Today I interviewed for the USC Alternative Spring Break in Honduras. The Alternative Spring Break program offers students, staff and faculty the opportunity “to engage in service learning and volunteerism in communities outside the Los Angeles area.” Last year, I was able to attend the ASB trip to Isla Mujeres and Isla Contoy, Quintana Roo, Mexico, both islands off the coast of Cancun. This trip focused mainly on studying the impact of tourism on Isla Mujeres meanwhile partnering with local schools to do environmental clean-ups, provide English workshops and other beautification projects for the schools and islands.
The purpose of this post is not to highlight how amazing this trip was though, instead, it’s to continue the conversation on the underlying theme for both trips.
THE EFFECTS OF GLOBALIZATION IN LATIN AMERICA
As I mentioned, the purpose of the trip to Isla Mujeres was to gain knowledge on the impact of tourism on the islands and to spread awareness upon reflection. After spending only a week on both islands, it was interesting to realize that the dynamic of the island had been drastically changed due to tourism and the construction of massive beach houses for those Americans wishing to retire there. Isla Mujeres has been split into two parts essentially, one side for retirees and the other for natives. The island has an extreme focus on tourism, a huge economic factor for the island, and so I worry for the preservation of the genuine culture of the natives.
The focus for the Honduras trip is different. We will study social entrepreneurship and how that serves as a remedy to many of those who are disenfranchised. While there, we will visit “coffee farmers who have previously struggled with agricultural technology and unfair, unethical business practices.” At the same time though, we will gain knowledge on how the social enterprise has drastically bettered the lives of many of these coffee farmers.
I don’t drink coffee, although I do like the smell of it, but that had no weight on my decision to apply to this trip. This opportunity will provide me with the quintessential experience to broaden my knowledge and to help spread awareness on this issue. Service learning is a hands-on-approach of providing service to a community meanwhile gaining knowledge and wisdom upon reflection. What better way to study globalization than to go to the actual fields of coffee and listen to the perspective of “that” group which is rarely heard. As the integration of national economies forms into this global economy, the effect of this takes its toll on those less privileged, and so I would like to hear them out.
Yes, you have a majority of economist who argue that globalization is a wonderful thing, but it will be interesting to hear how globalization has impacted these people of Honduras, one of the least developed countries in Latin America.
Here's a video for you:
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