Sustainable Community Development pt 1

Belize-

With the leadership of Dr. Sara Alexander (Anthropology, Baylor University) we launched the academic semester with the first week of Sustainable Community Development. With a range of backgrounds from our student body, this course offered both something familiar and something new for everyone. It was a week of questioning in what seemed like circles, of scraping the surfaces of complex issues, of throwing a softball at our carefully selected target and then realizing that we’ve thrown a boomerang. With Sara’s guidance we found that mistaking boomerangs for softballs is a common obstacle in the world of sustainable development.
Surely the week wasn’t an exhaust of doom and gloom. The hope is that while social, environmental, and economic realms may seem at times more like entirely different galaxies, that there is a quest for the interpretive zone, the triple bottom line, the realm of sustainability. It is post WWII that the concept of “Development” first came to be. At this time the pursuit was largely profit-based. However, it was the Brundtland Commission, considering future generations, that began to steer development into a strategy of using what we need now but also striving to preserve for future generations.

In the Mayan village of San Antonio we saw development creativity in action, in the form of pig manure. From which methane (natural gas) is collected to cook the beans at a women’s co-op. The women’s group, by working together, has been able to provide training, alternative income generation, and the support of a close community for its members, and a wonderful lunch for us at their small restaurant!

The bollos for lunch in San Antonio were made almost entirely from the co-op

We also saw how Central Farm, a cooperation between the University of Belize and the Belize government, work together to find new agricultural methods for Belize. Here new techniques are tested (many for the very first time) and selected by farmers in hopes of improving their crops. Because this is a new project in Belize, many crops are still being finely tuned to the local climate and seasonal patterns. This was an important concept in thinking about development in an agricultural setting. What's good for farmers, and whats good for the market?

The class gathers at Central Farm to hear about organic compost composition

From agriculture experiments to weighing the pros and cons of cruise ship tourism, there was always more to add to the picture from our travels this week. A highlight for many was the real-life example of development experienced at the Community Baboon Sanctuary. Approximately 3,500 Black Howler Monkeys roam the region around the community of Bermuda Landing due largely to an innovative conservation and development strategy undertaken by several local villages. The project serves as a conservation measure, tourist destination, and has received support from World Wildlife Foundation and National Geographic among others.

Students and SLC's in front of the Community Baboon Sanctuary; where "Baboons" are the local name for Black Howler Monkeys


Stephanie (Messiah College) and Hannah (Westmont College) found a Howler Monkey up above!

As Friday seemed to jump onto our breakfast plates unannounced, it was hard to believe a whole week had gone by. As we finished up our projects and bid farewell to Dr. Alexander, we are excited for more lessons learned in the second section of this course. But first, we flow onward into stream ecology!

The class adorned with "development concept costume" attire