San Cristobal: contact

I was alerted by one of my contacts at the university that an agroecology short course that has been in session for the past two weeks in San Cristobal, featuring academics who have been doing work in Chiapas for several years. I attended one of the lectures that was put on in conjunction with the course the other night and got to meet quite a few people that it was very good for me to meet. There were three presentations given on fair trade coffee (all in Spanish, which made my brain quite tired by the end of the night). I also attended a lecture on intercultural agroecology where, I must admit, I learned quite a few agriculture terms in Spanish that will be useful to me. Both lectures gave me something new to think about in terms  of my research, including differing survival strategies of coffee farmers, the change in value of coffee, and the real difference between fair trade and direct trade. And important too...the comment by the last lecturer that the use of traditional agricultural methods by farmers is not a return to the past, but a way to build a better future.
I wonder where coffee fits into that?

Most importantly, I had the opportunity to introduce my research to people who have been doing research in Chiapas for some time. They were responsive and asked helpful questions. I must say that it will be nice to have more to say about my work, that is, it will be exciting to have some empirical examples to draw on after my trip out into the communities.

I also finally made it out to the University. I'm quite glad I waited for an invitation, I would have been quite lost without one. I had an amazing meeting with one of the professors there, who was cautiously optimistic at my chances of getting the Zapatistas to agree to let me do research. She said they are quite a bit more cautious/strategic now, turning many people away and only using the research that people are doing that will be useful as another tool in their war. So that gave me some things to think about. She also said that I would be a welcome addition to their student researcher in residence program, which is great. It will be nice to have an academic affiliation in the country.