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June 7, 1997
On the road near the Guatemalan/Mexican border
E-Bulletin # 1; June 7th 1997.
This is the first of an electronic bulletin that you should receive every 2-3 weeks from now on - to keep you better informed of the activities of the Expedition, both on the road in Central and South America and with pedal boat Moksha at home-base in Monterey, California USA. It will be shorter but far more current than the full-blown web-updates which will still be posted on our web-page
Current News: Jason about to bike over the border into Guatemala at Frontera Camalapa; all educational programs now completed in Mexico. Steve and Eilbhe currently in Monterey helping Stuart with preparing Moksha for the Pacific crossing from Peru to Australia later this year; they plan to leave for South America with their bikes mid-July.
Educational summary for Mexico....
Video Exchange Program: two films for the V.E.P. have been completed; one by 12-13 yr olds in a small town called Palmillas, Sinaloa - in the north of the country. The second in Mexico City by a group of 14-16 yr olds. Both films give a pretty candid portrayal of life in each town - through the eyes of the young people doing the filming. With the help of Tandem computers and UNESCO we plan to eventually distribute a compilation tape of all the Latin American films to 100 schools in 20 different countries, dubbed in either English or Spanish.
If you are interested in receiving a copy of the films - once they have been edited - please E-mail Ms April Mann
Student Exchange: the plan is for Jason to return to Colorado for a short period in July with the 10 Mexico City film-makers to edit the Mexican films. The teenagers will stay with local families in the Rye/Pueblo area, edit the films then return to their native city with 10 US students for an exchange visit. Any families in the Rye, Pueblo area that would be interested in hosting some students aged 14-16 for 2-3 weeks, please E-mail April Mann
Pen-Pal Program: 280 pen-pal letters written by students from the six schools visited in Mexico have been sent out to 28 different countries with the help of the UNESCO Associated Schools Program. Each school visited is given a world map of the expedition's progress to date (donated by World of Maps, Tampa, Florida) and students are invited to pick any country on the map to send a letter to. The program is designed to appeal to the students imaginations - the concept that they can make friends in any country in the world.
Internet Pen-Pals: A recently developed project whereby the lap-top lent to us by Tandem Computers is set up for an afternoon at a school and students type up a letter that is E-Mailed along with their photo (taken using the digital camera) to the expedition web-site; the first letters should be up by now.
Both pen-pal programs are designed to create links between individuals around the planet that transcend the frontiers of countries and cultures - making the world feel a smaller and more intimate place for those involved.
Photo Exchange Program: thirty students have so far contributed towards this project in which plastic 35mm cameras are handed out with colour and B/W film for the students to try and capture the essence of their home/school/local neighbourhood life. Eventually we plan to make 100 copies of a Latin American photo album compiling contributions from all the countries we visit en route to Peru, sent out to the 100 schools receiving the VEP films.
Anyone interested in receiving a copy, please E-mail April Mann
Current Wish List...
1. Families for Mexico City film-makers to stay with in Pueblo or Rye area in Colorado
If you have any feedback for the expedition, you can E-mail any of us
This first bulletin is just a shorty to see if the D-list system that Jon Crow of Tandem Computers has kindly built for us actually works. Next bulletin from a new country - Guatemala. Pastures new !!!
Posted at 5:12 AM