CUBA
Creating Sustainable Futures
in the Face of Climate Change
© All images by Britt Basel Photo
“An awakening. Hands down the most impactful and adventurous experience I have ever had.”
“The trip to Cuba was an incredible, life-changing experience that was unique to Ecothropic. We learned about agroecology, watersheds, and how Cuba’s government affected how Cuban’s responded to climate change. We considered challenging questions about how to apply what we learned and change the consciousness of our communities back home. With the small group size, we had intimate discussions within the group and individual interactions with the people we met. The whole experience wouldn’t have been possible without Britt’s personal connections with Cubans that provided a unique inside look, full of local knowledge, at a country that few Americans have gotten to see and the grassroots agriculture that has grown up in Cuba’s unique circumstances.”
“If you are a curious person who likes to learn, Ecothropic will provide an experience that will transform you. By thoughtfully engaging with different cultures and landscapes, Ecothropic offers opportunities to understand how global environmental challenges are manifesting on local scales. My Ecothropic experience in Cuba revealed the resiliency of the human spirit and the adaptive capacity of well-preserved ecological systems.”
WHY CUBA?
Baracoa, in Cuba's "wild east," is a living laboratory for understanding climate change impacts and solutions. Here, lush mountains, crystalline tropical rivers, ocean, traces of indigenous Taino culture, dance and music rooted in west African culture, and the unique and complex political context come together to form a special opportunity for understand community-action and the interaction between food-systems, community-cohesion, resource access, land/water management, and ecology.
Itinerary
Day 1: Travel to Baracoa. Settle into our bed and breakfast, soak in the view of the ocean from the roof top deck, and join the group for an orientation to our adventure.
Day 2: Start the day with a plentiful Baracoa-style breakfast including eggs, local fruit, freshly ground hot chocolate, and regional coconut treats. After a quick introduction to climate science and impacts, we'll head out with a local expert to hike beaches, explore a water cave, and visit the seasonal home of the native Taino people of the region to discover where we are and how climate change is affecting this tropical and cultural paradise. In the evening we'll have a roof-top discussion about Cuban history to help us start to understand where we are and sustainability solutions.
Day 3: What does climate change mean for chocolate??? And where does that black-gold come from? Today we head into the country side to visit traditional cacao producers. We'll make chocolate, drink freshly made hot chocolate, and learn how to defend our-beloved cacao against climate change. Then we head to the beach for a cooking class (and maybe a little dancing in the sand with the chefs)!
Day 4: If a butterfly flaps its wings... What is a watershed? Why does it matter? How can we be zero-waste? Today we head into the mountains to learn about sustainability through the lens of watershed management, permaculture, and whole-systems design. Ford a river on a bamboo raft, eat a farm-fresh feast from a bird's nest lookout, and talk with our hosts about how they have used permaculture to create “Eden.”
Day 5: What's the alternative to factory farming? What does agriculture and food have to do with climate change? How do Cuban's get their food? Today we explore the Cuban food-system from urban farms to ration cards. Visiting an urban farm, markets, and a bodega (were Cuban's get their free food rations), discover the urban agricultural movement that saved Cuba from starvation in the 1990's. Is urban agriculture a realistic solution for the community where you live? Share your ideas and insights with the rest of the group during our nightly group discussion.
Day 6: Can nature help protect us against climate change? Today we explore the World Heritage site, Humboldt National Park. See the traditional beehives that El Dulzon keeps and eat honey from the hive. Meet women who are carving out a better life for themselves. Discover one of the most ecologically diverse places on the planet. Bring a swimsuit!
Day 7: How do we create sustainable futures in the face of climate change? How do we bring this home? How do we be part of the solution? Today we tie it all together with our final discussion and learning from each other's presentations of our final projects. Then we head to the warm clear-blue waters of the Rio Duaba to celebrate with dance and a Cuban feast!
Day 8: Bring everything you experienced and learned home with you to continue to be part of the solution!
*Participants will be required to prepare with readings, contribute to our daily evening group discussions, and present a final project (please see syllabus for details). Listed itinerary may be adjusted as deemed necessary by Ecothropic. We are always working to create the optimal learning experience for participants. Activities may include optional evening outings to performances and music/dance workshops.
Details
Credits: 4 quarter credits*
Program length: 8 days
Group size: 10 maximum
Language Requirement: None
Physical activity level: Moderate. Expect to hike, get your hands dirty, and welcome new adventures.
Accommodations: We stay in a bed and breakfast in the historic center of Baracoa. Room occupancy 2-3 Participants.
Tuition: $3850 USD *We encourage you to fundraise part of your tuition to get more of your community involved. Your tuition not only funds your learning experience, but also helps support our non-profit work.
What’s included? Tuition Includes instruction and guest lecturers, accommodation, meals, in-country transportation, site visits, specified activities. Not included: Fee for PSU college credit ($500)*, airfare, additional snacks, and activities not included in itinerary. Activities may be adjusted at the discretion of Ecothropic.
Are payment plans and financial aid available? Yes! Please schedule a call with us.
Can I help sponsor a low-income student? Yes! Please write us at fieldstudies@ecothropic.com.
Do you have questions or want to apply?
More feedback from past students
“..the program enriched my understanding and left me contemplating the multi-faceted impact of climate-change and the approaches needed for communities to adapt and thrive.”
“The program included conversations with farmers, indigenous people, and researchers, and material was always presented from many points of view…I gained a deep appreciation for and connection to the communities we visited, and an understanding of how their livelihoods are at risk from a changing climate.”
“I learned that it is important to understand a system before engaging with it, whether it is an ecosystem or a person... Cuba showed me what people can do by relying on each other.”
“I have spent some time researching and reading about resilience - what does it mean? what does it look like? - how is it related to climate change adaptation? These questions have guided a lot of my professional work for nearly the past two decades. The trip to Cuba, the people we met, and the stories we heard defined resilience in a way that no peer-reviewed journal article or conference proceedings has been able to capture. For me, I learned what resilience IS. I witnessed it. I felt it. Now, I know what resilience is, because of my experience on the Cuba trip. Thank you for this mind-expanding learning adventure”
© All images by Britt Basel Photo