This will be my last blog as an intern for Kalu Yala. It is weird to think that only three months ago I was about to get on a plane to a country I had never before been to, hell the most exotic place I had visited prior was Texas. This semester turned into a radical paradigm shift for me, it forced me to confront what it means to be sustainable and how we as a society can begin to get started on the long and hard journey to being truly environmentally responsible. It forced me to find my place in a group of strangers and thrive on all of their energy and ideas, we became a think-tank of sorts out in the valley, even if some of our thoughts weren’t the most productive. When you are out in the Jungle you are forced on the daily to confront problems using only your bare hands and a whole lot of will power and that can be simultaneously frustrating and enlightening. In short I wouldn’t trade a single minute out in the valley for any of the comforts of life back home here in my apartment in the frozen North. This internship represents one of the single greatest opportunities I have been presented in my life, and I know i will find my way back in some role or another.

Ships that pass in the night, and speak each other in passing,
Only a signal shown and a distant voice in the darkness;
So on the ocean of life we pass and speak one another,
Only a look and a voice, then darkness again and a silence.
-Henry Wadsworth

Now those are all nice words but I would really like to get down to the meat of what I accomplished this semester, both in my personal project and where I was able to assist others around basecamp and with their projects. Lets begin with base camp. We completely rebuilt the ruins of the summer 2011 basecamp and expanded it into a home for ourselves, something we created from our sweat, tears, and at least once some of our blood. This included putting in many posts, making bamboo walls, and finally roofing with a combination of palm fronds and some beautiful canvas tarps. In this, we interns also constructed some wonderful jungle furniture. I personally made two sturdy benches with reclaimed tropical hardwoods after the Kalu Yala staff purchased a wonderful Stihl Chainsaw. There will be pictures of this in the gallery below. I was also able to help Outdoor Rec intern Joe McKittrick build what is quite possibly the most luxurious jungle outhouse ever constructed. Finally, over Carnival I helped several of the Directors and our CEO Jimmy Stice to put in the cement footings for the first permanent structure in the Kalu Yala valley, A raised hammock loft built from FSC certified Tropical Hardwood obtained at a local lumber mill.

As for my personal project, the Agroforestry Demontration plot, I was able to plant 15 saplings representing about twelve different species of tree in my 1/2 acre plot. The species represented include Mahogany, Papaya, Mango, Avacado, A variety of citrus, Ruble, and I transplanted a native Spiny Cedar from a hiking trail on the property. Additionally I sowed over 100 Guando Beans in an exposed part of the plot hoping to build up soil organic nitrogen, provide shade for future saplings, while also serving as an excellent food crop for future interns. I also built a simple composting unit that in the month since I built it has nearly halved the mass of organic materiel that I initially placed in it. A larger scale version of this unit could provide the Agriculture program with all the compost it could possibly need, with the added bonus of being able to save the kitchen scraps for the magic circle. The Agriculture team also constructed Kalu Yala’s first raised bed, which is framed out with bamboo and many large rocks collected down by the river.

The week before the Spring 2012 internship started, interns from all over the U.S., some international, began arriving at the place where they would start their 3-month adventure in Panama. Outnumbering all other programs, the seven Outdoor Recreation interns began collaborating and brainstorming right off the bat.

The first week in the valley ideas were being thrown left and right, some feasible, others not. As an ice-breaker and warm-up for the team, Outdoor Rec took the initiative to rebuild the existing, overgrown volleyball court to make a better, more resilient court. Lacking machinery to tear away the grass, the team grabbed hold of shovels, pick axes, and rakes, and began manually excavating the court. Once down to the dirt, the team pinned down plastic sheeting, and covered with locally harvested sand from the nearby river. The first project complete, and our community would benefit from it for the remainder of the semester and beyond.

The next main project is an ongoing project that was well-established by the interns this semester. Through the thick of the jungle that covers the mountain on the property, beaten-down cattle paths leave a labyrinth of winding trails. Outdoor Recreation, along with a Biology member, teamed up to make the second main hiking trail on the property: “Honeycreeper”, one of the birds seen and identified just off the path. Days of hard work resulted in a beautiful, 15 minute trail that goes in and out of the canopy and leads to the first main trail, created by the Summer 2011 interns.

The first trail, now named “Hormiga Cortada”, leads to the highest point on the property. An intern led the role of clearing out the invasive grass species that stood in front of the view. Although this will likely grow back rapidly because it is so invasive, the view looking down on the property, seeing the two rivers meet and flow down the valley, the “campesino rancho” houses across the mountains, and our basecamp headquarters with an ant-size work force, puts into perspective the countless opportunities for Outdoor Rec to conserve the natural land by using it as a leisurely and educational tool.

Amongst many other projects, including: a needs assessment, a proposal for a low ropes course, case studies of eco-tourism resorts, rock climbing destinations, and many more, the Spring 2012 interns laid down a great foundation for prospective interns to come down and work. From continuing to maintain the existing trails, to creating new ones, designing parks, and proposing other outdoor recreation activites, future interns are left with a plethora of projects to choose from.

Whether you study Outdoor Recreation or simply enjoy it as a hobby, Kau Yala offers a hands-on learning adventure, and is still accepting applications for Summer and Fall 2012! Experience the unique opportunity of entering an undeveloped landscape with creative and innovative freedom to create and pursue your goals! Email internships@kaluyala.com for more information.

Three short months ago I found myself anxious and stressed out as I tried to decide what the heck I would need to live in the Panamanian jungles. I had a faint idea of what I was getting into, but nothing could have prepared me for the journey I was about to embark on. I anticipated awkward hello’s and the discomfort of trying to navigate a new social situation. As a camp professional, I am used to throwing myself into these situations often. Little did I know that this would be one of the easiest groups to immerse myself in. We met as twenty five twenty-somethings with big dreams, a spirit for adventure, and no real clue what we were about to do. Three months later we leave as a family. Bittersweet goodbyes and farewell dinners are a reminder that we have greatly impacted each other’s journeys and that the impermanence of goodbye is actually just a heartfelt “until we meet again.”

I am now a short three hour flight away from home. I will step foot in Hartsfield-Jackson International airport a mentally and physically stronger person much more fulfilled and whole than when I left.  My friends and family will no doubt recognize the monumental changes that have occurred. They will wish they could thank the individuals that have inspired me, motivated me, taught me, challenged me, and changed me. Joe did a fabulous job of thanking everyone, so I will spare you, and myself, the painful task of summing up the impact an individual can have. Instead, I will say one short thank you to the collective.

Just some of the Kalu Yala Spring 2012 Family.

Kalu Yala was a much needed beacon of hope in a time of complacency in my life. I realize now that I was not truly living my life, but instead sleepwalking through it. The individuals I met in my time in Panama have lit anew the fire within my head and my heart that pushes me to dream, to hope, to believe in the impossible. Each of you has had a tremendous impact on how I view the world and subsequently choose to live in it. You have reminded me that it does not take monumental action to create change. It is the small smiles, the high fives, the laughs, the encouragement that we give one another on a daily basis that builds the foundation that slowly creates the change we seek.

I take to Colorado a piece of every person I met here. I hope that in some way I have created half the change that was created in me. I will never forget my time in Panama, and now begin planning how I will get back. I look forward to remaining close to this company and watching it grow in the future. Thank you cannot contain how much I appreciate each of you, but it will have to do.

Much love, until we meet again.

When we were in San Blas last week, Erin and I changed the lyrics of “Leaving On A Jet Plane” by John Denver to make a Kalu Yala Spring 2012 farewell song. This is a video of us singing the song together one night, drinking margarita out of bowls.

All my bags are packed I’m ready to go

I’m standing here right by the door

I hate that it’s the time to say good-bye

-

All the valley days are memories

San Miguel, too with their cookies

One more shot of rum and I’ll be fine

-

So kiss me and smile for me

Tell me that you’ll write to me

The memories we have will have go

-

Cause I’m leaving on a jet plane

Don’t know when I’ll be back again

Oh babe, I hate to go

-

We’re leaving here as someone new

Most of us have learned some Spanish, too

All of us know how to say “Todo Bien”

-

Hispania is the city party

San Miguel is where we meet the peeps

The Valley is where the good shit really goes down

-

Besame y sonriame

Dime que me escribiras

Tenemos memorias siempre

-

Cause I’m leaving on a jet plane

Don’t know when I’ll be back again

Oh babe, I hate to go

I hate to go..

Last week, Terra, Zac and I had six hours of hiking and swimming from the valley property to San Miguel.

Watch a summary video of our adventure. Enjoy

The Journey of Gooshers Along the Pacora River

Three months ago I awoke from a dead sleep with a terrible sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. I was four days away from heading to Panama for three months. I knew little of the company I was going to work for and even less about the country in which it operated. Qualms aside, I grabbed my four enormous bags (I didn’t know what to bring so I brought it all) jumped aboard the plane and met my future head-on. Now it is my last day in Panama, and I cannot quite comprehend this little factoid. I have lived a full and rich life in those three months and gained the companions and wherewithal that accompanies such a wondrous and fruitful existence. In the last fourth year I have explored jungles, built indigenous structures, rode horses through rivers by moonlight, danced at hotel openings, ate chicken colons (not proud of this one), listened to The Hobbit on audio book on a beach by a fire, I rode bulls in a rodeo for Christ’s sake. Now I don’t believe in closure (nothing that has affected my life this greatly will ever be a fully finished story) but I would like to acknowledge just a few of the incredible people who provided the catalyst for my exploits.

Anne Walker: Your amazing indomitable positive outlook creates such a welcome reprieve for those who may have been worn thin, those with culture shock, the tired, the morose, the lost. You made my experience here all the better by simply being you. I cannot remember a time you flashed your smile my way and I could help but smile right back.

Johnny: If an army marches on its stomach, then I would have marched to the pits of hell with you. Nothing could lift our spirits after endless days of relentless heat in the jungle like one of your amazing meals, especially when it was accompanied by a half day at the beach.

Ashley: I would never have had this opportunity if it was not for you. The simple email you wrote that was forwarded to me sparked this whole fire. My entire stay in Panama I never heard you utter an ill word, or give anything but positive advice.

Brigitte: I never knew so much tenacity could be contained in such a small package. You could propel any one to try their hardest just by presenting your example. I remember wrestling a log back to camp one afternoon. When I reached the wood pile I slammed it down in exhaustion (it weighed a hundred pounds if it weighed an ounce) and before it came to rest you had it in your arms and were off with it. You were an amazing director, and your zest for life and adventure permeates your entire being.

Victor: If anyone belongs here it’s you. The relationships you have fostered throughout Panama have created a priceless webbing of opportunities for every intern and director that comes through Kalu Yala. One of my most cherished memories is our epic horse ride into the valley. We arrived in san Miguel around 10:00 A.M. to meet the owner of the horses we were going to ride. We met him at a fonda on the outskirts of town deeply entrenched in a drinking circle. He asked if we would like a beer and we accepted (little did we know that we had just entered this devilish circumference of libations). When we finally saddled the horses and headed down the trail, my head was on the London side of foggy. Our horses were ancient and at multiple intervals looked at us as if to say, “O.K. now it’s our turn to ride you.” But through all of this, the part that sticks out the most is riding back through the river silhouetted by the moon and our ride’s headlights. It was that moment that I realized how unique the whole of my Kalu Yala experience has been.

Kylie and Ian: What a duo you make; each of you so level headed and thoughtful. Multiple times you created a clam in a situation that could have easily have been storms if hotter head prevailed. Beyond this, you provided such a wealth of knowledge for all to share. It is a wonderful thing, how willing you both are to share what you have learned and how willing you are to learn more. You two embody the free flow of ideas that Kalu Yala is constructing.

Max: You are undeniable. The way you have immersed yourself in the culture of Panama and Kalu Yala is a benchmark that all who know you can only hope to achieve. Your guidance and tutelage has been paramount to my growth as an intern and a person. I truly cherish the conversations we have had. I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for all you have given me.

Jimmy: The farmer who planted the seed that became the sapling, which will become the great oak of Kalu Yala. You have created a wondrous world in the jungles of Panama then invited us all to come along.  Beyond what you have created, you continually instill in others the courage to create as well. Listening to you talk, a person would jump from the Golden Gate Bridge if only you told them they had wings.

Interns (Machete Mobers):  What would this have been without such a fantastic group? It is rare to find a gaggle of people this big who mesh so well. I arrived knowing at one point I would become irritated with everyone, but here I am in the proverbial terminal wish I had more time to spend with you all. Thank you for making every moment of my adventure so happy and memorable. I do and always will count you all among my closest friends.

Once again I say thank you all for all you have given me and I can only hope I have given back in turn. In parting, I say I refuse to let this journey fade into memory. Instead I choose to make it a catalyst for my future. I have immeasurably grown in the past three months, and set sail to new adventures, all the while flipping life on it is head.

First for some theory, then for some fun.

In my last blog post, I raised the suggestion that as a community, it would be more valuable for us to be confused, and somewhat uncomfortable, by the connections between our data than interpret them according to a predetermined set of expected relationships. As scientists of the natural world, it’s our duty to assemble explanatory knowledge- data collecting, testing, experimentation, etc. But this can lead to the unquestioned rise of the quantitative over the qualitative – in other words, a higher estimation of the usefulness of data rather than what the summation of those numerical points signifies.

Quantum physicist and philosopher David Deutsch puts forth a thought-experiment in his new book The Beginning of Infinity delving into philosophy of science’s school of Instrumentalism: “[I]magine that an extraterrestrial scientist has visited the Earth and given us an ultra-high-technology “oracle” which can predict the outcome of any possible experiment, but provides no explanations… How would the oracle be used in practice? In some sense it would contain the knowledge necessary to build, say, an interstellar spaceship. But how exactly would that help us to build one, or to build another oracle of the same kind — or even a better mousetrap? The oracle only predicts the outcomes of experiments. Therefore, in order to use it at all we must first know what experiments to ask it about…Prediction —even perfect, universal prediction— is simply no substitute for explanation.

…To put that another way: there already is one such oracle out there, namely the physical world. It tells us the result of any possible experiment if we ask it in the right language (i.e. if we do the experiment), though in some cases it is impractical for us to ‘enter a description of the experiment in the required form’ (i.e. to build and operate the apparatus). But it provides no explanations.” [emphasis mine].

As Deutsch suggests, it’s transforming our questions into the language of best fit – the translating bit – that allows us to use the universe as an “oracle,” as a machine that will answer any question we put to it. I think this truth may be used as an elegant metaphor for many of my experiences in Panama, but perhaps most effectively to describe Kalu Yala’s mission, specifically that of the biology program. The answers to our inquiries await our experimentation, but we have to ask them in the correct language, or form, first for the answers – our data – to be useful, and indeed to make any sense. Thus, “conjectural creativity” – the ability to ask questions in a variety of forms – is crucial to our gathering and development of expository knowledge.

It’s this feature of our natural environment that makes the case for the type of work that Kalu Yala does. No model can accurately provide the outcomes to the predictive ideas we have about sustainability, social responsibility, and economic viability of the project other than simply testing it out; eventually all of these ideas will either be substantiated or dismissed by the property of the world-as-oracle model that some have called “the laboratory of the real.” This logic seems pretty obvious when explained, but I find it consoling and invigorating when thinking about how Kalu Yala is in early stages of development.

I’ve never been part of such a young organization – and duly never had so much potential investment in what Kalu Yala calls “the creation of a culture.” How do we know if what we’re doing is the right thing, or that we will be successful? To some extent, we can’t know, until our experiments are tested empirically in the real world.

On a societal scale, Kalu Yala, in attempting a paradigm-shift in fields diverse as agriculture, community-building, structure, the relationship between man and nature, etc., engages in an implicit debate regarding how the world best operates. It is a comforting reminder that reality resolves the disputes we cannot. It is an incredibly useful and beautiful feature of the world that we can present any question in, as Deutsch would say, “the right language” (or the right equation, the right shape, the right design…), and receive a response. But the response is in the form of uninterrupted data; it is our creative, synthetic task then to generate explanations. So, in a crucial way, the usefulness of the universe-as-oracle, or “laboratory of the real,” model depends upon our integral relationship as scientists willing to test our conjectures and modulate the language of our experiments as we receive responses. What better a place to do this than Kalu Yala? Not only are we building a culture, but we are rejecting the position of spectatorship as the world inevitably changes, in favor of active participation in improving the accuracy of the language of our dialogue with the natural world.

•••

One of my current projects that I am working on in San Miguel is establishing an environmental literacy after school project with community outreach interns, called “Árbol de la Vida.” I’ve led the students through an activity in which they use disposable cameras to explore their world in the community, and capture images of life around them – be it flowers, animals, trees, or their family. In doing this project, I wanted to expand their resources, physically and mentally, for exploration and investigation. In an attempt to explain the concept of an ecosystem, I asked the students to think about how they were individually connected to each element of life in a generated list – to horses, monkeys, the tamarind trees, wild-cashew trees, neighbors, and so on.

By challenging the students to widen their definition of “life” and generate ideas of how connections can be made between these elements, I hoped to arm the students with a wider arsenal of ways to observe. By infusing the science lesson with a fun art project, I suggested that the students think of art and science as not that different: both involve looking at the natural world differently, and translating it into something that makes sense in a different context.

Translating – there’s that word again. And really, the theory I proposed before is not that far off of from what we’re doing in the San Miguel school as outreach initiatives. By guiding the students to think about the natural world in creative ways teaches them the invaluable lesson that we do not learn through texts; we learn through observation and experiments: the instantiation of ideas in our real, physical lives.

One of my challenges this semester has been to connect my thoughts on the philosophy of science – on how it should be conducted, how we should interpret our results – into viable projects. After having spent four wonderful years in academia, my focus was always on the process, not the results. But spending the past several weeks among the community in San Miguel has gently led me to a realization that I can contribute to our company’s overall project by establishing a common language of observation and curiosity of our world between Kalu Yala members and our closest neighbors in San Miguel – the younger generation of a village that will grow up to live in conjunction with our community in the valley.

My first two weeks teaching in San Miguel have been eye opening, amazing and absolutely crazy. I am teaching the kindergarten class with Hannah and the 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd grade class with Erin. Before I started teaching I planned out the topics that would be taught each week in class while I am here and found activities, games and worksheets for the children to do that corresponded with the lesson for the week. However, to my surprise the education system in San Miguel is vastly different from the education system in the United States. The first thing that shocked me was that in the school 1^st and 3^rd grade are taught together, 2^nd and 6^th, 4^th and 5^th and Kindergarten by itself. I am still contemplating why 1^st and 2^nd are taught together and so forth…that mystery may never be solved. Another thing I was surprised at was the structure of the classroom. There doesn’t seem to be lessons or topics that are assigned each day and taught in the classroom. In the United States there are topics that must be covered throughout the year. However, the kids here in San Miguel are so sweet and are willing to learn so that’s all that matters! The children are so excited for us to be in San Miguel and always yell “ticher, ticher” whenever they see us walking around. Every day after class then give you a big hug and say “hasta manana!” I can’t help but smile and it always brightens my day!

Hannah and I have about 15 kindergarteners in our class at 8:10 am. While it is supposed to be an English class we have decided that we are going to work on teaching them basic Spanish too because the children do not know how to write, count, spell their name or know all of the colors in Spanish yet. Even though we are not going to be teaching a primarily English class, any little bit we can help them with is definitely worth it! The first week we all sat in a circle and passed around a ball and said our name and taught them all to say hi and hello. The second week we taught them numbers one through ten and the months of the year and had them do the macarena to the months of the year. Our primary objective in the kindergarten class is to find activities that are fun, simple and will also teach them.

Kindergarten Class

Kindergarten Class doing the Months Macarena

I also teach about 30 1^st, 2^nd and 3^rd graders with Erin at 9:20am. The students in this class have been taught some basic English words; however, there are some students who are still unable to spell and write correctly. The knowledge level in this age group ranges so much. This has made it very difficult to teach because there are a group of students who are very advanced and know the lesson I am teaching for the day already and can finish the worksheet in 10 minutes. Then there is another group of students who has never been introduced to the lesson I am teaching and needs the whole class period and one on one attention. To combat this problem Erin and I are both in the classroom and have been bringing additional, more advanced worksheets for those students who have been introduced to the topic we are teaching for the day. For example, we taught them numbers 1 through 20 and had them write out the spelling in English. Those students who finished before the end of class were then given a wordsearch where they had to find the numbers 1 through 10 in English; however, they had to already know how to spell them in English in order to find the word.

Overall teaching in San Miguel has been a great experience, and has really opened my eyes to the need for improved education systems. Even though at the end of every day teaching I am exhausted, I always look forward to going to school the next morning to see the children.

Art in Panama it has momentum, it has style, it is accessible and most importantly it is a binding agent for the community. It has been wonderful to be aware of it, contribute to it and support it. The best part, the art scene is entirely here because the people of Panama want to express themselves, add beauty to their community, and create social interaction. In the city you find street art that has an overwhelming impact on the character of the city – a lonely basketball court on the sea, in a forgotten corner of town has been transformed into an open air art gallery. Boarded up windows have become ply-wood canvases. Walking around last week, during rush hour, an artist was simply spending her afternoon working on her mural, no big deal. I watched her for awhile, people would stop and talk to her for a bit then move on, she would focus again as if she was in her private studio.

Transformed public space

Murals adorn once forgotten walls

Local mural, also notice trucker hat and shirt on right where done by local artist

Artist focuses on painting public mural

Trash cans in Casco Viejo are all hand painted changing the boring, usually unsightly image, into a bright joyful image. Something that the community outreach program did in San Miguel for our river clean-up day, not realizing that painting trash cans was happening in the city as well, the hen house is just hip with it.

Brightly painted trash can in Casco Viejo

Kalu Yala interns paint trash cans for Community Outreach Project in San Miguel, Panama

Even the public transportation is heavily cloaked in the arts, the local Diablo Rojos, privately owned retired school busses are covered in art and graphics. Images range from characters on the TV show Angry Beavers to the Last Supper, these Diablo Rojos have become a cultural symbol for Panama. Another cultural image of Panama are the Kuna Indian Mola art, graphic cloth art, extremely beautiful. Two major symbols of the culture happen to be art forms.

Another component to the art scene, are the art events, which in their pure existence indicates the momentum and life the art scene has on the community here. Last week we had the great pleasure to attend the Tántelo Hotel/ Kitchen/ Rooftop grand opening event. The hotel exists around the concept that each room has been permanently created into an art installation by different local artist, a truly fantastic concept, each room has a different voice so each guest of the hotel has a different experience, and is immediately exposed to the local art scene.

It was also the week of the MACRO Festival, which  started in 2010 a yearly event in March that strives to bring music, fashion, design, film and arts into the community. With music artists like Señor Loop and big brands like Converse, Addidas, and Henieken sponsoring the event, and live art occurring at the festival, it was quite the inspiring scene. You really feel the Panamanian culture responding well to the event and enjoying interacting with it.

The art scene is more than just graphic images and art events, it is a community interaction which is so easily accessible. For instance, when my parents came to visit we shopped at little local boutique, Espacio Vintage, where my parents bought these hand painted trucker hats with paintings of spinoffs of cultural images; a bus with the face of a devil to represent the Diablo Rojos, a man and women zombie in traditional Panamanian dress. Later that night my setpdad was wearing the hat and the artist came up to him and talked to him about the art and what he hopes to do in the future with his brand MolArt- his name was Carlton Regist, and his passion was apparent, he loved to see someone wearing his art, and we loved wearing his art and meeting him. We had not only supported the local art, but got to become part of the interaction, and conservation within the same day, that does not happen in other art scenes of other cities.

Without purposeful intention I have been able to contribute to the momentum and add impact to a community in Panama through my mural project. The San Miguel mural is finished, and the space is transformed. Hopefully the arts will continue to be fostered in the San Miguel community, the response was invigorating. I have heard of towns aiming to be the mural capital of the world, maybe San Miguel can enter the competition, form the responses during the mural, I believe the town could paint every single surface in San Miguel.

As Denis Dutton in his book, The Art Instinct, said “Some of the most agreeable human experiences involve being members of a group, including taking part in artistically creative group efforts or being a member of an appreciative audience.” These forms of art increase the social solidarity, something that is very apparent in Panama right now.