Join us in El Salvador as we travel the road from increased understanding of this Central American country to constructive action. Experience first-hand how the energy and passion of Salvadoran youth can vitally transform this beautiful but economically challenged nation. Travel to Yale University during the last three days of the program to share your experiences with all Global Action groups.
- Dates:
- June 30, 2012 - July 29, 2012
- Eligibility:
- Students completing grades 9-12
- Focus:
- Global Awareness in Action
- Typical Group:
- 16-18 Students, 2 Leaders
- Duration:
- 4.5 week(s)
Overview
How does a country rebuild itself two decades after a crippling civil conflict? With so many young Salvadorans leaving in search of work, is it possible to create meaningful opportunities at home? While for most of us, “Youth is the Future” is a cliché, for the Salvadoran people it is a powerful truth.
Our journey takes us from the capital of San Salvador to a small village in the mountain foothills, to an island just off the Pacific coast, and finally to Yale University. Along the way, we meet passionate NGO workers, discuss politics with journalists, make friends with eager schoolchildren, swim in mountain waterfalls, and develop a true connection with the people of this vibrant country. In addition to working with youth empowerment organizations, you also develop an independent project about an aspect of Salvadoran culture of particular interest to you. The focus of all Global Action programs is to combine in-depth knowledge with meaningful involvement. During your time in-country you have the opportunity to complete approximately 40 hours of community service.
El Salvador is a country rich in natural resources, but facing many economic challenges.
Begin with five days in the capital of San Salvador, where you learn about El Salvador’s recent history, meet with a fair trade coffee collaborative, and join a student group in hiking up a nearby volcano. Insights gained during this time prepare you to spend two weeks living in a small village in the mountainous northeast. The town’s inhabitants fled to neighboring Honduras during the Civil War. Since their return more than 20 years ago, they have labored to reconstruct their former lives. You find yourself warmly welcomed into this open and friendly community as you work alongside townspeople on projects they have created to revitalize and rebuild. Help produce and broadcast reports on a youth-run radio station, contribute to the efforts of a youth anti- HIV/AIDS movement, and visit schools with a women’s group focused on improving women’s rights. During this time, stay as a group in a house near the center of town and, together with local cooks, prepare your daily meals from fresh, local ingredients. Living conditions are very simple. You find that showering using a bucket of fresh water and making do without reliable electricity brings you closer to the community and actually enhances your experience.
“As Raphi said: ‘This is the history they don’t teach in history classes.’ The breadth and depth of what these students learned and the people they were introduced to gave them a truly remarkable, important, and life altering experience. In a very short time they developed a deep appreciation for the history, politics, and current challenges facing El Salvador, and a true affinity for its people.”
– Bari and Diane Shamas, Putney, VT
Spend the last three days in El Salvador on the undeveloped paradise of Tasajera Island, living near the beach in a family-run eco lodge. Here, you focus on El Salvador’s attempts at economic sustainability and environmental stewardship, and efforts to create a more equitable distribution of wealth and resources.
During these final days, you and your group also begin to synthesize your experiences for presentation to the other Global Action teams at Yale University. Yale is an opportunity to get to know other Global Action students who have traveled to far-flung destinations throughout the world, and to present your plan for ongoing involvement with the issues you encountered in El Salvador. Come away from your summer with unforgettable friendships, increased recognition of the challenges facing developing nations, and an understanding of the realistic possibilities for constructive action.
Your Spanish improves by leaps and bounds as you learn from and form bonds with new Salvadoran friends.
Highlights
- Broadcast a live radio show discussing Salvadoran/American immigration.
- Learn about rural healthcare delivery and participate in HIV/AIDS prevention workshops.
- Play soccer with schoolchildren after teaching an enthusiastically received English class.
- Bake bread with a women’s collaborative dedicated to gender equality.
- Prepare a multimedia account of your experience, and present it at Yale University.
What to Expect
For most of each weekday, we are actively involved in community service work. This work, as well as afternoon and weekend activities, can be strenuous, and you can expect to spend most of each day outside. Everyone lends a hand in meal preparation and cleanup. Since we live in our village as the local people do, accommodations are very simple with separate space for boys and girls, and basic bathroom facilities. You should come to the program with an open mind, eager to participate in new experiences, and interested in exploring another culture and way of life. Global Action El Salvador relies heavily on interactions and friendships with Salvadoran youth and community leaders. For this reason, it is helpful to have completed at least one year of high school Spanish.
At Putney we take pride in our reputation for careful, thorough planning and attention to detail. The descriptions of our programs are based on our experiences in previous summers and our plans for this summer. It is inevitable that some things described here will not happen exactly as presented. To get the most out of the Putney experience, participants need to be flexible in responding to unforeseen situations, and creative in taking advantage of unexpected opportunities. We expect Putney participants to share responsibility for the success of their experience.
Fees
Tuition: $5,390
Itinerary
This program begins at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, New York and ends at Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut.
Departure • June 30. Join your group as you begin Global Action in El Salvador. The group flight, accompanied by one of your group leaders, departs from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York, New York.
“The leaders, Brian and Sarah, clearly challenged Matthias intellectually–at first through the nightly group discussions and then by suggesting books to read. Matthias claims he learned more in the month with Putney than during his entire school year.”
- Jean-Francois Grenon and Sylvia Malzacher, Mercer Island, WA
San Salvador • Spend five days in the capital city, getting to know the culture, politics, and socio-economics of El Salvador. Stay at a family run hostel, owned and operated by a couple (both university professors) who are eager to share stories of their country’s recent history. On excursions into the city, travel by private bus as you meet with NGOs and student groups, and hike the city’s guardian volcano.
Village Life • A chartered bus brings you to your home for the next two weeks: a village in the eastern province of Cabañas, outside of Sensuntepeque. Live together as a group in a private house near the center of town, and work with a local cook to prepare your daily meals. Become a true part of the community as you collaborate with youth groups, fair trade organizations, local radio stations, schools, health clinics, and agricultural co-ops on a diversity of projects.
Children in our host village are eager to teach us local songs.
Isla Tasajera • Bid farewell to the village before a bus and short ferry ride bring you to the shore of this unspoiled island retreat. Three days of relaxation in a newly built eco-lodge give you and your group the opportunity to reflect on your experiences and prepare for the upcoming Global Awareness in Action presentation at Yale.
Return to Yale University • Fly with your leaders and the group from San Salvador to Newark and continue by private bus transfer to Yale University.
Share your experiences in El Salvador with other Global Action groups at Yale University.
Yale University • After a day of preparation, present the story of your time in El Salvador to the assembled Global Action groups (July 28), your friends and relatives, and other invited guests. Share your plans for continuing to be involved with the people, organizations, and vital issues you encountered during this life-changing summer.
Head for Home • July 29. Depart for home by train, bus, or a flight from nearby Bradley Airport in Hartford, CT.
This itinerary represents our best projection of the group’s schedule. However, we may implement changes designed to improve the quality of the program.
Destination
Background • El Salvador is the smallest country in Central America, located between Guatemala and Honduras on the Pacific coast. Despite its size, the country encompasses a variety of climates and physical landscapes, from coastal lowlands dotted with palm trees and lined with flat, sandy beaches to rolling forested hills and imposing volcanoes. El Salvador’s political legacy is one of civil conflict in the 1980s, which exacerbated widespread social and economic problems. Though the country now enjoys peace and stability, it faces pervasive poverty; 37% of the population lives below the poverty line. Because the national median age is 24, great responsibility rests in the hands of adolescents and young adults. Unfortunately, thousands of young Salvadorans emigrate to wealthier nations in search of steady, often menial, jobs. This exodus of talented individuals, paradoxically, has become crucial to the economic health of the country; some $2 billion are sent from Salvadorans living abroad to their families back home every year.
Subsistence-level corn farming is a way of life for many families in our host village.
Population • With over 2 million residents, San Salvador is the third-largest capital in Central America, and it houses one of the largest U.S. Embassies in the Western Hemisphere. For much of the program, you live in a small village (population approximately 1,000) in the Eastern province (departamento) of Cabañas.
Language • Spanish is the official language of El Salvador, and in order to make the most of your time here it is helpful to have had some high school Spanish. You will find that Salvadorans are helpful, patient, and appreciative of your efforts to speak – goodwill and a desire to communicate go a long way! Though schoolchildren here learn English from a young age, their eagerness to practice often outpaces their vocabulary, and you have many formal and informal opportunities to make friends by giving English lessons.
“The most fruitful part of the experience was realizing what it meant to be a traveller and immerse ourselves in the culture. We weren’t hopping around all the time, and therefore didn’t have a tourist mentality. In our village, we spent enough time to form friendships, talk to people, enjoy a soccer game and actually get a feel for Salvadorian life in a rural town.”
– David Loyo, St. Ignatius High School, Chicago, IL
Climate • El Salvador’s central plateau enjoys stable temperatures throughout the year. The temperature during the day is generally in the low 80′s, and rarely dips below 65° at night. We arrive during the rainy season, when the abundant rivers and waterfalls and lush tropical vegetation are at their most beautiful. While precipitation, from short cloudbursts to longer periods of light rain, is not uncommon, it provides a refreshing natural break during the day.
Cuisine • Uncomplicated but tasty, Salvadoran cuisine is based on the staple foods of corn, rice, beans, and yuca, while chicken, turkey, and chicharrón (pork) are the most common meats. Pupusas, corn or flour tortillas stuffed with cheese and refried beans, are the most widely enjoyed national dish, and a delicious cup of coffee is never far from hand. Abundant fruits and vegetables make it easy for vegetarian travelers. While in the city, we eat at restaurants and in hotels; during our time in the village a local cook, with many years of Putney group experience, helps us prepare our meals and even gives cooking lessons for those interested!
The pupusa is the most typical national food - a thick flour tortilla stuffed with various combinations of cheese, beans, vegetables, and ground meat.
Currency • All transactions in El Salvador are carried out in U.S. Dollars, so you won’t have to exchange currency. An ATM card is the easiest way to access cash.
Voltage • There’s no need to bring converters or plug adapters. El Salvador uses the same voltage and current as the United States, and plug heads are also identical to U.S. two and three prong varieties. In the village, access to electricity is limited, but sufficient for recharging camera batteries and other small electronics.
The Global Awareness in Action El Salvador program is directed by Patrick Noyes. If you have questions, are interested in receiving more detailed information, or would like to talk further about the program, please get in touch!
Patrick Noyes
Patrick Noyes: Georgetown University, B.A., Spanish. After living for five years in Spain, Patrick joined Putney ten years ago as leader of a Spain Language Learning program. He spent five summers with Excel in Spain, and has directed Excel at Amherst College, Excel China, and Excel Spain. Patrick oversees leader hiring, and has an unhealthy fascination with technology, which he tries to balance with healthier fascinations of camping, architecture, and arthouse Spanish Cinema.
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