Bridges making a Difference

In 1987, an earthquake hit Ecuador. Images of the suffering caused to the local people were conveyed to the world via television ,ieii's. These images greatly affected one 1 9-yearold Sicis.s in particular, Toni Riittimann. On the night of his High School graduation, he left Switzerland for Ecuador, with only a few thousand dollars collected from the people in his home valley and a desire to help. Once in the disaster area, Toni ROttimann saw at first hand the desperation in the faces of the people trapped by the loss of access routes. Desperation caused by the removal of access to hospitals. schools and markets and the overall restriction of mobility. Here, he understood for the first time the suffering that could be relieved through the construction of a single bridge.