Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

Indigenous peoples are increasingly recognized as initiators of innovative solutions and carriers of crucial knowledge to address sustainability challenges. However, many people from urban environments often lack opportunities to engage with and learn from indigenous communities. In this study, I explore the sustainability-driven initiative that facilitates cross-cultural learning: the Experience Program (EP) in La Guajira, Colombia. In this community-based ecotourism (CBET) program, the participants from the big cities get to immerse themselves in several communities of the Wayúu people. By using a qualitative research approach, this study combines participant observations and interviews, in order to investigate the Experiential Learning (EL) and the participants’ changes in perspectives derived from the EP, with the help of Jack Mezirow’s theory on transformative learning (TL) as well as Pierre Walter’s categorization of EL in CBET. The findings from this study reveal how nature, adventure and culture experiences gave the participants several opportunities for reflections, which were not only generated from conversations, but also from communication with non-humans. The EP also made the participants critically reflect on their previous assumptions and formed new points of views regarding the Wayúu people’s a) reputation, behavior and way of life, b) women leaders, c) environmental work and d) community and pride. This highlights the potential of CBET initiatives to foster self-awareness and critical thinking, which are some of the key competencies in education for sustainable development. To further deepen our understanding of learning in CBET, future research could assess participants’ long-term transformations or interview community hosts in the context of La Guajira.