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Eye-Opening Adventures
The Chiapas Experience: Does NAFTA Work?
A land of lush mountains, verdant valleys, and teeming forests, Chiapas burst into the world's headlines on New Year's day 1994 - the day that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) went into effect - when an uprising led by the Zapatista movement reminded the world that indigenous people continue to struggle for their rights 500 years after the European conquest. This southernmost Mexican state is the poorest, despite being the richest in natural resources.
JEM's one-week travel adventures to Chiapas offer a unique learning and living experience. Our time in Nuevo Yibeljoj, an indigenous community that refuses to take up arms in the midst of conflict, will bring to life new insights into the meaning of "empire" and faith, and how we might be called to live differently so that others might live.
(See Hearts Encountering Hearts in sidebar for a personal reflection)
Highlights of the trip
- Learn about globalization from Third World teachers
- Visit coffee and artisan cooperatives
- See sustainable communities in resistance
- Reflect on the impact of globalization on the daily lives of indigenous people
- Gain a greater knowledge and understanding of the social, economic, environmental, and political realities that challenge the region
- See more clearly how U.S. economic structures affect the poor within and outside our borders
We invite people of different ethnic and economic backgrounds in the U.S. to travel with us and join with others of varying backgrounds from Mexico City. This multicultural experience will enrich our understanding of issues while allowing us to build relationships across borders.
Links
SIPAZ (International Service for Peace)
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