Alternative travel experiences for people-of-conscience.
Join us in the misty mountains and steamy jungles of the Mexican southeast. Every “Schools for Chiapas” trip provides excellent opportunities to meet, and personally interact with, the contemporary Zapatistas of Chiapas, Mexico. Your trip fees support Zapatista educational programs in literacy, health, ecology, and commercialization. No special language skills are required as full translations are always provided collectively.
Most Schools for Chiapas trips involve rustic living in breathtakingly beautiful locations with interesting and involved people from many countries. Occasionally, we offer trips which are based in comfortable hotels with day trips to the autonomous, indigenous communities (read Zapatista) in the misty highlands and steamy jungles of the Mexican southeast.
Schools for Chiapas also regularly organizes specially designed study trips, volunteer working delegations and activists' caravans for community, labor, high school, university, church, and specific interest groups. As of this writing (Nov. 2009) Schools for Chiapas has organized over eighty trips involving thousands of people from more than thirty countries to locations throughout the southeastern Mexican state of Chiapas.
Trip #100: New Year 2012 Zapatista Anniversary Celebration
Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2012 until Sunday, January 1, 2011
Delegation #100 will participate in the preparations and celebrations for the 18th anniversary of the Zapatista insurrection. Delegates will learn about the history of the Zapatasita movement and the future plans and dreams of the Mayan people through large public presentations as well as small meeting. Delegates are encouraged to participate directly in the nightly cultural presentations which can include but are not limited to: music, dance, theater, poetry and visual art. (This will be a once in a lifetime experience.)
Trip #101 ~ 2012 Mayan Fruit Orchards and Reforestation Nurseries
Monday, Jan. 2 until Saturday, Jan. 7, 2012 The delegation's first objective is to work with one or more isolated Mayan communities to clean, fertilize, prune and generally upgrade the community-directed school orchard and reforestation projects. The second objective is to build, clean, and upgrade reforestation nurseries. Participants will learn about the Zapatista movement through direct contact with Mayan students, education promoters, and local community members. A unique trip to an ancient Mayan city is also being planned and will be included in this trip if participants are interested.
Trip #102: Specially Designed Chiapas Travel for APLAC
Dates to be determined by AAPLAC participants
One to three days ~ Sat., Feb. 18, 2012 - Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012
Unique one to three-day experiences in autonomous, Mayan civilian centers with emphasis on the social, cultural, educational, health, and/or agricultural aspects of the Zapatista movement. Side trips are available to ancient Mayan cities. Each trip will highlight extraordinary study abroad and service experiences which have helped create profound social awareness over the last sixteen years.
Trip #103: Alternate Spring Break 2012
March 2012
Specialty delegation planned March 2012
The alternative Spring Break 2012 delegations will live and learn in rustic buildings in Zapatista civilian centers; travel will be via very basic indigenous, public transportation. The delegations will have extensive face-to-face discussions with Mayan individuals and organizations engaged in directly challenging corporate driven globalization through education, health, commercialization, and alternative indigenous governmental structures. Some delegations will undertake service projects while others will focus on learning about the ongoing social changes in Chiapas.
Trip #104 Mayan Corn and Organic Agriculture
Sunday, July 29 to Saturday, Aug. 4, 2012
Plant a seed of hope and learn about sustainable agriculture from the people who invented corn. Participants in delegation 90 will meet with promoters of ecological agriculture and production who specialize in fields such as: corn, bees, natural plague control, coffee, and others. To take our knowledge beyond that of intellectual understanding, we will assist in projects relating to the preservation of the natural environment and the people who live closest to it.
Trip #105 Zapatista Education & Health & Anniversary of Zapatista governments
Sunday, Aug. 5 to Saturday, Aug. 11, 2012
Learn about the top two priorities of the Zapatista movement (education and health) and how their volunteer, rotating, elected, civilian government carries them out.
Trip #106: A Cultural and Educational Introduction to Chiapas, Mexico
Sunday, Sept. 9 until Saturday, Sept. 15 2012 (tentative)
The city-based delegation's objective is to visit a variety of Zapatista directed education, health, and development projects and to participate in face-to-face meeting with Mayan people. Our goal is to gain familiarity with the educational, agricultural, and health progress of the contemporary indigenous communities of Chiapas, Mexico. Many activities will also be arranged based on participants interests. Optional visit to ancient Mayan city.
Trip #999 - For a better world ~ Special focus Chiapas travel
We offer regularly scheduled trips through out the year but, if you are looking for an alternative date or special focus, you should scheduled your own trip. We'll need a few months advance notice, but will be delighted to work with you and your group to create a memorial experience exploring the Zapatista movement in Chiapas, Mexico.
Side trips are available to ancient Mayan cities can also be arranged.
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