Have you ever wondered what a coffee plant looks like? Or have you ever seen a bird swallow a whole avocado? You may wonder what birds and coffee have in common.
They can both be found in the highland Nicaraguan province of Matagalpa, which two Guilford groups will be visiting during spring break.
On March 5, the Bonner Scholars Program is taking a score of students and staff on a weeklong educational work trip to the Republic of Nicaragua, homeland of Guilford senior and main project organizer Reynaldo Diaz.
“I think the main expectation is for us to have an international perspective in terms of what we do,” said James Shields, Director of Community Learning. “A lot of time we do things that affect other places, like Mexico and Nicaragua, not really having the knowledge to make a difference.”
Diaz, who arranged the trip with help of senior Jada Drew and several Community Learning staff members, said, “There are different points of view which people will never get exposed to unless they travel. And that is what my purpose is for the trip.”
The trip coincides with the going into effect of the controversial Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) in Nicaragua on March 1, which states that Central American countries will remove barriers to trade and investment in the region by U.S. companies.
“Especially with the CAFTA being implemented within a few days, it makes the trip much more interesting,” said economics major Rohit Gandhi. “I would like to see how it affects people on a day-to-day personal basis.”
Sophomore Natan Harel said, “I’ve heard a lot of negative things about free trade agreements and I really want to see with my own eyes if the agreements are really as detrimental as I’ve heard.”
The diverse group of scholars will have a chance to discuss issues with labor unions, women’s groups and environmental movements, seeking a wide representation of perspectives.
“We will let people formulate their own opinions based on what they’ve lived,” Diaz said.
After three days around the capital Managua, the team will travel to the coffee region of Matagalpa. There the scholars will work at coffee farms – organic coffee being one of Nicaragua’s major exports – and even participate in making organic fertilizers.
The trip is funded through the Bonner Scholarship Program, Community Senate, and several campaigns such as carnation and donuts sales for Valentine’s Day, a Latin American dance, and a flea market. The trip also includes a visit to a textile factory, managed by women formerly employed in sweat shops, and a water filtration factory, clean water being one of the most precious commodities in the country.
“After Guilford, I am planning to go to Mozambique and start a water filter factory, and the ceramic filter I am going to be using was developed in Guatemala and Nicaragua,” said senior Kaira Wagoner.
Apart from gleaning various skills from local entrepreneurs and activists, the students will be required to keep a daily journal and later present their findings before members of the College community, but most of all, the trip will present, in the words of Diaz, “options about what we can do and how we can be active.”
“Most students after Guilford are concerned about getting jobs, without even learning a vocation,” Shields said. “What we really want them to think about is what their passions are. . How far do they want to get into social justice?”
Diaz said, “I want people to realize it is a huge world. I wish some of the people I’ve been working with here in the last years to see some of the things I’ve seen … and maybe certain views will change.”
Meanwhile, Professor of Biology Lynn Moseley will be taking three Guilford students on an ecotourism bird-watching trip to the coffee plantation Finca Esperanza Verde in the Matagalpa highlands. The expedition will try to establish a permanent bird banding station and increase the scientific knowledge of both resident neotropical birds and wintering migrants.
Sophomore bird-lover Beth Bass described a picturesque rainforest. “You wake up in the morning with howler monkeys screaming their brains out at seven in the morning, leaf-cutter ants marching in lines . iguanas running around . this ‘Jesus Christ Lizard’ that runs on its back legs across the water.”
Delving deep into tropical forests at day to behold an unfolding world of beautiful and rare birds and an uttermost richness of wildlife, listening to the rhythms of traditional folk music at night and the magic of bonfires under a starlit sky, dormant volcanoes, great food, and multihued birds over and over again, in this ornithologist’s heaven, can barely convey what eyes will see.
“We might have horrible weather,” Diaz said, dwelling on the severe climate patterns of his home country’s dry season. “About 90 degrees average, and not a single rain cloud.