WHEN I WAS
LITTLE, MY
GRANDFATHER
USED TO TELL ME
HOW BEAUTIFUL IT
WAS TO GRAZE IN
THESE VALLEYS.”
—Alina Surquislla Gomez,
alpaquera
MELTING GLACIERS, DRYING PASTURES
At an altitude
of more than 17,000
feet in the Andes of
southern Peru, Alina
Surquislla Gomez,
a third-generation
alpaquera, cradles a
baby alpaca on her way
to the pastures where
her family’s herd of
more than 300 animals
will graze in summer.
Shrinking glaciers and
increased drought
have dried pastures
in the Andes, forcing
the herders—many of
whom are women—to
search for new grazing
grounds, often in diffi-
cult terrain. Prized for
their wool, alpacas
are important to
Peruvian culture and a
major source of income
in this region, which
is home to several
million of them.MAY 03
78