Christina Ammon

Christina Ammon is a freelance writer perpetually on-the-road. Her stories have appeared in publications such as Orion, The Oregonian, High Country News, and the San Francisco Chronicle. At The Mesa Refuge she’ll work on her book about the adventure of auctioning off a diamond ring online to assist the work of eight “Vagabond Philanthropists”– her term for low-budget travelers who make a big difference in the places they visit. The sale of her diamond sent 20 Nepalese kids to school, helped establish a breeding sanctuary for the diminishing Himalayan Vulture, sent a villager from Mali to nursing school, spayed and neutered dozens of dogs in Mexico, financed an anti-shark finning campaign in Costa Rica, and hired a school teacher in Canoa, Ecuador. The book and the “Committed to the World” project is her effort to get engaged with the world, while examining tradition, values, and diamonds.