between different cultures is where our story as Napo Natural begins. Though Jaime, Austin, and I come from different places and backgrounds we have all realized what it truly means to be human. And being human is helping your fellow man/woman out. Jaime with his background with Ferrero really propelled the chocolate concept as a vehicle to aid in the sustainable development of the Amazon.