In additional to hearing from a number of activists, government officials, educators, community organizers, and many other local citizens working for social and environmental change based in Quito, an integral part of the semester are three overnight field visits (salidas de campo) to rural areas of the country. The main objective of the visits is to compare and contrast the primarily urban world that students experience in the capital city of Quito with rural lives and livelihoods. At each site students learn about different organizational, political, cultural, and economic initiatives.
Yasuni National Park
Located in the heart of the Northern Oriente within the Amazon river basin, Yasuni is Ecuador’s largest mainland park, covering nearly 10,000 square kilometers (only the Galapagos Islands constitute a larger park area). Its astounding biodiversity offers immense stretches of wetlands, marshes, rivers, and rain forest, with literally thousands of species that are unknown outside the Amazon. Indeed, because the park contains some of Ecuador’s last virgin wilderness, it is recognized as a UNESCO “international biosphere reserve.”
But not all is tranquil in Yasuni. After oil discoveries in the park, Ecuador granted extraction concessions to Conoco and then other multinational firms, which eventually resulted in soil contamination, noise pollution, and the construction of a 150-kilometer access road. Beyond the obvious environmental damage, extraction pressed against the lands of indigenous communities in the area, threatening their ways of life. The Correa government has since reasserted tougher restrictions on oil drilling, but oil remains a controversial topic. Indigenous leaders and international conservation NGOs remain opposed to the oil companies’ work. At the same time, outlawing drilling deprives the Ecuadorian government of much-needed revenues for the country’s development.
In visiting the park, students get a better understanding of the complicated issues of oil extraction and the attendant dangers to the environment. At the same time, students do enjoy the natural wonders that characterize the park.
Imbabura/Cotacachi and Otavalo
Imbabura lies about 50 miles north of Quito along the Pan-American Highway. It contains one of the largest, most prosperous, and most culturally engaged indigenous populations in the entire Andean region and is home to the world-famous Otavalo Indigenous Market. It also contains important natural attractions that figure prominently in spiritual traditions, such as the Cotacachi mountains and Lake Cuicocha.
Students are housed in rural homes with indigenous families. Because of potential language barriers (the families speak Kichwa/Quichua), many activities will involve the whole group so that program instructors can provide interpretation. The host families provide some meals, while other meals will be taken during daily outings to areas surrounding Imbabura.
Rural Field Excursion
A third field visit will take you to another rural location outside Quito. This particular visit rotates regularly, depending on availability and relevance to the current emphases of the program. Past visits have taken students to Mindo cloud forest, Yunguilla (another forest excursion), and various local Afro-Ecuadorian communities in the province of Esmeraldas.
