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 #1s: Specially Designed Chiapas Travel
Dates determined by participants
Unique three-day to three-month immersion 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, rain and cloud forests, tropical rivers, and beautiful colonial cities.
Trip #87A: Musicians' Educational Tour
Sunday, Jan. 31, 2010 until Saturday, Feb. 6, 2010
Experience the music of the Zapatista movement and help spread that music to Zapatista schools. Musicians are encouraged to bring instruments and teaching ideas to short, intensive, music educational exchanges and classes. Resources are highly limited and instrument donations are greatly appreciated.
Trip #87B: Payasos sin Fronteras/ Clowns without Borders
Sunday, Feb. 7, 2010 until Saturday, Feb. 13, 2010
Join the clowns without borders delegation to share in the joys of the revolution. "A revolution that is without laughter has already lost." Travel to different Zapatista communities to assist in clowning workshops. Teach games to build expression and confidence with and international clowning delegation.
Trip #88: Alternate Spring Break 2010
Dates to be determined by participants
The alternative Spring Break 2010 delegation is a service delegation that will do work in 2 or 3 different Zapatista zones. Delegates will work, live and learn while living in rustic buildings in Zapatista civilian centers and communities. 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.
Trip #89 Chiapas Schools Construction
Sunday, June 20 to Saturday, June 26, 2010
Join the thousands of women and men who have helped lay a brick, dig a ditch, or pound a nail to advance education
Trip #90 Mayan Corn and Organic Agriculture
Sunday, July 25 to Saturday, July 31, 2010
Plant a seed of hope and learn about sustainable agriculture from the people who invented corn.
Trip #91 Zapatista Education & Health & Anniversary of Zapatista governments
Sunday, Aug. 8 to Saturday, Aug. 14 2010, 2010
Learn about the top two priorities of the Zapatista movement (education and health) and how their volunteer, rotating, elected, civilian government carries them out.
