Living Routes Chairs NAFSA Task Force on Sustainability in Study Abroad
Living Routes Director, Daniel Greenberg, Chaired a Task Force on Environmental Sustainability in Education Abroad, which submitted recommendations for education abroad administrators and faculty to NAFSA: Association of International Educators on Monday, April 14, 2008. The Task Force included twelve other members from schools and NGOs in the U.S. and abroad. The Report was endorsed by AASHE, University Leaders for a Sustainable Future, The U.S. Partnership for the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development and other organizations and addresses the questions of how education abroad programs can be both high quality and low impact and also contribute to greater environmental awareness.
Sustainable Schwag
Living Routes is being invited to more and more conferences and study abroad fairs where "schwag" is abundant. Schwag refers to all manner of logoed merchandise that companies give away to promote "brand recognition." We didn't want to be left out of the game, but also didn't want to give away plastic junk (e.g., keychains, pens, water bottles) that only add to the global waste stream.
We thought about corn-based pens, sustainability-themed word magnets, and fabric passport holders, but nothing felt right. Then it dawned on us that there may be items produced within the ecovillages we work with that we could share with others.
I sent an email in April of 2007 to all our Program Directors and hit the jackpot with Upasana Design Studio, a "unit" or business within Auroville, that produces beautiful clothes using sustainable and fair traded Indian fabrics. After the tsunami in 2004, members of Upasana began working with women in nearby coastal villages and together developed the Tsunamika doll. According to their website,
Nearly 480 fisherwomen from 6 villages are trained and from them around 180 ladies are now creating these little dolls called Tsunamika. She has been hand-made from fabrics left over from other creative works in Upasana. The project team, who trained the ladies, now supplies them with raw materials to continue producing the dolls. All dolls produced are bought from them in bulk and are gifted unconditionally worldwide by Upasana.
They are quite beautiful and unique.
We have donated and received several thousand Tsunamika dolls, to which we attach a small bookmark (made out of 100% recycled paper) that has information about the Tsunamika project as well as Living Routes. They have been incredibly popular at conferences and events and we love giving them away because they support a great organization doing really valuable village development work, and connect people to Auroville, which is a natural lead-in to talk about all our programs.
I had the privilege in February, 2008 to visit with some of the village women involved in this project and actually learn how to make a Tsunamika doll.
I was incredibly impressed with the integrity of this project and the positive impact it has had on so many women.
More recently, Upasana has developed what they call Small Step Bags, which (1) prevent dumping of plastic bags, (2) provide meaningful work for local women, and (3) educate about environmental issues.
We are proud to have recently donated to support the creation of 750 bags, of which 500 have a Living Routes logo on the backside (the other 250 were left with Upasana to donate as they see fit).
While all of this started from our commitment to walk our talk, it has evolved into some beautiful relationships with some amazing individuals and organizations. Please come find us at one of our public events and pick up a Tsunamika doll or Small Step bag for yourself!
Living Routes Mourns the Loss of One of Our Students
March 26, 2008 Amherst, MA
It is with great sadness that we report that Katherine "Katie" Sherman, a member of Living Routes' spring 2008 India program, died last Thursday while studying abroad with us. Katie's unexpected death was neither due to any program-related activities, nor was it in any way associated with the site or country in which she was studying. Medical and police authorities have determined that there was no 'foul play' involved.
Katie, a University of Massachusetts Amherst junior from Chelmsford, Massachusetts, was in the Bachelor of Fine Arts program with a concentration in photography. We are devastated by the news and extend our heartfelt condolences to Katie's family and friends.
The week following was fully devoted to creating a support system for the students (and faculty and staff) in India, dealing with the many logistical details, and aiding Katie's family in any way we could. We have brought in two local psychologists, one of whom has worked as a crisis counselor with the Israeli Army. He has been working continuously with the whole student body, both individually and as a group, and with the faculty/staff. While of course there are diverse reactions to such an event, the students are being closely held, and seem to be dealing with their emotions and reactions in a healthy way. Katie's father and aunt flew to India for three days and there were many opportunities for sharing with the students. A memorial ceremony was conducted on Wednesday, March 26.
Executive Director Daniel Greenberg interrupted his site review of our Findhorn program and flew immediately to Auroville along with Katie's family representatives. He spent a week there supporting Katie's family and the students, leading an assessment and constructing a thorough understanding of the events.
All students have been given a free international calling plan to have regular contact with their loved ones. We have also set up a parent listserv for parents of all current Auroville students and are supporting them to the best of our abilities.
With Daniel's support, our faculty have restarted normal program activities. The semester was just entering the service learning portion of the program. Due to circumstances, there will likely be changes to the itinerary, but students will be able to complete the program.
Living Routes is a nonprofit charitable organization based in Amherst, Massachusetts, USA. It offers college-level programs (credit is awarded through the University of Massachusetts Amherst) based in ecovillages and intentional communities around the world to help students gain the knowledge, skills and inspiration to build sustainable lifestyles for themselves, their communities, and the planet.
Living Routes has run semester-length programs in Auroville, India, since its founding in 1999, with a strong record of health and safety. The program is led by 4 resident faculty (M.A, or PhD-level), and assisted by 3 coordinators and several other facilitators. Each semester, the Auroville program has approximately 24 students who come from colleges and universities throughout the U.S. and Canada. All Living Routes students receive an academic transcript and 16 credits from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Living Routes' Institution of Record.
Living Routes offers semester, January and summer programs in 9 countries. It has a 6-member Board of Directors and a staff of 7 at our home office in Amherst, MA. For more information, visit www.LivingRoutes.org or contact Daniel Greenberg at 413.259.0025 or daniel@LivingRoutes.org
Image posted to the Auroville program's student blog by Katie on 2/24/2008
Program Site Visits: Feb. 15-Mar. 29, 2008
Daniel Greenberg, Executive Director of Living Routes, and Gregg Orifici, Admissions/Marketing Director, will embark on program site visits beginning February 15, 2008. The schedule for the site visits is as follows:
Feb. 15- Mar. 08 Auroville, India
Mar. 09- Mar. 16 Kibbutz Lotan, Israel
Mar. 17- Mar. 29 Findhorn, Scotland
Findhorn Co-Founder, Dorothy Maclean, to Visit Sirius Feb. 8-10, 2008
Dorothy Maclean, co-founder of Findhorn Community in Scotland, will be holding a workshop at the Sirius Community in Shutesbury, MA from February 8-10. Reservations should be made, as space is limited. Dorothy Maclean will be discussing "Communicating with the Soul of Nature." For more information, please contact Sirius at: 413-259-1251, or you may email them at: info@siriuscommunity.org
Gregg Orifici Conducted a Site Visit of Mexico Program
Gregg Orifici, Admissions/Marketing Director, conducted a site visit and review of our January program at Huehuecoyotl Mexico from January 4-11, 2008.
AASHE 2008 Conference, Raleigh, NC
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) will hold it's 2008 conference in Raleigh, NC from November 9-11, 2008. This year's conference will be held in the new Raleigh Convention Center and will discuss five goals in the promotion of sustainability within higher education. More information is available at the Official AASHE Conference Website at http://www.aashe.org/conf2008/index.php If you are interested in learning more about the AASHE, please visit them at http://www.aashe.org/index.php
CIEE Annual Conference, Nashville, TN
The 2008 Conference on International Educational Exchange (CIEE) will be held in Nashville, TN from November 12-15. The focus of this year's conference is "Setting the Stage: Managing Growth in Study Abroad." If you would like more information on this conference or to register, please visit the Official CIEE Annual Conference Website at http://www.ciee.org/annual_conference.aspx
Living Routes Makes the Cover of International Educator
The January/February 2008 issue of International Educator features Living Routes. The article, written by Nicole Branan, features Living Routes as well as photographs from past Living Routes Programs. To view the article, please visit NAFSA.org at http://www.nafsa.org/publication.sec/international_educator_1/ie_jan_feb_2008/#helpinghand
Faculty Search for Fall 2007 at Auroville, India
Due to a late faculty withdrawal, Living Routes is seeking to fill one of four faculty positions on our semester program in southern India for Fall '07. A full Job Description can be seen at: http://www.livingroutes.org/about/employ.htm and more information about the India semester program can be found at http://www.livingroutes.org/programs/p_auroville.htm.
Deadline for applications is July 20, 2007.
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