Belize Journal - Fall 2010

Debrief week: We all knew it was coming, but a shock none the less

2010-12-13T15:12:00.000-08:00

Just when our time in Belize seemed it would never end, when were all settled in and when the locals around town would consider us a familiar friendly face, debrief week snuck up on us. We all knew it was coming. While mixtures of nervousness and excitement swirled in our conversations, we began to prepare for our homecomings. But there was still so much to do! Savoring our last moments in Belize, students visited their internships, stopped by their home stays for dinner, took early morning canoe trips, and even hopped on some horses for a final evening ride. Not to mention pack!

Truly a team effort in planting, a final watering nestles the Hibiscus into the Nabitunich soil.

The CCSP staff also facilitated debrief sessions to get everyone in a mindset of re-entry. Though difficult while still being in Belize at the time, debrief discussions reach their pinnacle when re-entry is real, when students exit the airplane. Discussions, journaling, as well as real-life simulation acting skills were utilized to help get a jump-start into the big question we knew we’d all face: “So, how was Belize”? Visiting the Rio Ohn pools in Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve, as well as Tubing down the Macal River at Black Rock River Resort were great ways to still encounter new breathtaking places in Belize up until the very end. These trips also provided some final fun times for the community. Singing in the van, chatting, and just plain catching up on sleep were all crucial parts of our van sub-culture.

Strappin' up those helmets for some tubing!

Last but definitely not least, a final celebration packed with very talented performances, skits, video clips, award ceremonies, slide shows, and cake topped off our week. It was the kind of night that you just didn’t want to end, the gut-wrenching laughs just kept dishing out, dances abounded, and the songs just kept pouring into our ears in celebration. Wishing the students Shalom and blessings on their work to come after CCSP, the CCSP alumni spread their newly grown Belizean wings off to their homes and schools. What new adventures, challenges, and joys await them we can only eagerly wait to see. And as for the staff’s last aspiring plea, we hope they, truly succeed in the journey beyond the Caribbean Sea… triumphantly.

"Ed" "Ned" and "Fred" instruct us on how to prepare fine "Tapir Chips" cuisine- A recipe of their very own!

Marissa's performance debut, what an honor!

A Journey in a poem: A good bye poem from Jenney.

A work of Integration and Re-imagining

2010-12-13T12:44:00.000-08:00

The last course of the semester at CCSP is Sustainable Community Development – Integration Week. This course is taught by our program director here in Belize, Derek Rosenberger. This week was packed with thought provoking articles, challenging films, lively discussions, thoughtful presentations and delicious hot drinks. Students explored the deeper questions that this semester has been developing in them. What is at the heart of the great failures to care for the earth and its people? How are we called specifically to address these issues? Are we doing enough? What can we do? What does Christ call us to do? What will I do? Thoughts and ideas flew across the table and personal commitments were formulated and discussed.

Throughout the semester we talked about the need to re-imagine the world around us and renew what has been destroyed. To finish off the week we did a small bit of creative renewing of our own! Through our Trash Art Show the pieces of litter found along the roads that pass through our local village were transformed into some wonderful pieces of art. Take a look!

Marine Ecology: One Fish, Two Fish, Stoplight Parrotfish

2010-12-12T12:00:00.000-08:00

Our Tropical Ecology course has wrapped up with the highly anticipated third segment: Marine Ecology! Dr. Laurie Furlong joined us from Northwestern College in Orange City, Iowa to lead us as we “dove in” head first to learn about the beautiful world waiting beneath the surface of the ocean. Throughout the week, we used Osha Gray Davidson's metaphor of the "Enchanted Braid" as we explored the intricate, interwoven relationships present in the marine ecosystem.

Of course, what better place is there to study Marine Ecology than a tropical island? We packed up and headed out on Sunday for four days at Glover’s Atoll, a tiny piece of paradise off the coast of Belize. This beautiful island is located in a marine reserve, making it a perfect location to experience the world’s second largest barrier reef system first hand. In class, we unraveled the special relationship between sea grass, mangrove, and coral reef communities in lecture … and then hopped in the ocean only a few steps away to see those relationships first hand! We saw the tiny fish in the “nursery” sea grass communities, were dazzled by the colorful array of adult fish and impressive coral formations in the reef communities, and got up close and personal with jellyfish and surprisingly friendly juvenile fish in the sediment-securing roots of the mangrove communities. Without any one of these three components, the marine ecosystem would fall apart – yet as a tightly interwoven “braid,” all three come together to support the wide variety of living creatures we interacted with on a daily basis through snorkeling, reef rubble creature-seeking, and algae exploration.

One of the key components of this course was a research project. Over the course of our time at Glover’s, Marissa, Becky, Stacey, Scott, Jenna, and Rebekah observed the feeding habits of fish and urchins on clean sea grass blades vs. “biofouled” (algae covered) sea grass blades, while Jenney, Michelle, Kalli, and Daniel arranged conch shells in and out of a sea grass bed to see who would move in! Both groups had great success, with plenty of biofouled sea grass grazing and a whole host of new occupants in the conch shells (including crabs, fish, and an octopus!). It was amazing to see everything we were able to discover about the workings of the world around us with a few days of hands-on application in the field.

All too soon it was time to leave our little island paradise and head back to campus, bringing plenty of memories and great new experiences with us. Though we were sad to leave, it's always great to get back to our home at the Nab!

Birthday bashes and Holiday feasts

2010-12-03T12:32:00.000-08:00

Throughout the semester, there have been many celebrations happening here in Belize. We have had five birthday parties this semester, and celebrated each birthday in a very unique way. For Kalli’s birthday, a fun game of ninja tag was the highlight of the night. For Jenna, we had a sweet beach party including sand sculptures and beach volleyball. For Jon’s birthday, we played a fun game of telephone pictionary, the theme of the game was the birthday man himself. For the birthday of the leader of the pack, Derek, we had a coconut cake with chocolate frosting out on Glover’s Atoll, and discovered new, endemic and rare insect species and presented these unique specimens to Derek! And for our final CCSP birthday, we created a CCSP Belize yearbook for Jenney, and of course, who better to be the chief editor of the yearbook, themed “This is Belize,” then the birthday girl herself!

For Halloween this semester, the students put on their crazy costumes, trick and treated at Jon and Kelly’s house, and carved, of course…watermelons!

And, as CCSP tradition goes here in Belize, we threw a Thanksgiving party including the feasts of all feasts! Ms. Shelley, Ms. Flora, Ashley and Kelly worked hard in the kitchen and produced two delicious turkeys seasoned with ricado, mash potatoes from paradise, sweet potatoes, rice, pasta salad, stuffing and yes, pies…pumpkin pie, cherry pie, and pecan pie, compliments of Rekekah and Michelle! Invited to the feast were the Juans, all the CCSP staff, and Laurie Furlong, our Marine Ecology professor. To finish off the night, Pablo Collado performed his traditional Mayan music and wooed us all with his flutes and tunes.

All semester, we have been reflecting and learning about Shalom, and what Shalom looks like here on earth. Often times, we forget that part of God’s shalom is rejoicing and delight. So, as we celebrated birthdays and holidays this semester, we delighted in each other and in creation, and enjoyed being a part of God’s kingdom.

Work Weekend

2010-12-03T12:13:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, several students and staff took the chance to get their hands dirty, their clothes stained, and their muscles worked by volunteering at the Belize Zoo and the Belize Botanical Gardens!

The Belize Zoo was hit hard by Hurricane Richard and has been trying to recover since. Marissa, Michelle, Kalli, Ashley and Nick headed to the zoo on Saturday and helped out by painting CK the jaguar’s cage and clearing out branches and debris from the trails. They even got to see some crazy animal behavior from the tapirs, spider monkeys, jaguars and crocodiles!

On Sunday, Marissa, Brindley and Scott headed to the Belize Botanical Gardens and volunteered with Joe Canto, one of the gardeners at BBG. They propagated orchids and lilies, did some transplanting and of course, watered. It was a great chance to get up to the gardens, help out and be surrounded by the beautiful Belizean flora!

Meet the Vallejos Family...

2010-11-29T13:04:00.000-08:00

Alfonso is a Belizean who has played a big part in our program for many years now. He was born and raised in a small village, which is in the northernmost district of Belize, bordering Mexico. For Sustainable Community Development II, we make a trip up north to spend a few days in and around the village being led and informed by Alfonso, throughout our time there. He brings a lot of great insight and real life experience to our conversations and observations on subjects such as community development, economic and agricultural issues.

As we study development it is easy to feel burdened by the path our world has taken and to sometimes feel as though we have no answer to fix all these problems we see. But Alfonso and his family bring us great hope. They show us that a little idea can make a big difference, if you put that idea into action.

Alfonso’s brother, Ishmael, helped start Jacobs Farm a few years ago. It is a rehab center situated right outside the village on a few acres of land. This is a wonderful project where men who are recovering from drugs and alcohol can retreat and get away for a few months. They work on the farm, raise chickens, tilapia, vegetables, pigs, and receive counseling and encouragement throughout their time there.

Alfonso’s sister, Lydia, has carried on the women’s group that her mother started decades ago. She helps to run the store with four other women involved. They just recently established the Dorcas house, which they plan on using as a space to meet and mentor to women in the community, especially single mothers who need help with food and shelter.

Alfonso himself has been a real leader in the community. He has established his own organic farm and has been working to educate others on his agroecological farming technique and how to be a good steward of God’s green earth.

We were able to talk about a lot this week and see in this village many of the things that we discussed in the classroom, our eyes were opened and we are eager to learn more.

Our well-traveled, experienced professor Rusty Pritchard, made this week come together beautifully, connecting themes with what we were seeing in the field. To get a glimpse of more of the themes we covered in class, check out his blog at http://flourishonline.org/2010/11/the-real-earth-day/ .

This is at Jacobs Farm, rehab center where we got to spend time with Alfonso's brother, Ishmael and get a tour and history of the farm.
Here Alfonso is showing us his organic farm and teaching us certain techniques used by him.

Poetry to Ponder

2010-11-19T13:23:00.000-08:00

"Something we read forms us no less than something we live through"

-Tobias Wolff

Environmental Literature, known to the students as Imagining the Earth, was a week of diving into poetry, scripture, and fiction pieces while learning to critique them as environmental texts. We were graced by Drew Ward’s presence once again for this week of learning.

Nick and Brindley (the two Student Life Coordinators) wrote a poem, devoted to Drew Ward and tried to include almost every poem that was read and talked about throughout the week. Here it is (read it out loud, with passion!)…

Mr. Ward they call him,

Well I’m lucky enough to call him Drew.

A man I once met who looked buff enough to toss me over a volleyball net with as much umph as the ball,

Was enjoying a foot soak… with cucumbers over his eyes.

These cucumbers are no guise, yes indeed… we were in for a surprise.

Coming fresh from his audition for the next broadway production of the Hulk, he dives into the tiny foot soak bucket with as much enthusiasm as he dives into a book.

Embracing the new encounters yet to come, be it bedazzling or be it cumbersome, he… was diving in face first.

The mending wall; made me think twice next time I say hello to my neighbor Paul,

No cows, no elves, no apple orchards here, so there surely must be no excuse…

To ask how he’s doing.

Snyder was a writer, challenged me to go lighter, learning flowers along the way.

A community, a class, we’re making it there, to the valley, in peace… struggles and all.

Maybe there will be solace, but for now this, we shall not miss, so we share it For the Children.

We walked home from Oak-Head with her, feeling oh so sure

That snow would come so soon, we felt the chill and well it was a thrill until

The Californians brought us back to here. Imagining is always easier when someone else imagined it first. So challenged we were by her and Drew to re-imagine all we knew.

And down to the Root Cellar which really wasn’t stellar just dank and dark and drooped. At least during this discussion there was no constant drumming coming from… the birds outside our window. As we leaned in and huddled it was a struggle to hear a word at all, but when we came together to sing a song of praise our voices overcame…or we just moved to the lounge.

And we cannot forget what most we are thankful for, the trip along the bumpy road to falling waters upon our heads and the green lush of pines surround our walk up and down. Refreshed, renewed, rejuvenating and just plain freezing

The Friday morning rain left us stuck outside under a Black Oak with Mary Oliver. A Belizean day like any other. Not one can imagine a single sound through the Brown Jays carp… and carp… and carp…. And eat the Tomatoes in the Garden Get away shoo!!

Maybe I can avoid writing my final paper that lurks to the left, shifting its weight from one side to another… its too ambitious, and I’m enjoying the Belizean rain.

“There is Wendell Berry and then there are other poets” to quote the poet himself, Drew Ward. Who set aside special time just to meditate on and understand “The Dream” and to figure out “To What Listens”, and to learn to truly appreciate “The Silence”, while reading in “The Meadow” or perhaps under “The Sycamore” and of course talking all about “Enriching the Earth”.

So I was never tossed over the volleyball net, yet, anyway…

And maybe he helped dumped out those small bags of stars onto our shoulders as he sings and sweats and sings and sweats on his strolls, laughs in bowls, around Nabitunich.

This, buff man with cucumbers on his eyes, enjoying a foot soak, diving in face first just like a pile of books.

On your departure, we bid thee… Shalom good sir.

We were able to get off campus for the day and enjoy class at Five Sisters Lodge , with an amazing (somewhat distracting) view. Then we made our way to Big Rock Falls for lunch and an afternoon swim.

Michelle, just hanging out under a waterfall.

Some of the students taking a study break at Big Rock Falls in Mountain Pine Ridge.

Project Mist Net

2010-11-09T06:42:00.000-08:00

This semester the CCSP Belize staff has been excited to offer mist netting as a new experience for students! Mist netting is a great tool for gathering bird data through banding (migration, nesting success), as well as education. In case any readers are new to the field, a mist net is a very thin net, usually around 4x25m and is strategically set and waited on for the temporary capture of birds. Once captured, birds may be presented to school groups for educational purposes. For banding, notes and measurements are taken to gather migration patterns, DNA samples, population estimates, or other detailed observations (Such as brood patches, featherless patches beneath the belly indicating a parent currently sitting on eggs).

Marissa with a Common Yellowthroat molting into it's winter plumage

Measuring the wing cord of this Green-backed Sparrow would be essential for banding

Our mist net project here at Nabitunich is a basic introduction to the field of mist netting for the students to potentially pursue similar activities and training in the future, be it academic or for hobby. It’s also a rare and exceptional way to see birds such as warblers (which are usually hard to spot on a typical nature walk) up close in person, beholding all their amazing details. As exciting as this can be, it is indeed not a game. The safety of the birds is the top priority in any mist net project, with training required from licensed master bird banders.

Jon with a Hooded Warbler

Kentucky Warbler

Nick and Kelly with Hooded (L) and Kentucky (R) Warblers

After a bit of searching around the campus and preparations on the net, we discovered an ideal place for mist netting in a forest fragment near the Mopan River. The river being nearby has allowed a few water-seeking birds to find their way to the net, along with many birds common to the upland broadleaf tropical forest of Belize. A few species, such as the Common Yellowthroat, Ovenbird and the Northern Waterthrush were great to see. Because these birds migrate north to temperate zones for the summer, they’re presence here in Belize indicates the winter migration occurring right before our eyes! They seemed to arrive overnight. Scott with a Magnolia Warbler

Brindley with a Magnolia Warbler

With a bit of patience we’re working on proper removal from the net, proper bird hand hold techniques, bird release techniques, as well as proper set up and take down of the net. Who knows, perhaps some day in the future students and staff will have further opportunities in studying and stewarding God’s amazing avifauna. Black-and-white Warbler

Rebekah with a Kentucky Warbler

Our list of catches thus far:
Common Yellowthroat
Black-and-white Warbler
Kentucky Warbler (5)
Magnolia Warbler (2)
Green-backed Sparrow
Clay-colored Robin
Northern Waterthrush (2)
Ovenbird (2)
Red-throated Ant-tanager (5)
Hooded Warbler (3)
White-breasted Wood-wren

For the Beauty of the Earth: A Week with Dr. Steven Bouma-Prediger

2010-11-08T12:58:00.000-08:00

From a weekend home stay with the Barton Creek old order Mennonites, to in-depth class sessions, God and Nature part II was indeed a journey. We discussed how the places and ecosystems we live in have shaped who we are, and even dug into some heavy duty eschatology. By the end of the course, we soon realized that all topics and ideas we covered are intricately connected.

Our Barton Creek home stay was definitely an eye-opening experience for us, just in that there are communities so different from our own. With no electricity, running water, or vehicles, the Barton Creek community strive to live simply and humbly to better serve the Lord. The intention however is not solely to do without modern technology, but is recognition that these technologies can indeed take away from the valuable time spent with our family, community, and the Lord. This truth of technology’s bite-back effect was something we could all relate to. We also had a unique opportunity for an in-depth question and answer time with the community Pastors. Sifting through different views on family, art, marriage, food, stewardship and scripture wasn’t always easy, but proved to be a fruitful time for everyone involved. Students and staff stayed with several families in the community, enjoying authentic home cooked Mennonite meals made right there on their land. After learning some of the Mennonite basics of milking cows, plowing fields, churning butter, and doing laundry, we were ready to head back to Nabitunich for class. What we now had was an amazing model of how communities can work together to achieve simplicity and stewardship.

To segue these experiences into the big picture reality of an industrialized and globalized world, students brought many issues to the table, Landfills, oil, erosion, illegal logging, cruise ships with high resource and energy demands, human/ predator conflicts, loss of coral reefs and mangrove forests, tar sands, invasive species, eutrophication, poverty and poaching were just a few of the complex issues on our minds this week. To top it off, thinking about Bill McKibbin’s “end of nature” theory (that once the atmosphere’s composition is changed, there is no longer any true “nature” unaffected by humans) brought us into what seemed like a hopeless void.

However, hope was not all lost. As we came to the middle of the week, a solid session of Bible passages reminded us of who we are as God’s children and what we’re here to do in God’s creation. Indeed, we are the Adamah, the humans made from the humus and from the very breath of God. We are here to abad and shamar the creation, which is Hebrew for to serve and protect, revealed to us in Genesis 2:15. In the face of so many troubles and so much destruction, what is our faith even for? Are we to stand aside and watch, expecting our souls to one day be free from this dread place? Or, does our faith empower a sense of solidarity with the creation around us and empower us to work towards establishing God’s Kingdom here and now?

To help answer these questions, Steve guided us through the Epistles and Revelation to analyze how our end-times theology influences our theology, influencing our faith, and in turn influencing how we live with each other and with creation in every moment. As we started to see these texts beyond our cultural lenses, a new vision of the New Jerusalem emerged. The end of the week then, concerned how we’re going to prepare for this kingdom, sparking faith into action in our homes and universities.

Internships...Belizean style!

2010-11-08T09:41:00.000-08:00

Something unique about CCSP Belize is the incredible opportunity to do internships! For the past two weeks, the students have been scattered all around the small country of Belize doing internships and homestays! They all had an incredible experience, learned a lot and were definitely immersed in the different cultures of Belize. As they came back to campus this weekend, the campus was filled once again with laughter and joy as we shared stories of our adventures and experiences over the past two weeks!

Special thanks to the families of Ms. Lettie Coc, Ms. Marisol Sanchez, Mr. Lloyd Martinez, Ms. Joseph, Ms. Shawn Young, Ms. Timotea Mesh, Ms. Amarita Cocom, Mr. Frank Torres, Ms. Gloria Cann, Ms. Alva Pop, and Ms. Shelley Lopez for taking excellent care of the students during their homestays!!

Becky Cederwall, San Antonio Women’s Group

I spent the last week volunteering at the San Antonio Women’s Group. San Antonio is a Mayan village up in the hills just before Mountain Pine Ridge in western Belize. I spent the week observing and learning the ins and outs of the Women’s Group and interacting with some of the members. The group was started about 10 years ago and became a place where the women could meet and work together on crafts and exchange recipes and learn from each other. The group has started working with clay and making ceramic objects to sell, and they are now learning new techniques and how to make their products better. This week I learned the proper way to polish with a polishing stone and did lots and lots of polishing, I also got a chance to practice on the wheel and get some expert advice on keeping the clay centered. I also got to talk with a few of the women in the group and learn a lot about their lives and their determination and drive to push themselves. It was really encouraging to hear and see how dedicated they are to the group and how, despite not having any formal education, they are able still work hard and feel successful and feel empowered. Overall it was a great week, and a great experience!

Marissa Binkoski- Maya Center

Based in a small Mopan Maya village, called Maya Center in southern Belize, my internship consisted of me taking on the full-time job of a learner. I sought to understand the development of a complex culture within the context of one village in a mere two weeks. I was kept busy observing in the schools, attending prayer services, cooking food, visiting homes, learning herbal remedies, making clay as well as coffee and cocoa! I heard tales of boys turning into monkeys and stories of people who have been cursed with Obeah (black magic). Their culture is changing as they are feeling the pressures of the modern world, and much tradition is being lost in the process. I heard the farmers lament while their young sit back and say that they “love other people's culture, not theirs”. However, some people in the village are fighting for the preservation of herbal remedies, and traditional art forms in which their cultural identity is deeply imbedded. These things are reminders to them of their intimate connection with the natural world, and they believe that relearning about that which surrounds them will help the village relearn to respect the earth, which they are so dependent on for their survival.

Daniel’s Blog- Mayor’s Office, Benque Viejo del Carmen

The goal of my internship was to learn more about grants. To do this, I spent my two weeks at the Mayor’s office in the border city of Benque Viejo del Carmen. The first few days were spent skimming through grant opportunities on the Foundation Center’s Online Directory of granting organizations, a compendium of over 10,000 United States organizations that donate money to causes they deem worthy. I then compiled a list of organizations that, based on their geographic preferences (the country to which they tended to donate funding) and funding priorities (the types of causes they were interested in funding), seemed likely to grant money to some of the city’s prospective projects. I also modified an old grant application by an organization called Caracol to fit the preferences and requirements of a grant from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), emphasizing the themes important to the IDB grant (specifically, cultural enrichment and the arts).  

Through this internship, I learned several major facts about grants. First and foremost, it is not easy to find money through simple Googling. The Foundation Center’s website was the only meaningful way to hunt for money. I also learned that even this was trying outside of the US (only 68 of those 10,000 organizations focuses their funds internationally). It is even harder to find money as a local government--most organizations are interested only in funding non-profits and NGOs. Ultimately, the most important lesson I learned was to remain patient while searching through the database.

During my internship, I also stayed with a family in Benque, and learned a lot about Belizean culture! I enjoyed my homestay, especially all the good food!

Michelle Baker- The Green Iguana Project and Chaa Creek Butterfly Farm

My internship was at two different organizations: The Green Iguana Project located at the San Ignacio Hotel and the Blue Morpho Butterfly Farm at Chaa Creek. I learned a lot about each species and the people I worked with. The first week I worked with Eddie who was the manager of the Green Iguana Project. Each day we would hunt for iguana food – consisting mostly of various types of vines (wild papaya, sweet potato, and chaya). It was encouraging to see Eddie’s passion for the conservation of green iguanas and his desire to see the project expand. At the butterfly farm the second week I worked with two ladies - Dora and Yuri Harris. I learned a lot about the local Belizean news while talking with them and picking caterpillars off leaves at the same time. It was incredible to see each stage of the Blue Morpho Butterfly cycle all at once even though it takes four months to complete. It was truly a testimony to how amazing and artistic our creator is. I also spent a lot of time getting to know my host family and learned some Spanish through that experience. The family I stayed with has ten beautiful children and I really enjoyed playing games, watching “novellas” (Spanish Soap Operas), and singing songs (both Spanish and English) with them. I learned so much through this internship experience both in expected and unexpected ways. I was challenged with immersion into a new environment and have gained a deeper perspective of other cultures and how they view the world they live in.

Kalli Shades- La Loma Luz Hospital

Life at La Loma Luz Hospital this past two weeks has been fantastically eye opening. La Loma Luz is a Seventh Day Adventist, private hospital in Santa Elena, Belize. “Private” means that the patient will need to pay out-of-pocket for any service provided (unlike a public hospital, in which all health care is funded by the government). This was one reason why there weren't very many patients at LLL during the first week - not very many Belizeans can afford a private hospital visit, regardless that the quality of care is reportedly better. Beginning 15 minutes in, on the very first day, Jenna and I were assigned to record patients’ vital signs (blood pressure, temperature, pulse, weight) and lead them to the doctor’s offices. Along with this, we learned how to perform EKG’s and X-Rays. One of the most valuable experiences was talking with the employees about the hospital and their lives in Belize; almost all were extremely friendly and willing to share their stories, I’ll miss the staff a lot!

The second week, a team from Denver, Colorado came down on a mission trip, providing free surgeries and driving out to villages everyday to set up medical clinics. They graciously invited us along to villages and allowed us to observe their surgeries. On Monday, I was able to see a C-Section performed by LLL – it was amazing to see doctors, nurses, and anesthesiologist working so efficiently! They were speaking Spanish during the procedure, which made it even more exciting to watch. I was also able to see four gallbladder removals and two hernia fixes – I was even allowed to “scrub in” during one. I never imagined an experience like this; it definitely re-instilled my desire to work in medicine!

Jenna Neuenschwander: La Loma Luz Adventist Hospital

I have been working at La Loma Luz Adventist Hospital, a private, non-profit organization in Santa Elena. During the first week, I spent a lot of time in the vitals room measuring patients’ blood pressure, temperature, pulse and weight. I also assisted with an ankle cast, learned how to take an EKG, and accidentally took a patient off-roading in a wheelchair.

Since this hospital is private and patients must pay out of their own pocket, La Loma Luz does not receive the same number of patients as a public hospital, which allowed me to wander around the hospital, get to know the staff, ask them about Belizean health care, and eat plenty of the coconut cinnamon rolls in the cafeteria that are supposedly the best in the country.

During the second week, a Christian group from Colorado came to the hospital to do free surgeries. I got to observe hernia and gallbladder surgeries and it was awesome. I also tagged along to the villages clinics and talked at some schools about staying healthy. That was interesting, and I was able to see some of the effects of short-term medical missions in poverty-stricken areas. The internship was an incredible experience and I learned so much over the past two weeks!

Jenney Heffel- Western Nazarene High School

I worked at Western Nazarene High School as an English teacher/teacher’s aid. As a Nazarene, I was excited to see my denomination in a different part of the world, at work in the educational system of Belize. Everyday I worked with Ms. Najera and her English classes, grading essays, tests, supervising class sessions, lecturing on persuasive and narrative writing, paragraphing, etc. I was always in the classroom working with students or I was grading papers, depending on the period. During my time there, I learned how to articulate the craft of writing in lecture, and work with students in way that I hope will improve their writing skills in the future. Though the internship was very stressful, wearing on my patience and nerves daily, it reminded me of how much I enjoy teaching and how passionate I am about English and learning. I loved being in the classroom, learning about students and their behaviors and preferences; learning how to make them laugh, and exploring with how to teach them effectively – in a way they can enjoy and appreciate the learning process. I really want to teach after I graduate, and after this experience, I am again considering teaching English overseas.

Scott Townley- Mr. Don Heriberto Cocom

What would it be like to spend two weeks with a Mayan herbalist while living with a Belizean family? Well, it’s not so bad. Learning plant names, cutting trees with the moon cycles, harvesting honey, roasting scorpions, taking post-lunch siestas in your hammock, seeing patients for spiritual and physical illnesses, well, they’re all in the line of duty for Don Heriberto Cocom.  

Internship was a lovely time for me. It was energizing to learn new ways of thinking about how I relate to the earth and to God’s creation. When Don Cocom thanks God for the plants and asks His permission and blessing over its use, it’s not because God requires it, or that the plants lose their healing abilities if you don’t ask the creator for them. But maybe the healing God does have real power; maybe He does listen to His children asking good things from him: maybe not asking His blessing on a plant you want to use in His name really is foolishness. If you don’t ask, do you really have the faith to heal? Well, all of these are things that Don Cocom caused me to think about as I relate to the Creator and the creation.

I truly admire the way Maya culture honors what God has put around him. I hope this aspect of their way of thinking will transfer into my life as I reflect upon my internship experience.

Stacey Brandsma- Community Baboon Sanctuary

For my internship I worked at the Community Baboon Sanctuary up in the Belize River Valley. This sanctuary is the model of development in Belize and it works within seven villages to protect the habitat for the Black Howler Monkeys, which are known as Baboons in the Creole language. Landowners sign a voluntary pledge to maintain their land, mostly to say that they will not cut down the trees that the howlers use for food. I worked mostly doing marketing for the sanctuary, creating an identification card with pictures of specific plants, their common names, scientific names, and their medicinal use. I also developed a trail map of the seemingly unconquerable trail system, which led to me getting lost numerous times (and being laughed at by the monkeys). In addition, I attended meetings pertaining to future prospects of the sanctuary and met some pretty incredible people. During my internship I learned many new things about development and how difficult it truly is. The overall experience was incredible and I can now at least pretend to sound like a howler, whether its accurate I don’t really want to say.

Can you see the howlers??? I can’t either, don’t worry. This day was too cold, they were hiding in a cohune palm.

Rebekah Constantin- Chaa Creek Butterfly Farm and the Green Iguana Project

The first week of internships I worked at the Chaa Creek Butterfly Farm, where they raise Blue Morpho butterflies. I helped feed the butterflies, clean out caterpillar tubs, feed the caterpillars, and collect and count eggs. I worked with and got to know two sisters named Yuri and Dora. I also learned a lot about the life cycle of the Blue Morpho. During the second week, I worked at the Green Iguana Conservation Project in San Ignacio. I cleaned the iguana enclosure, collected food, or “greens,” for the iguanas, constructed information boards for an exhibit, and listened to tours. For the two weeks of internships, I lived with an extraordinary lady named Marisol and her family in the little village of Succotz. She makes jewelry and soap to sell, crochets beautiful things, and used to sell pizzas before she had Stephanie, who is now five months old. She also cooks incredible food! To get to work, I took the 6 AM bus the first week and the 7:30 bus the second week. My favorite part of internships was getting to meet so many amazing people. The whole experience was wonderful, and I learned a lot.

Stream Haydays and Extravaganzas!

2010-10-18T20:51:00.001-07:00

After a fun and relaxing week of reading, it was time to put on our bathing suits and water shoes and venture into the unknown realm of Stream Ecology! To help teach this course, Dr. Mike Guebert joined the CCSP community from Taylor University and brought with him a wealth of knowledge of geology, hydrology and stream monitoring.

The week included two big field days, the “Mountain Pine Ridge Hayday” and the “Hummingbird Highway Extravaganza”, all with the purpose of comparing and contrasting streams in two very different geological settings - granite and limestone bedrock. At each stream site, the students assessed the stream, collected macroinvertebrates, and tested water quality in preparation for their presentations.

During the week, new and exciting things were discovered, like the kick seine twist, the monstrous Megaloptera, tufa dams, and a lot of the students’ favorite little macroinverebrate, the caddisfly with its home made of sand grains, twigs, or leaves stuck or twisted together!! Many tropical caddisfly larvae have not yet been associated with their adult forms and thus still taxonomic mysteries which makes investigating them this week all the more exciting!

On Thursday, we also were able to visit Five Blues National park where we hiked back to the duende caves. As the students made their way through the different passages and tunnels, they found cave crickets, crystal formations, and what Mike taught us about the night before, cave bacon!

The week ended with the students presenting on the differences they found between the streams they found in the Mountain Pine Ridge area versus the streams they monitored on the Hummingbird Highway. Overall, the week was full of fun and excitement and oh, of course, learning!

The grand finale of the week was a trip to TIKAL. We loaded up the van on Saturday morning and headed over the border into Guatemala to visit the ancient Mayan ruin of Tikal. Not only did we see ruins, but we saw monkeys, agoutis, toucans, aracaris and Jenna finally saw her Blue-crowned Mot Mot! The day ended with a nice relaxing dinner in the island city of Flores, Guatemala overlooking the lake and scheming up plans for FALL BREAK!

The students are all back, safe and sound from their fall breaks full of stories! Now, it's time to get back to studying and learning!

Environmental Literature Pt. 1/ Reading Week

2010-10-02T16:15:00.001-07:00

Today marks the final day of reading week, and for those taking Environmental Literature, it was part one. It was like one long weekend… but with several books and articles to cover to prepare for the upcoming classes. To pry student’s faces away from books for just a quick breather break, the student life coordinators went into teaching mode. These “vive” events strive to provide life long hobbies that support sustainable lifestyles through craftiness and resourcefulness. After stocking up on yarn, we started the week off crocheting and knitting. Newcomers to the art picked it up surprisingly fast, while the old timers were done making scarves and hats within a couple days! The sight of balls of yarn with hooks, needles, and a half-knit scarf attached was a common occurrence around campus. Young or old, crochet and knitting is something we all can do our entire lives. Nothing says happy birthday like a hand-knit scarf!Later in the week we tried another life long hobby, yoga. With breathing exercises and “sun salutations”, we focused, energized and relaxed to the gentle rain on the metal classroom roof. Sun salutations were a great beginners start to yoga; a series of lunges and upward stretches to the ceiling. It works for both individual prayer time as well as a realization of the creation within and around us. (The large classroom windows have a very scenic view) Soon after our Vive sessions though, it was back to the sleep-eat-read schedule… with a little Frisbee and Cayo Twist ice cream thrown in on the side.

Forest Ecology: A Journey of Many Species and Issues

2010-09-28T08:34:00.000-07:00

The week of September 20th was Forest Ecology. We may have started in the Nabitunich classroom, but class brought us to the depths of Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary (Named after the rooster-like crest in the mountainous horizon). Day and night hikes, birding, field notes, generator-powered classes, independent projects, and even swimming under pristine waterfalls were all in a days work at Cockscomb. It was a very big week for students, and certainly had its share of challenges to dish out. Ranging from a deep sense of awe to the utter annoyances of gnats and mosquitoes, we leave Cockscomb with a deeper understanding of the realities of tropical forests.

Led by our fearless leader Dr. Randy Van Dragt, we strolled the trails of Cockscomb absorbing everything we could along the way.

Awaiting at the end of the trail were the Tiger Fern waterfalls.

Our class learned the history of Cockscomb through Mr. and Mrs. Saqui, leaders in the Maya Center community just outside of Cockscomb. Mr. Ernesto Saqui was the first director of the sanctuary in the mid '80s. The development of Cockscomb contained many conflicts between the conservation of nature and the displacement of a local Mayan community. Jaguars versus people? Something just wasn’t right. Yet through creativity, difficult meetings, and much will power, a balance in job opportunity, control, and access now exists between Maya Center and Cockscomb Basin. However, this balance is still requires fine tuning today. It is here within this history and in this land we had the amazing chance to study with Dr. Randy Van Dragt from Calvin College, MI who has spent quite a bit of time teaching in the forests of Belize and Costa Rica.

Jaguars being solitary hunters, this rare moment captured an entire family!

Randy took us on a journey through the rainforest. Well, is it a rainforest, or a jungle? What’s the difference? Cockscomb contains elements of both. A jungle being the classic movie scene of machete slicing through the thicket, a secondary forest with a history of disturbance and therefore an abundance of rebounding growth. Yet the rainforest, tropical broadleaf lowland forest, contains layers upon layers of canopy and little light left at the bottom under story. From the details of learning the plant families (Araceae, Aracaceae, Bromiliaceae, Heliconiaceae…) to contemplating our place in the forest, our journey through Cockscomb stretched us into new heights. Every morning gave us the opportunity for birding, a total of 60 species during our time there. Hummingbirds and manikins were exceptionally active at this time of year, allowing us to glimpse a variety of stunning courtship dances and displays in forest clearing and along misty river banks.

The Red-rumped Tarantula (Frightening yet harmless when space is respected) is one of many species especially abundant in the refuge of Cockscomb.

After Cockscomb there was still more to discover for our class. Randy took us up to Mt. Pine Ridge to behold the controversial Chalillo dam. This dam serves as a reservoir for two other dams down stream on the Macal River, all producing hydro-power for Belize. As the dam was built on a seasonal flood plain (Ideal for a dam that creates a large reservoir), the floodplain also served as a rare refuge for the beautiful and in Central America, endangered Scarlet Macaw. The flooded reservoir of the dam is also some of the last key nesting grounds in Belize. From the Belize Ministry of Forestry, we learned the history of forestry in Belize and heard about their current challenges and aspirations. As the human imprint in the area takes its toll, we also saw the efforts being made to sustain wildlife. Can Macaws coexist with the dam? The timing of our visits to these places showed us the critical times in which we live and how critical it is to understand both the needs of human beings and that of nature to sustain themselves.

Atop the dam with the reservoir at our backs.

On the way home from Mountain Pine Ridge, we stopped at the behemoth Rio Frio cave.

Sustainable Community Development, Pt. 1

2010-09-18T01:54:00.000-07:00

This week CCSP took on the world of development. Development history, theory, and practice were all considered, often up close and personal. So why Development? Well, there’s a long history of colonialism to consider. A history of subsistence farmers turning to wage labor. Land acquiring, resource extraction, slave trades, displaced people groups, and disease exposure all form the roots of the need for what we today call development. So where do we go from here? What is “progress”? We have modernization, globalization, market based economies, cultures, histories, reciprocal relationships and the environment all swirling around in this soup of a society! Our class times took the “Barbier Trade-off” model into consideration to balance the biological, economic, and social systems. Whats more, we must balance the qualitative and quantitative dimensions. With an adaptive trade-off process that continually changes with the systems mentioned, our goals encompass a well-rounded development strategy. Yet the struggle remains: How does development become sustainable? Dr. Sara Alexander from Baylor University, TX, was able to tap into her previous research in Belize as a model of development for our class. She takes her interest of natural resource management into the world of social anthropology.

We explored tourism in depth on a wide spectrum. From “eco” to cruise ship style. What’s the difference? We considered questions such as: Who profits, who gets educated, how is culture portrayed, how are locals empowered, and what is the expense on the environment? We saw how an eco-lodge in Belize called Black Rock powers their facilities on rigged-up hydropower systems from the river. They even filter their own wastewater with gardens and pools on site, then use the nutrients for fruit plants that supplement the lodge’s dining menu! Such strategies allow guests to minimize their ecological impact and learn about the sustainable ways in which we can travel; working along side the ecosystem instead of against it. Although not perfected, lodges that claim to be “eco-tourism” or “responsible tourism” (Both foreign and locally owned) strive to employ local Belizeans and empower education and upward job mobility simultaneously. While the idea is great, eco-tourism’s dilemma is often that its business is usually with low spending guests in rrelatively low numbers.

In contrast, we also visited the Belize cruise ship terminal. Here 800,000 tourists are estimated to travel through each year. A hot spot of commerce, the terminal had four diamond sellers, a pharmacy, and a plethora of gifts. Although the numbers are high, the duration of each stay is only a few hours, much less than overnight guests. High numbers of guests also means a high concentration of food and waste, as well as a high fuel cost for quick tours around the country. How will the environment cope?

Another excursion we took was to the Community Baboon Sanctuary in Bermudan Landing. Here a community effort is at work conserving, educating, and empowering. Privately owned properties have agreed to leave a portion of land forested. When 50m are left in one yard adjacent to another 50m in the next yard, we have 100m of forest! This infrastructure allows enough forest habitat for several troops of Black Howler Monkeys, or “Baboons” in their Creole name. When there comes a break in the forest, “Monkey bars” are tied between the patches to allow movement for the Howlers! Tourists, groups and researchers utilize the trails that weave through the community. Surely the Sanctuary contains the biological, economic, and social systems from the “Barbier Trade-off”. After part one of Sustainable Community Development, we’re full of yet more questions having just scratched the surface, but at least we’re one step closer to comprehending “sustainable”.

The waste management system at Black Rock. This waterfall aerates water coming from the septic tank and wetland and puts it into a pool with more filtering plants.

Up close and personal with Howler Monkeys!
"What? Termites are edible? They taste like carrots??"

The "town hall meeting" gathered everyone from different walks of life. From ranchers, loggers, bankers, teachers, locals, environmentalists, botanists, archeologists, and even activists, this role play came to life on Thursday night. With background research about our characters, we had plenty to dispute and dialogue concerning the issues surrounding development in Belize. To build the road and develop industry and agro-forestry? To support archeology? Conservation and species richness?? How to decide?!

Becoming the Neighbor

2010-09-13T11:20:00.000-07:00

Did you know that San Ignacio (Belize’s 2nd largest “city” that we are only 7 miles from) is translated into Saint Ignatius, who was a saint that believed that Christ's death and resurrection paved the way for his (Ignatius) being martyred. Ignatius was a man who essentially held to much of the New Testament writings and teachings, and also taught about the virgin birth of Jesus. Saint Ignatius was believed to have been martyred in about C.E. 107, and was born about C.E. 50. He was believed to have known some of the apostles. He’s also thought to have succeeded Peter as the Bishop of Antioch, Syria. Scholars refer to Ignatius as the "God-Bearer" or Theophorus.

This exciting fun fact about the place we live and how it relates to Theology was told to us by our wonderful Professor, Michael Lodahl, who joined us from Point Loma Nazarene University to teach the first week of class, God and Nature I.Almost every class this week was started with a prayer from the book of Psalms and ended with a Bible ABC’s (written by the talented Michael Lodahl himself)with a whole lot of scripture reading, deep discussions, and new, exciting ideas in between.

G is for Goliath, who turned Israel’s face red.
Til David confirmed he had rocks in his head!

J is for Jonah, stiff-necked missionary.
God had to whale him ‘fore bias he’d bury.

M is for Moses, the one called lawgiver.
His distaste for idols made Aaron’s knees quiver.

Y is the question that Job asked of God.
He thought all his siff’ring was a little bit odd.

One of the many profound topics we discussed was the idea of becoming the neighbor. We discovered that Leviticus 19 is the only place in the Hebrew bible that we are told to not only “love your neighbors as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18), but also to “love your strangers as yourself”! (Leviticus 19:33). This biblical vision we learned about in Leviticus is teaching us to love all of God’s creation; neighbors and stranger, animals and plants. We then looked at the Gospel of Luke, which brings the two greatest commands from the Hebrew Bible together and says, " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind' (also found in Duet. 6:5); and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself."(Luke 10:27) . In the New Testament we are clearly being called to become the neighbor, by drawing near to others and being active in our faith. But once again we are reminded in Psalm 145:9(“The Lord is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made”) that we cannot draw the line at becoming neighbors to only humans, our responsibility as ‘image bearers’ (Our calling and vocation introduced to us in Genesis 1) is to become neighbors to all of God’s creation. This does not mean to simply “celebrate the beauty”, but rather to love it, tend to it, and serve it because we are in an everlasting covenant with God and with all living creatures!

Before God and Nature I, we got to know some of our Belizean neighbors during a trip to the Belize Zoo! The photos throughout this entry are from that experience, which was a lot of fun and a great way to get to know Belize a little more.This is just a glimpse of some of the in depth scripture studies and the discussions based around the book by Ellen Davis “Scripture, Culture, and Agriculture- An agrarian reading of the Bible” which was the focus book of the week. Only the first week of class and we are already diving into deep topics of theology and creation care!

Orientation to the Cultures of Belize!

2010-09-06T14:36:00.000-07:00

A vital part of orientation week is an introduction to the surrounding Belizean cultures. At CCSP, we dig into the past and the present all in a day's work. Overlooking San Ignacio is Cahal Pech, an ancient Mayan ruin site complete with a museum that allowed us to glimpse the ancient Maya world. We observed how the ancient design of the Mayan cities were symbolic with Maya worldviews. The Maya levels of heaven (13) and hell (9) were represented with precision on their buildings and temples, indicated by the number of entrances along with their proximity to the sun and stars. What would it look like if our cities today included such planning and precision?

Standing in the ruin of the Pok-a-Tok ball court, we imagined this game being played around us on this very ground before the first Olympic torch was even lit. Was it the winners or the losers of this game that were sacrificed to the Mayan gods? The world of Anthropology is still discussing this and much more on these ancient civilizations. Steps and passages up and down showed us what was once truly a great and powerful civilization of politics, religion, business, and everyday life.

Mestizo is a culture of mixed Spanish and Maya ancestry. Today, Mestizo culture is alive and well in the Benque House of Culture just down the road from CCSP campus. To transition us from the ancient world to today, CCSP held it’s first Mestizo marimba dance.

Some of Benque’s most renowned dancers showed us how to move along with the marimba, especially noting the bass line (Pun intended). We even managed to squeeze in some community bonding as a result of a new and shared experience! Once dance is involved, who could ever look at the Marimba the same again? And whats more, orientation week included visits to the Blue Morpho butterfly house, and the Belize Botanical Gardens. How real the world gets when seen up close. Life, fellowship, and service projects in the garden... establishing and reestablishing the links between people and the Creation.
Potting up young'n seedlings for the nursery

Tidying up the Nursery
Unveiling new plant species labels
Crafting butterfly species labelsComposing anew in the orchid house

And we're off!!

2010-08-31T23:10:00.000-07:00

It is official…CCSP Belize Fall 2010 has officially started and we’re off to a semester full of adventure, learning, celebrating, studying and exploring this new home called Belize.

The students officially arrived on August 25th and were greeted by the CCSP staff and a bag of bananas! After all the students made it through customs, we loaded up the vans and headed west across the country to our campus, Nabitunich. The two hour trip gave the students a good chance to see Belize for the first time, noticing the new sights and smells, and also a chance to get to know each other as we trekked home.

The best way to celebrate coming to a new home is to have, of course, a good meal waiting! That meal was a traditional Belizean meal of stewed chicken, rice and beans, coleslaw and of course, fried plantains, followed by a special worship service celebrated around a bonfire. What could be a better way to spend our first night at Nabitunich but with a bonfire and a night sky filled with stars!

The last few days have been filled with activities to orientate us to this new place. We have walked to the local village of Succotz, tried our skills in Central America’s favorite sport, futbol, learned how to take the bus in and out of San Ignacio, journaled in a nice heavy rain (welcome to the rainy season!!), had a nice, cold swim at Blue Hole National Park, and a wonderful Belizean BBQ, compliments of one of our favorite Belizean women, Ms. Flora Chan and family. We also had a chance to get our hands dirty and started our organic garden! The students collected manure, dug in the dirt, weeded, and were refreshed by a nice afternoon rain!

So far all the students, Stacey, Becky, Jenna, Scott, Jenney, Rebekah, Kalli, Daniel, Michelle, and Marissa have settled in nicely and are looking forward to a challenging and exciting semester here at CCSP Belize.