{"id":12507,"date":"2017-05-08t16:46:25","date_gmt":"2017-05-08t16:46:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dpetrov.2create.studio\/planet\/wordpress\/cultivating-a-cultural-divide-one-hike-at-a-time\/"},"modified":"2023-03-07t19:39:41","modified_gmt":"2023-03-07t19:39:41","slug":"cultivating-a-cultural-divide-one-hike-at-a-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/story\/cultivating-a-cultural-divide-one-hike-at-a-time\/","title":{"rendered":"cultivating a cultural divide, one hike at a time"},"content":{"rendered":"

by lila reynolds
\naudio by abhishek shah<\/strong><\/p>\n

before the sun begins the morning stretch over the mountain ridge that sprawls across central panama, a group of 20-somethings departs into the jungle. in search of a new place to swim, the young hikers cross a burbling stream that threatens to fill their boots with water. beyond the river and a steep incline, they skirt a pack of cattle struggling to keep their footing on the narrow trail. they nod to the farmer who looks bemused at their continual walks and they proceed. after an hour, the voyagers reach a swimming hole, just as someone back at their camp promised. they leap into the water and rinse the 80-degree heat from their skin as the sun begins to crest over the hills.<\/p>\n

when the eco-town of kalu yala entered the panamanian landscape about 10 years ago, it brought an abundance of new life and innovation to the relatively undeveloped land surrounding the chagres national park. the small campus housed internship programs, new start-up businesses and open, roofed, rancho-style platforms for camping. innovative technology attracted lots of young americans and interns from other parts of the world hoping to make advances in the worldwide push for sustainability. but it also brought a phenomena that many panamanian locals had never seen before: hiking.<\/p>\n

while residents of san miguel, the closest town to kalu yala, may not understand the hype of carrying heavy-duty hiking packs up a hill for seemingly no reason, interns and staff at kalu yala have adopted the western tradition as a part of their culture.<\/p>\n

clay springer, the current director of the outdoor recreation department, first arrived in panama a few months ago and panamanians would watch him hiking up the steep kalu yala access road, and the final steep hill, fondly deemed \u201csuicide hill.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201coftentimes they’ll look at us and wonder what we\u2019re doing out there,\u201d springer said. \u201cand i\u2019ve been offered a ride by people, by panamanian farmers when i\u2019m walking out in the countryside. i say, \u2018no, i\u2019m doing this intentionally, i want to walk\u2026\u2019 and they\u2019re like, \u2018gringo loco, no entiendo!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

this example highlights what many kalu yalans consider a cultural divide between themselves and their neighbors. while many programs are working to engage more with the community so near their village, this often comes with challenges.<\/p>\n

aside from language barriers, which make it tough for interns to interact with young neighbors, many of the canadians and americans find it difficult to relate to the many challenges panamanian students from san miguel face. angela jones, the director of education, said she sees a level of apathy toward education in the town but it\u2019s often due to limited means that constrains access to schools.<\/p>\n

\u201cthere\u2019s no high school here,\u201d jones said. \u201cso the kids, once they graduate from primary school, then they have to go to la mesa, which is about 20, 30 minutes away to go to middle school or high school.\u201d<\/p>\n

many students decide against this daily commute and the costs of school. they stay at home or hope to find work elsewhere.<\/p>\n

\u201ci talked to a kid just the other day who was 13, i think,\u201d jones said. \u201cand he was just hanging out on the patio. i asked him \u2018what do you do?\u2019 and (he said) \u2018i don\u2019t go to school.\u2019\u201d  <\/p>\n

jones said parents are generally in support of this because it means their children can seek employment at factories in nearby towns, and parents won\u2019t have to pay for bus fares or notebooks. it saves them money, and many students have a desire to leave the valley.<\/p>\n

hiking is another apparent divide and, of course, there\u2019s a considerable gap even among americans who are interested in hiking. in 2013, the outdoor participation report found that 70 percent of americans participating in outdoor recreation were white. racial minorities represented only one in five visitors to the national parks, according to a 2011 poll. as in panama, these disparities can be linked to the wealth gap between white americans and minorities.<\/p>\n

springer attributes the relative lack of interest in hiking among panamanians living in rural areas to a desire to escape from their current lifestyle, which requires a lot of walking and outdoor labor for everyday chores and errands.<\/p>\n

\u201cthere is a cultural disconnect there,\u201d springer said. \u201ci think a lot of panamanians living in the interiors have worked really really hard to get to a point where they can leave the interior and go to the cities. so looking at hiking as a recreational activity is confusing to them.\u201d<\/p>\n

taylor gray, an outdoor recreation intern from winnipeg, in manitoba, canada, has spent her semester developing maps of surrounding hiking trails with other interns. she feels that most of the work they\u2019ve done in the past has served residents of kalu yala but hopes to encourage more participation for neighbors in san miguel and beyond.<\/p>\n

chloe chow, an intern from montreal, said even kalu yalans see hiking as a \u201cluxury,\u201d and thinks that many locals \u201cdon\u2019t know about the trails we have here.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"dsc_0499.jpg\"
chloe chow, one of six outdoor rec interns, gets an early start on maintenance of one of kalu yala\u2019s trails to beat the heat. (lila reynolds\/medill) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

springer thinks that hiking hasn\u2019t been something that panamanians have thought about as an asset in the past. however, with the building of a new canal through nicaragua<\/a>, which could take business away from the country\u2019s main source of income at the panama canal, hiking might be an important place to turn. because the new canal would not be owned by panama, trade may migrate out of their country. people previously employed at the panama canal will need to look elsewhere to work, and springer said outdoor rec is a good next step.<\/p>\n

\u201c(there) is an initiative going on with a company called \u2018caminando de panama,\u2019 which means \u2018walking panama,\u2019\u201d springer said. \u201c(the) objective is to train locals to have a durable vested interest in conserving their land by turning them into wilderness guides so when they do that, it gives them a new source of income, it gives them a reason to protect their wilderness and instills a new passion for the outdoors in their local communities, which i think is incredible.\u201d<\/p>\n