Chiapas

This is day five in Chiapas. Today we met with Angel Alvarez and the staff of Taller Leñarto. Angel spoke about the effects of neoliberal policies on the lives of small coffee farmers and families; the staff of the Taller Leñatero cooperative showed us how they make paper from recycled cardboard and flowers.

I continue to absorb the culture here, but I worry that I am, unavoidably, just a tourist.

(sorry, no time to spell-check)
Day 1, Friday: I am exhausted after spending all day in airports and I am very frusterated that I can´t speak Spanish. I feel sometimes like an intruder, a worthless tourist just dropping by to take a peak at another culture.

Hi everyone. Hope you are enjoying reading about our experiences here in Chiapas. I`m going to write a little about our meeting with the group CAPISE yesterday morning.

Ben has described the "caricole" (snail) nature of the Zapatista communities in Chiapas and I am interested in examining the educational philosphy applied in Zapatista primary schools. At the moment, the Zapatistas are only able to provide primary education for their children given their limited resources, and more importantly, the requisite that teachers must embody the Zapatista way of life.

Ciao from Chiapas!

Today is our final day in San Cristobal de las Casas before we head out to the countryside. We´ve met with a variety of people and learned about many things from neoliberalism to the Zapatistas, from women´s movements to coffee farming cooperatives. We´ve had philosophical discussions and more concrete stories about what the people of Chiapas are doing in response to the grand scale economic and social realities they face.

Hey everyone!

We´re all having an amazing experience here in Chiapas, and I´m glad that I´m finally able to blog! I´m going to talk a little bit about our day yesterday as it was very busy, informative, and fun.

It seems that most of us are struggling with optomism vs. pessimism. Can we really change anything or is it just a "bleak horizon?" Bad policy has continually stradified and subjugated the low class and indigenous people of Chiapas. So economically depressed are these people that the battle seems like it can´t be won. So often have thier dignitys been tranmpled upon that the negoation and reconcilation of thier rights dose not seem possible.

I have just returned from lunch at a local cafe after a morning with a fairtrade coffee co-op and a walk through the market to gather the fruits and vegetables we will be eating for the next two days in the mountain community. I am trying to balance between the excitement of having absolutely no means of communication with our community hosts and the fear of appearing as tourists in a living museum.

My favorite meeting so far was with Jorge at the Social and Economic Development Center for Indigenous Mexicans, a group that has been working for over 20 years with Indigenous movements in Chiapas. We started by asking him questions about agriculture, the environment, poverty, education, and snails.