El Salvador: Global Awareness in Action

The group is at Yale

2009-07-31T09:58:00.003-04:00

We've received word from the leaders that the group has arrived in New Haven, CT. All of the Global Action World Issues groups have settled into the dorms at Yale University and students are preparing to put the final touches on their presentations.

Santa Marta on the mind

2009-07-25T08:58:00.005-04:00

Unbelievably, we are nearing the end of our time in Santa Marta and have only two days to wrap everything up. Students have been working in the areas of their choosing which have ranged from: studying the accessibility of health care in the state of Cabañas to the importance of community radio in rural areas to community activism focusing on the opposition to mining around Santa Marta. We have had the opportunity to speak with some amazing people who have willingly and openly shared their stories with us and talked about the importance of being active in their community.

Both of our Christinas have been working at the clinic and with the local health promoter which has proven to be an incredibly valuable experience. They've learned so much about the differences in health care and the efforts of the medical professionals who work with extremely limited resources. Heather, Isa, and Hannah have spent the majority of their time at the school assisting the teachers in their Math and English classes while also gaining a better understanding of the pedagogy and methodology behind the popular education model. Mollie, Melanie, Matthias, and David have all focused on the projects of the developmentnon-governmental organization ADES. David and Matthias have honed in on microlending efforts to create a local/alternative economic model as opposed to the free trade agreements negotiated at the national level. Mollie and Melanie have taken in interest in the efforts to supplement the local market with fresh fruits and vegetables via greenhouses and orchards that create a more nutritionally balanced diet for local people and their communities.

The Radio boys (Eli, Jack, & Raphi) had a featured spot on "Canto a la Vida" again this Wednesday in which they played some powerful songs including, Buffalo Springfield's "For What its Worth" and songs by Bob Dylan and Michael Franti. They've also had some opportunities to learn from and play with local musicians who have used song to preserve and share the history of the region. Adam has really focused on the CoCoSi initiatives surrounding gender issues and HIV/AIDS education and was able to accompany the group to the prison in Sensuntepeque to observe a support group for inmates who are HIV positive.

In the midst of all of this action, we have found time for some great recreational activities including an epic soccer match during a downpour in which the Putney group beat the CoCoSi chicos-chicas in a hilariously fun game. Drenched and exhausted, we shared a stack of pizzas (the pupusaria was closed!) and had a blast hanging out.

As you can see, so much is going on here! Everyone is in great spirits and good health which we are all thankful for. Only two days left here in Santa Marta and then we are off to Isla Tasajera for some much needed time to process everything we've learned and experienced over the past two weeks.

Hasta pronto,
Brian & Sarah

Projects and Life in Santa Marta

2009-07-19T22:59:00.004-04:00

The crew here in Santa Marta has been busy over the last week. Despite the heat and unseasonably dry days, our students have been extremely active, going on small hikes on the outskirts of the community to see some of the areas where residents are in danger of eviction by the local government. During this caminata, students had an opportunity to probe the issue further by asking tons of questions and speaking directly with some of the community directivas who have organized themselves into a committee in order to advocate on behalf of the affected members of the village.

The group has also been working diligently on their project sites around Santa Marta, some getting their hands dirty while tending to the organic tomatoes and green chilies of one of the first greenhouses ever constructed in El Salvador, others working closely with doctors at the local clinic. Working along side Drs. Perez and Salvador, students have been helping by taking vital signs of patients in the waiting area, and lending a hand at the pharmacy.

We even have a small group of international music sensations in our midst! Raphi Shamas, Eli Edelman and Jack Mensik had the opportunity to play some quintessential selections from Bob Dylan and the like during a three-hour radio, 16th Anniversary broadcast at Radio Victoria. While Jack was jamming on the guitar, Eli played the drums and Raphi supplied the vocals while they sat alongside other well-known local musicians in the Radio´s cabina. The group listened to the broadcast back at the house, and even people back home were able to listen to the broadcast via the internet! If you haven't done so already, check out the previous blog post to listen to a recording of part of their broadcast.

Other students are working closely with professores populares at the 10 de Octubre school, guest teaching Math and English classes while doing general research on how the education system functions in El Salvador.

As students continue to work in their areas, pursuing independent projects and interests, they have many opportunities to speak with local activists and community leaders about various topics, including sustainable development, immigration, and international trade. They have begun to delve into the history of Santa Marta, through the spoken and written testimonies of some of these same community leaders, including Santa Marta's role in the guerrilla movement during the civil war.

On Sunday, the kids braved the sun and heat to trek through the steep hills near the border with Honduras, where they sat with Walter, an ex-guerrilla who heads up the Historical Memory Project of Santa Marta. When we reached the river, Walter spoke to the group about the Rio Lempa, the site of one of the worst massacres in the Cabanas region. It gave us not only a first hand account of the event, but also showed us a realistic picture of the livese of exiled Santa Martans in the refugee camps just across the border.

Our students have been engaging enthusiastically with the themes of collective action and all of the issues of immigration, education, sustainable development and public health, but they have also been able to have quite a bit of fun! They have recently returned from their three-day homestays with local families, and took advantage of just about every chance they got to teach their younger ´siblings´ card games, play frisbee, and learn how to make pupusas. On Saturday night, we broke out our best salsa, cumbia and bachata moves on the dance floor at Radio Victoria's 16th Anniversary fiesta, and on Sunday evening we celebrated the Very Merry Un-Birthday of the group at a nearby pool, complete with cake made with love from the panaderia (bakery) in Santa Marta, and ice cream!

We are excited for this final week in Santa Marta, and the students are eager to get back to their project sites!

Abrazos,
Sarah and Brian

Radio Victoria Broadcast

2009-07-16T10:01:00.006-04:00

Yesterday several of our students went on air with Radio Victoria to celebrate the radio station's 16th anniversary (www.radiovictoria.org). We hope you enjoy the audio clip below in which a few Putney students introduce and then perform 'Is Love Enough?', a song by Michael Franti.

More audio clips coming soon!

The lyrics to the song are below:

Michael Franti, ‘Is Love Enough?’

We want freedom of speech
But we all talking at the same time
We say we want peace
but nobody wants to change thier own mind

And it goes on and on and on
For a thousand years
And it goes on and on and on
What language are your tears

Everybody wants to live the life of kings and queens
But nobody wants to stay and plow the fields
Everybody wants to tell their neighbors how to live
But nobody wants to listen to how they feel

And it goes on and on and on
For a thousand years
And it goes on and on and on
What language are your tears

But what I got to say one more time is
Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah
Or could you love some more
Is Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah
Or could you love some more
Is Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah
Or could you love some more
Is Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah, Love enough yeah
Oh tell you could you love some more

And it goes on and on and on
For a thousand years
And it goes on and on and on
What language are your tears

What language are you tears
What language is your laughter
What language is your sadness
What language is your joy

It goes on and on and on
for a thousand years
And it goes on and on and on
What language are your tears

From San Salvador to Santa Marta

2009-07-15T12:36:00.009-04:00

This Global Awareness in Action group has had a busy week! During the first few days in San Salvador, we met with a number of people and organizations working in a variety of arenas, from environmentalism to immigration to politics and even with an organization educating communities throughout the country on the ´popular history´ of El Salvador.

The group had an opportunity to engage in an economic exercise in the busy San Miguel market in which they set off in small groups with a list of basic foods essential to the Salvadoran diet. The experience of buying watermelon, beans, and other fruits and vegetables for the kitchen in our hotel in San Salvador, Hotel Oasis, was an enjoyable one and they had to put their Spanish to work while they bargained for the best prices. The exercise was followed up with a discussion about the costs of the items purchased-- it was easy to see how much (or how little, really) a Salvadoran family could afford on the national minimum wage.

While in San Salvador, we also heard the heartwrenching and inspiring personal histories of individuals who lived through the civil war and who now continue to work for social change in this country. An ex-combatant, now a deputy in the National Assembly, led us through a tour of the assembly buildings and set up meetings with Assembly members from the two primary political parties (FMLN and ARENA).

That day, we ate wonderful traditional lunch of beans and vegetable stew in the home a local woman, Beatriz, and it was eye-opening to see how the urban poor lived in this country. We also visited La Divina Providencia, a Catholic Center with a hospital that cares for terminally ill cancer patients which is also where Archbishop Oscar Romero lived and was assassinated while performing a mass in March 1980. Romero had used his position of authority to denounce the repression and murders carried out by the government and the military. Romero´s assassination shocked the world and his death was intensely mourned by the Salvadoran people.

Now, in Santa Marta, the students are beginning to work more closely with the different organizations involved in community development. Some are up to their elbows in dirt at the community greenhouses (some of the first in the country to provide rural communities with fresh, organic fruit and vegetables), some are working with the communications and press departments of Radio Victoria (which you can stream at: www.radiovictoria.org or www.radiovictoria.infosal.com) and still others are working in the local clinic and with CoCoSi, the HIV-AIDS organization here in town. We´ve been blessed with hot and sunny weather throughout the day with some fantastic downpours in the afternoon to cool off. We have had plenty of outdoor activities such as hiking to the clandestine hospitals used to treat victims during the war and of course playing futbol y frisbee with the young kids here in town.

Below are updates written by two of out students, Adam and Melanie. Enjoy!

Saludos,
Brian and Sarah

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Hola de Santa Marta! We left Hotel Oasis in San Salvador and have arrived in Santa Marta, a town full of unified efforts. Comprised of 2500 people, Santa Martans are extraordinarily friendly and hospitable to strangers. Our home consists of 3 bedrooms, a common room, a bathroom and a latrine and compared to San Salvador, Santa Marta has much more room to wander and feel free. The lifestyle is different as well. Everyone moved at a more comfortable, easy going pace, as compared to the hectic capital city. At la casa de Aida we eat the delicious meals prepared with the freshest ingredients. Aida is also a valuable resource to the group as she has survived the bloody civil war and we recently read the testimony that she had transcribed to preserve some of the history. By the end, there was not one dry eye!

-Adam

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¨During our first week here in El Salvador we have been exposed to many influential people and places. Our group has made a smooth transition from our privileged lives at home to the lifestyles of a third world country. Now in Santa Marta the interesting history that has been told to us through many stories from various resources is becoming a pivotal point from which each of us is deciding our venue of individual study. This study may include working with Radio Victoria, a youth run radio that allows a flow of information ranging from politics to music. We have met with CoCoSi, an organization which is bringing awareness to the reality of gay, lesbian and transgender people in El Salvador. It is also working in the area of sex education, although these are all relative topics in the U.S., here they are still on the brink of something discussed on a public level. A couple of the girls have decided to work at the local school, which goes up until the 10^th grade. The health clinic is also an area open for projects-- we are able to shadow Doctor Perez while also gaining an awareness of the environmental issues that subsequently effect the health of many. There is an organic greenhouse that grows food for the community funded by an organization called AdesFia this is also an opportunity for study. ¨

-Melanie

Yale Information

2009-07-14T11:42:00.001-04:00

Hello family and friends,

Yale is less than three weeks away! This will be the final communication from Putney before the end of the program, and we hope that it will provide you with plenty of information as you prepare for your time at Yale University.

Presentations and Picnic

The final presentations will be held on Saturday, August 1st at Sudler Recital Hall at William Harkness Hall, 100 Wall St, New Haven. Global Action students will attend all of the presentations. Please plan to arrive a few minutes early so that we can keep to our tight schedule; your child will meet you there. The presentations are each approximately one hour long and will take place the following times:

9:30 AM: Welcome
10 AM: India
11:30 AM: El Salvador
2:30 PM: China
4 PM: Cambodia

Presentations will be followed by a picnic for families and the entire Global Action community at Timothy Dwight College. We hope you will join us!

How to RSVP

If you plan to attend the presentations and picnic at Yale, please RSVP by email to putney.gaia2009@gmail.com by Friday, July 17. Please note your name, your son/daughter’s group name, and how many there will be in your party (do not include your son/daughter in that number).

Communication with Putney

All communication with Putney from July 30 to August 1 should be directed to our Yale office:

Office Line: (203) 436-1577
Cell Phone: (561) 504-6325
Email: putney.gaia2009@gmail.com

Travel to/from Yale

Each Global Action group has chartered private buses from the airport to Yale University on July 30. While at Yale, students and leaders will be housed at Timothy Dwight College, 345 Temple St. (at Grove St.), Yale University, New Haven, CT.

We hope that families can arrive to Yale in the morning of August 1 and stay in New Haven that night. There will be group presentations and a final picnic on August 1, though the programs do not end until the morning of August 2. Students should be picked up from Timothy Dwight College on August 2 between 9 a.m. and 12 noon. (Putney will provide transportation to the local airport and train station for students that are returning home on their own.)

In the information we have sent to your digital locker, you will find directions to Timothy Dwight College, a list of area hotels, and a customized map including parking information that you should bring to Yale with you. Yale has also provided us with a user-friendly online map at http://business.yale.edu/map.

We look forward to meeting you on August 1st!

Saludos from San Salvador

2009-07-07T12:59:00.005-04:00

Hello all,

Everyone arrived safe and sound in San Salvador on Saturday evening-- the students and Brian were met with the heat and humidity of the early Salvadoran evening, and by their excited leader, Sarah. We all piled onto the bus and played get-to-know you games as the sun set behind the San Vincente volcano. When we finally arrived to Hotel Oasis, a delicious meal of pupusas and other comida typica was awaiting.

The following day, we went on a bus tour of the city, passing by a shanty town erected on the outskirts of San Salvador. We scratched the surface of the most prominent issues of poverty, landlessness and globalization in El Salvador. We also passed by the US embassy, a massive expanse of white-washed buildings which are heavily guarded-- this served as a great juxtaposition to the impoverished living situations of many Salvadorans.

We were also able to visit the cathedral where Archbishop Romero is buried, and experience a bit of the hustle and bustle of the busy Plaza Libertad, at the heart of the city. Later in the day, we visited Puerta Del Diablo, a famous lookout point from which we could see much of the country-- from the dramatic peaks of Volcan Santa Ana to the foggy coastline of the Pacific beaches. We ended the day with a stop at the Wall of Truth and Memory, commemorating those who lost their lives during the civil war. It was a full day!

On Monday, we met with a series of organizations in San Salvador, learning about both historical and current immigration issues, whats being done to dissuade inner city youth in the city from joining gangs. We also listened to an amazing, personal account of a revolutionary, Damian Alegría, who has dedicated his life to bringing about social change in El Salvador. Damian has recently realized some of those dreams by becoming a delegate in the National Assembly. He, along with his wife Carolina, are the gracious owners of the Hotel Oasis, our home in San Salvador. We are quite sure that our students will have many more questions for Damian during our time here.

Our students have already started asking some tough questions and begun to synthesize some of their different skill sets, areas of expertise, and individual passions as we begin to put all of our experiences together to look at the big picture. We´re excited for what the rest of the week will bring!

Saludos desde San Salvador,
Sarah and Brian

The group has arrived

2009-07-05T06:37:00.002-04:00

We've received word from the leaders that the group has arrived in San Salvador.

Meet the trip leaders

2009-06-17T09:40:00.000-04:00

2009 El Salvador leaders: Sarah Mackin and Brian Mikel

SARAH MACKIN: Bryn Mawr College, B.A., Sociology and African-American Studies. During her undergraduate career, Sarah took on the role of community activist and organizer both on campus and in the surrounding communities. She helped found and facilitate the Hot Topics program, an extension of the Intercultural Affairs Office of Bryn Mawr College. As a sophomore, Sarah travelled to Guatemala with a Human Rights delegation, working with various local organizations dedicated to restoring social justice in the country. Moved by what she experienced, Sarah returned to Guatemala independently to work as a healthcare worker with the founders of a fledgling non-profit, The Guatemala Healthcare project. Sarah traveled to South America as a Mellon-Mays Fellowship recipient to conduct research with Indigenous Mapuche social activists in Chile and Argentina. She volunteered as an HIV/AIDS educator with the homeless in Philadelphia. She developed and implemented an ESL curriculum for a local Boston women’s shelter, and created a public health class and focus group for young, low-income undocumented mothers in Philadelphia. Sarah recently returned from a year-long post as a volunteer teacher in the Mekong Delta of Vietnam, and is currently working with a fair-trade coffee company to create a charitable foundation to benefit coffee-farming communities in Latin America. She looks forward to pursuing a degree in Public Health or Public Policy. Sarah is fluent in Spanish.

BRIAN MIKEL: Tufts University, B.A., International Relations. During high school Brian participated on community service trips to Sonora, Mexico, which fostered a desire to learn more about Latin American cultures, people, and idioms. Prior to enrolling at Tufts University, Brian spent the year in San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina, as a Rotary Youth Exchange Student. He also spent a summer teaching English at the Center for Exchange and Solidarity in El Salvador. Later, he continued his teaching in Boston at the Brazilian Immigrant Center. Brian then returned to El Salvador to research community-based microfinance institutions. He has traveled and studied in Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Paraguay, and Uruguay. A passionate soccer fan and player, Brian has played semi-professionally in Argentina and earned regional honors playing at the collegiate level. Brian currently lives in Los Angeles and works enforcing equal employment opportunity legislation. This will be Brian’s second summer with Putney. He led this Global Action El Salvador program in the summer of 2006. Brian is fluent in Spanish.

Welcome!

2009-06-03T10:26:00.002-04:00

In order to keep parents updated on the progress of their child's Putney program, from time to time over the course of the program, the trip leaders will post an update on this blog. We hope that the occasional updates will keep you informed about the activities, projects and successes of the summer, as well as comfort the usual worries in sending a son or daughter to a far-away place.

You should expect leaders to post blogs no more than once per week during the program. We feel strongly that the leaders' first priority is the students and the program. The reasons for infrequent updates will be the very busy schedules of our program leaders as well as inconsistent internet access at Putney's various destinations throughout the world. Please know that any important issues on the program will be discussed and resolved with leaders and parents by phone, not through the blog.

We suggest that you subscribe to the blog during your first visit so that you will receive e-mail notifications at the end of the day whenever a new update is posted. To subscribe, enter your email address under 'Subscribe via e-mail' on the right-hand column of the blog.

Have a fantastic summer!