IIC Orientation 2013
It was a bright and sunny Saturday afternoon
in Denver, with the smell of fresh cut grass wafting in the air, when the
2013-2014 International and Intercultural Communication (IIC) students,
faculty, and staff gathered for orientation.
The students congregated at the University of Denver’s air-conditioned
International House and sat in a circle of comfortable sofas and chairs as they
introduced themselves to their peers.
Each student present gave a short description of his or her exceptional
accomplishments and interests, and each student emoted anticipation for what is
to come this academic year. The intimate
orientation, facilitated by Margie Thompson and Kate Burns, featured an
overview of the IIC program as well as appearances by department faculty members
and the Dean of the Arts and Humanities and Social Sciences.
To kick-off the learning process, the IIC
students participated in a cultural exercise, which featured a real and current
development issue in Costa Rica that is close to Margaret Thompson’s
heart. The activity dealt with development,
land rights, and finding common ground between stakeholders. In groups of three, the students worked to
analyze and create solutions via the perspectives of various stakeholders in
the issue. The activity necessitated the
focus, participation and expertise of each IIC student and created a sense of
teamwork. Overall, the findings were
creative, thoughtful, and overlapping.
The exercise focused on current tensions along
the southern Carribbean coast of Costa Rica with historic land rights and mega
tourism “development”:
“A growing number of people in
the coastal communities fear that their small paradise in the southern
Caribbean is being severely threatened by the current government, land
speculators, transnational mining and oil interests and mega tourism
developers. Although 90% of the land in the Talamanca region is within
some kind of wildlife or indigenous reserve, manipulation is taking place
behind the scenes, designed to create confusion and pass laws in the name of
‘protection’ that would weaken or even eliminate historical land rights of
coastal villages.”
Student groups
represented the following stake holder groups:
Afro Costa Ricans, ICT
(National Costa Rican Tourism Institute), Foro Caribe Sur (community forum),
Talamanca Chamber of Tourism, small entrepreneurs, and environmentalists)
Each of the
stakeholders named concerns for building capital, protecting the environment,
and maintaining local support and culture.
Below is a summary of their analyses:
1)
Afro Costa
Ricans
-Needs/concerns: job scarcity; no proper land titles; vulnerable
eco-tourism/paradise and heritage; subject to discrimination and racism
-Potential
solutions:
Establish guidelines for accessing land titles;
having more afro costa rican representation within the government; Work with
locals to establish alternative tourism
Hold cultural heritage celebrations; have more
legal representation/create more voice for locals
2)
The ICT
(National Costa Rican Tourism Institute)
-Needs/concerns: Money, community support, favorable laws
-Potential solutions: Donating a portion of profits to health and
education efforts; involving local (and claimants); providing jobs (education
and health)
-Developing advisory board; establishing community
funds; developing business cooperative company
3)
The Foro
Caribe Sur
-Needs/Concerns:
Funding for health, education and tourism promotion (not large corp.
development project); maintain current laws and land rights; maintain integrity
of land-environmental issues
Potential solutions:
-Small scale tourism development projects
(avoid cruise ships, etc.); education on laws/land rights to avoid
manipulation; laws/plans to distribute tourism revenue for education, health,
etc.
-More emphasis on locals in terms of health and
education; better communication with community members; locals gaining
pride/ownership in their community
4)
The
Talamanca Chamber of Tourism
Needs/concerns: Make money and economic improvement; control
development as opposed to outside control; maintain community ownership
Potential solutions:
-Physically limit
development for purpose of protecting land rights and environment as well as
maintain ecotourism; hire locally; smear campaign against outside development
-Provide employment
for community members and entrepreneurs in the community; develop ecotourism
destinations that incorporate wildlife refuges; plan cultural festivals to
celebrate local culture
5)
Small
entrepreneurs
Needs/concerns: Maintain profits and competitive edge; maintain
the integrity of the environment to continue their eco-tourism industry;
maintain special access for local businesses (taxes, permits, etc.)
Potential solutions:
-Establish a
chamber of commerce/coalition that represents the interests and needs of
already established and/or new locally owned businesses; establish an
environmental council that is part of the decision-making process in regards to
environmental protection from extractive industries; establish an “eco-tax” on
corporations or businesses that have an environmental impact that goes back to
preservation
-See “eco-tax”;
mapping of the community to demonstrate the different
areas/businesses/industries; establish a traditional authority to represent the
costa rican cultural groups.
6)
Environmentalists
Needs/concerns: Legal protection; sustainability of National
Ecotourism; Preservation of National Resources
Potential solutions:
-Political
Coalitions/Boards/Steering Groups (costa riquisimma!); Economic rule of law,
clear borders, return financing; Cultural: Indigenous, Afro-Costa Rican,
Spanish (Education, museums, interthematic promotion)
-Human rights:
Education, Decent labor; historical locale propriety; expanding semi protected
lands; Adjusting rates and laws
The exercise turned out to be a great way for
the students to learn that there are no easy answers in international
development (an area where some of us may work someday). This message lingered over the IIC Department
as the orientation came to a close with a savory meal and conversation between
the students. This in-depth orientation
left the department, students and faculty, more acquainted and prepared for the
2013-2014 academic year.
