Introduction |
The Utah State University (USU) Ethnographic Field School has been providing students with classroom instruction and hands-on experience/training in ethnographic methods since 2002 (www.usu.edu/anthro/peru for more information about the 2002, 2003, and 2004 field-seasons). Designed and coordinated by USU Professor of Anthropology Bonnie Glass-Coffin whose intimate familiarity with the region extends back more than 30 years, the field school is now held every other year in Huanchaco, Peru, just outside the city of Trujillo on Peru’s north central coast. Mirroring the history of in-migration and urbanization in other parts of coastal Peru, this fishing “village” has exploded in size over the last 20 years. In this period, Huanchaco has been transformed from a sleepy hamlet of less than 1000 residents with a subsistence fishing economy to a sprawling, demographically diverse region with a district-wide population of more than 50,000. Tourism, agri-business, and other service-based (and mainly informal) employment have all but replaced fishing. While half-a-dozen fishermen in their traditional reed fishing boats called caballitos de totora still ply the waves in early morning and late afternoon, their numbers have declined rapidly over even the last five years and today, it is more common to see surf-boards than caballitos de totora on the water. This is definitely a region undergoing rapid and dramatic transition. In response to the challenges posed by these changes as well as requests from Huanchaco residents for a more “action” oriented anthropology, beginning in 2006 the USU Ethnographic Field School changed its focus and priorities. While ethnographic research is still an important component of the field school training, a model for beneficial social change emphasizing both participatory research methods and Asset-Based Community Development was developed and implemented by USU students and community partners in four very different sectors of Huanchaco. Students were organized into research teams and charged with identifying local panels of community experts to inventory individual and community-wide assets and to envision, design, and carry-out grass-roots development projects together with these community partners. Study areas included Huanchaco (the district “seat” and former fishing village that has been most transformed by tourism), Huanchaquito (a nearby fishing village with a less developed business/tourism center), El Tablazo (a recent settlement away from the beach originally designated for refugees who had lost their homes to a recent “El Niño” flood) and las lomas (the most populated sector of the district and a settlement away from the beach that has attracted migrants from the mountains and tropical forests of northern Peru). The student reports available on this site (downloadable pdf files accessed by clicking on the name of each of these four sectors below) are “process reports” that provide background information about the respective study-areas, the names (and in some cases contact information) for community partners involved in the process, and an outline of the steps each team and their partners utilized to meet their objectives. These reports provide valuable lessons for program-planners about Asset Based Community Development in action. Additionally, they provide insights about how, even in culturally and geographically similar sectors, these programs develop organically, in response to the agendas and talents of key players. Comparing these reports, it is apparent that a commitment to Asset Based Community Development requires flexibility, adaptability, and a willingness to surrender to the process. But, the reports also show just how much can be accomplished in a short amount of time (in this case only five weeks) when using this kind of a model for change. The reports (as well as accompanying photos) also show the deep sense of accomplishment gained by students and community partners alike as a result of their involvement in this process. The next session of the USU Ethnographic Field School is scheduled for June and July of 2008, where the next “phase” of this Asset Based Community Development program will be designed and implemented. The field school is ideal for advanced undergraduate students and graduate students with a background in anthropology or related social sciences with strong Spanish language skills and an interest in international development/beneficial social-change. However, application is not limited to students with these credentials. Instead, we seek students who can bring a wide range of assets, interest, and expertise to the table as we envision futures together with our community partners in and around Huanchaco. If this sounds like you, we hope you’ll consider joining us for the continuing adventure. |