Guatemala Field School

3 credits · Undergraduate

This intensive two-week course will take place in Guatemala. The course will explore struggles for justice and development in Guatemala through visits with community organizations. Issues to be explored through community visits include accountability for human rights violations during Guatemala’s civil war, Indigenous resistance to global mining operations, agricultural production (focus on coffee), education, youth migration, political organizing – and connections to Canada. We will also experience Guatemala’s vibrant culture and political life and diverse ecosystems. At the end of the field school, we will meet with officials from the Canadian Embassy to report on our observations and meetings with community organizations. The course operates in cooperation with the Maritimes-Guatemala Breaking the Silence Network (LINK), a non-profit organization based in Nova Scotia. The communities and organizations we will visit are all long-term partners of Breaking the Silence, some for more than 20 years. Students, course instructor and Breaking the Silence staff will travel together in a large passenger van throughout Guatemala. We will stay in basic accommodations and eat Guatemalan food. A typical day will involve some travel by van, meetings with community organizations, a formal reflection period at the end of the day, shared meals – and downtime for relaxation and fun. FORMATS: Other (explain in comments)