Mano a Mano International Partners (our Minnesota-based nonprofit, with four counterpart organizations in Bolivia to follow over the next decade+) was formally founded in October 1994 – 30 years ago! Check out a quick snapshot of how some of Mano a Mano’s major programs started decades ago, and where we are now:

Getting Started in the Early 1990s


Recovered Resources Program – the Program that Started Mano a Mano in 1994

Mano a Mano Co-Founder Segundo Velasquez, in the early years picking up supplies and equipment at Joan and Segundo’s house in Mendota Heights, and Mano a Mano’s home base for nearly 20 years.

Shipping supplies and equipment from Minnesota to Bolivia now.

Building Health Clinics in Bolivia

One of Mano a Mano’s first clinics built in 2000 in Lope Mendoza. This clinic is in operation today, with no ongoing funding from Mano a Mano. We visited the clinic in April 2024 to interview medical staff and a mom that took advantage of the clinic during her recent pregnancy.
Mano a Mano celebrated the dedication of our 185th health clinic project in the community of Catariri, Bolivia in April 2024.

Building Schools and Teacher Housing

Dedicating the school and teacher housing in Campo Vibora in 2004.
Dedicating Mano a Mano’s 68th school project in Kaspicancha Alta in 2023.

Providing Aviation to Rapidly Connect Isolated Rural Communities in Bolivia

Mano a Mano’s aviation program in the early 2000s.
Mano a Mano’s Cessna Caravan at the future home of our aviation program (picture taken in 2023) – a Mano a Mano airport in Punata that is part of the Punata Regional Complex.
Taking a boat ride on the water reservoir in Laguna Sulti in August 2024 (also pictured above, alongside the Mano a Mano runway).

Water Projects

Mano a Mano’s first water project completed, in response to community requests, was this reservoir in Ucuchi, Bolivia in 2005. The reservoir is now an integral part of the San Isidro Ecotourism Park; we are happy to see the impact that this project continues to have, nearly 2 decades since its dedication in March 2006.
After initially focusing on water reservoirs and atajados (large water ponds), Mano a Mano began constructing water wells in response to community requests and provided that we have the ability to respond. This picture is from the dedication of one of our most recent deep water wells in Flores Rancho in May 2024.

Building a Center for Ecological Agriculture

From community feedback, we established a demonstration and training center where farmers could learn low-cost, low-tech ways to improve their farms more than a decade ago.
Mano a Mano’s Center for Ecological Agriculture (CEA), pictured here in August 2024. (This picture is from the same angle as the picture above, when construction began in El Abra in ~2012.
Mano a Mano’s heavy equipment workshop at in El Abra (alongside the CEA).

Everything is a Partnership

Mano a Mano’s mission is: “Partnering together – Hand in Hand – to transform the health and well-being of Bolivian communities in need.” We accomplish that mission through a community-based partnership model, bringing many people together to accomplish things that none of us could do on our own. Thank you to everyone that is a part of Mano a Mano!

Mano a Mano Today

Thank You!

Thank you to everyone that attended our event at Mano a Mano on September 15th celebrating 30 years in operation for our Minnesota-based nonprofit! Everything we are able to do is a partnership: we are so grateful to our volunteers, donors, interns, staff, Board, travelers, and everyone that is a part of Mano a Mano! Working together, we can accomplish our mission of “Partnering together – Hand in Hand – to transform the health and well-being of Bolivian communities in need.” (We kept last week’s event at our warehouse on the smaller side, as we are wrapping up some construction work on the building.)