I just read the introduction on your official page; it was beautiful and inspiring.  It is such a privilege to be able to travel and I feel that as travelers we have the responsibility to represent our nation with class.  I too am trying to find the best way that I can make a difference.  It's funny I get really anxious at night or riding on buses sometimes because there is both so much beauty and so many problems in the world and I don't want to miss out on either the beauty or the opportunity to help.  Major problems here in Costa Rica, the Switerland of Central America, are water pollution, poverty, poaching, the influx of drugs, and child prostitution with foreigners.  Yesterday I met with a co-op of women who make paper out of invasive cattails that are taking over the wetland where thousands of birds take refuge.  They make beautiful high quality products but they are stymied by the fact that their large blenders are broken; it's frustrating because such a small investment would allow them to fufill larger orders and gain greater economic freedom.  Something I've been slowly learning is that it is great to have large organizations dedicated to allieving poverty but it is really the small scale projects that help people. 

I'll comment again in a week or two, Saturday I have a week vacation so I'm checking out Arenal Volcano, a rainforest canopy tour, and the Pacific Ocean, then I head out to Nicaragua for a week.