Spring Break 2015! At the Nicholas School, this meant a combination of residential and DEL Master of Environmental Management (MEM) students traveled to Oaxaca, Mexico, for a field course in community based environmental management (CBEM). CBEM “involves communities becoming empowered to manage their own environment in ways that are economically viable, socially just and environmentally sustainable.”[1] The DEL course offered a unique opportunity to combine classwork and discussion with an immersive field experience, allowing students to learn firsthand how CBEM initiatives can be a successful strategy for environmental management not just in theory, but also in practice.
[1] https://sites.nicholas.duke.edu/communitycertificate/?page_id=439
Students visit a community run ethnobotanic garden hosting native species from across the state of Oaxaca. Courtesy of Duke Environmental Leadership Program
Dr. Elizabeth Shapiro-Garza, Assistant Professor of the Practice of Environmental Policy & Management at the Nicholas School of the Environment, teaches the course, and argues that Oaxaca is “an ideal place to observe environmental management in action.” [1] Rich in natural resources, Oaxaca also has many traditions of indigenous governance practices, and a history of organizing against corporate and government resource exploitation. In addition, Ejidos, a system of common lands ownership within the state, provides a legally recognized and politically feasible framework for managing the environment at a community level. All of these reasons make the region “a leader in innovative community-based management initiatives”. [2]
During their visit, students met with different community leaders and councils, who are responsible for decision-making and organizing to collectively manage their environmental resources. Students also had the opportunity to engage with non-profit and government bodies that support and collaborate with the community organizers.
The opportunity to learn from these leaders in Oaxaca was extremely valuable to Connie Hernandez, MEM ’16, who “loved having community members of San Juan Lachao, La Ventanilla, and the passionate people working with ICICO, CONAFOR, WWF in Oaxaca, and CEPCO as teachers.”
In addition to gaining knowledge of existing and successful CBEM initiatives, this trip provided the opportunity for DEL and residential MEM students to learn from one another’s distinct professional and academic experiences. Although studying for the same degree, DEL’s online students and full-time/on-campus MEM students typically don’t have much opportunity to interact with each other. Both groups provide different expertise and perspectives, and the class provided a platform for those two to come together for everyone in a fresh, valuable (and fun!) way.
A decisive theme echoed from students was that the trip provided a real source of inspiration. For graduate students who typically spend much of their time in the classroom, Zoie Diana, MEM ’16, said that “being immersed in Mexico and actually having conversations with the community members gave me a sense of energy and inspiration that can be more difficult to take away from reading papers.”
The experience was just as enriching for DEL students. Chantal Collier, DEL-MEM ’16, found that “the opportunity to step into urban, forest and coastal community project sites and spend time with the people whose communities have been transformed by them was an extraordinary way to integrate our coursework with real-world case studies of CBEM.” For Michelle Schopp, DEL-MEM ’16, “it was refreshing…to be exposed to the good people and the good things they are doing for their culture, their environment and how that good can impact and influence the rest of the world.”
Overall, the resounding benefit of traveling to Oaxaca was to witness local environmental management successes firsthand. As Xinxing Zhang, MEM ’16, reflected, “what inspired me the most is that I see things are happening and people are making their effort to achieve sustainable development — and it works.”
[1] https://nicholas.duke.edu/del/delmem/courses
[2] https://nicholas.duke.edu/del/delmem/courses
Written by Tricia Hooper, MEM ’16