I Belize in the Future of Agriculture: Post Travel Blog (Erin)

Agriculture wears a lot of different hats. It looks different across the world. It is based in culture, tradition, and the importance of providing for, and serving others. Traveling to Belize was a reminder of the impact agriculture has. A reminder of it's overall importance.

In the United States, agriculture is oftentimes an afterthought. For the most part, we are fortunate enough to be food secure, and for many people, the thought of where their food comes from stops at the grocery store. Most people are generations removed from the farm, therefore creating a disconnect between farmer and consumer.

Agriculture looks a lot different in Belize! 

In Belize, we saw the importance of agriculture from the start of our trip. We saw how agriculture spread its roots in Mayan culture, in Mennonite culture, and beyond. One of the things that stood out to me, was the Mayan people and their dedication to their land. People historically would walk up to two hours JUST to get to their farms, and everyday would continue to farm.

I think in travel it's easy to look at just the differences between here or there. But differences don't bring people together. As the trip continued, I realized that even though agriculture looked different, that we all had similar concerns that impacted our industry. In both the United States and Belize, the average age of farmers continues to get older. We talked with local farmers about the uncertainty of who will take over their farm, and what will be left behind. We also discussed how the general outlook towards agriculture prevents people from wanting to involve themselves in it. Oftentimes, agriculture is seen as unappealing, something that is a last resort. It makes things difficult in bridging the age gap between the younger, and older generations.

As a future teacher, I hope to always remember to focus less on the differences, and embrace the similarities between experiences, cultures, and people. I think if we're always thinking with an "us vs. them" mentality, we can't build a connection with students. I think that's why traveling is so important. In class leading up to our departure, Belize to me was in my mind as somewhere far away. The places we talked about weren't concrete or real. It was easy to talk about agriculture, or education in Belize from afar, because we weren't made aware of the intricacies that exist from up close. Essentially, we had very limited indigenous knowledge about Belize, and the people who lived there.

Traveling makes the indigenous knowledge known, and although we'll never be experts in it, we'll at least be made aware of it. That was the entire point of #TeachAgBelize. I mean, the official class name is "Indigenous Knowledge in Agricultural Education"so I guess that makes sense. It's funny how things really come full circle when you take the time to really process your experience.

I am thankful for this experience, and for the opportunities that I have as a Penn State student. This trip would not have been possible without Dr. Miller-Foster, Dr. Foster, Dr. Ewing, Dr. McCubbins, and CELA Belize (especially Lauren and Jorge who were with us from start to finish), and I'm thankful for all that they did to make this trip as amazing as it was. I'm also grateful for my classmates, Kurt, Olivia, Britton, Kryslynne, Lex, Sarah, and Gillian. I had so much fun traveling with you guys, and getting to know you more. You all have so many different areas of knowledge and passions that taught me so much over the course of the week.

If you are interested in seeing our final presentation about what we learned, you can come to Ferguson 214 on Monday, March 26th at 4pm!

Erin Langdale is a sophomore in the Agricultural and Extension Education major at Penn State. 

Day 7: Living a Legacy (Erin)

"Legacy; What is a legacy? It's planting seeds in a garden you never get to see." 

-Lin Manuel Miranda

In the way that I am obsessed with the musical Hamilton, Alexander Hamilton was obsessed with his legacy, and what he will leave behind. Day seven was filled with the concept of leaving behind a legacy for others. A moment in time seeing the work put forth towards the future.

In the morning we went to Tumul K'in Center of Learning. Tumul K'in translates to "A New Day" and it's foundation was built on teaching students Mayan values. The Mayan community saw a generational gap between the young, and old. They decided that they didn't want to leave behind their Mayan heritage and their legacy. In turn, the learning center was built. Students came to the center for high school, and along with regular classes, students learned the local Mayan languages and traditions. It was an amazing experience to see students so young living out the legacy their ancestors left before them.

Later in the day, we had a discussion with Mayan farmers. The question of "What do you see for the future of your farm?" was posed. The farmers explained that farming had been a part of their culture for generations. They had hoped that their children might some day take over. I saw a connection to farming in the United States. There's an increasing disconnect between the farmer and the consumer. People everyday are leaving the farm to explore other opportunities. It's a reminder that all of us, Alexander Hamilton, Mayan farmers, my classmates, myself, and everyone out there, has no idea what their legacy will be. We just need to keep working towards leaving behind something positive.

Erin Langdale is a sophomore studying Agricultural and Extension Education at The Pennsylvania State University.

Preparing for Belize: Erin Langdale

Are we 12 days out from traveling to Belize? Yes.

Will I start packing before 11 days from now? Probably not.

I am though, starting to get my summer clothes together for travel. I’ve almost forgotten how to dress for warmer weather since I’ve spent the last several months wrapped up in puffy jackets, gloves, and scarves. This will definitely be a break from the cold weather. On the other hand, I’ve bought more than enough 70 spf sunscreen, and aloe vera.

Besides packing, my mental preparedness is stronger than ever. My classmates and I are getting closer, and I am learning so much about the country and it’s makeup of many cultures. In class, we’ve had speakers of all backgrounds. We learned about the importance of indigenous knowledge, we learned about Mayan values and customs, we learned about how we can interact with cultures that are different from ours, and so much more.

One of the most influential lessons we had was when we were split into two groups, and made our own cultures. This simulation really pushed me out of my comfort zone, and it honestly made me frustrated. Not only was this different from what I knew, but it was against everything I stood for. Patriarchal, where women bowed to men; It took everything in me to play along. I realized the influence that my own personal values and culture had on me.

BUT when we were tasked to interact with the culture of the other group, I made no attempts to back down from my newfound “values”. I didn’t even realize I did that until after when we were reflecting from the experience, and it woke me up to the possibility of meeting someone halfway. When we are in Belize, we can’t expect to just come in with our American values and expect Belizeans to accommodate us. That would be incredibly insensitive. In the same way, we won’t know everything about the customs there, and they will probably have to be gracious with us. It’s all about meeting people where they are. Understanding, and having compassion for others.

Something I am so excited to start working on is our in-country presentation. I’m excited to see what my classmates and I come up with to present. We all come from different backgrounds, and everyone has something awesome to bring to the table. The DIY Factbook presentation really showed what we were all passionate about in relation to our travels to Belize, and it was so cool to see that none of us presented on the same topic. We talked about climate change, biodiversity, water, education, and so much more. I’m really excited to see the direction we choose to go in. As a future educator, I can’t wait to meet with students and not only teach them about us, but learn from them. This is something that a spring break vacation doesn’t give you the opportunity to do, and a big reason as to why I wanted to be a part of this course.

We talk about lifelong learning a lot, and it’s experiences like this that really highlight that concept. I can’t wait to broaden my horizons, and face adventure head-on. I believe (or should I say, Belize) it’s how I’ll learn, and grow from this experience the most.

Introduction: Erin Langdale

Hello! My name is Erin Langdale, and I am an Agricultural and Extension Education major at Penn State, meaning that hopefully in the not-so-far-away future, I’ll be teaching agriculture in a high-school, and sharing my passion for agriculture with my students. After all, high-school agricultural education is how I came to know and love this incredible industry.

This photo was taken at Blyde River Canyon in South Africa!

When I was a kid, it was my DREAM to to travel. In my mind, I had always pictured myself flying to large European cities. Seeing the London Eye,  The Eiffel Tower, roaming around Rome, and so on. I grew up watching movies of these places and knew that one day I’d travel to them. When I think back on it, it almost shocks me how relatively small my world-view was, and how I’d only ever considered going to these more famous, cities. I guess that’s just how traveling changes your perspective.

About a year and a half ago, I was presented with the opportunity to travel to South Africa with the National FFA Organization as a part of  the International Leadership Seminar for State Officers. When the location was announced, it hit me that South Africa was not even in consideration for places I thought I might travel someday, but in a way, that made me more curious, and interested in going. I jumped in, and decided to go and it was honestly one of the greatest life experiences I have ever had.

Not going to lie, before I went, I knew next to nothing about South Africa, and in a way, it’s similar to how I know almost nothing about Belize. But just like the process of heading to South Africa, that fact that Belize is never really a place I had considered, draws more interest to me.

The reason why I want to travel to Belize is to feel as if I am learning something completely new, for the first time, all over again. When I traveled, I realized how little I actually knew, and I got to actually experience the differences in cultures, traditions, and norms of South Africa. When I got home, I craved that newness of information, and knew that maybe I wasn’t called to travel to the places I dreamed of as a kid, but it was the places I didn’t know about that I would grow more from. I am excited to see the growth that will happen on this trip. The growth of knowledge, history, culture, understanding, and so much more. I am excited to see Agricultural Education in a completely new way. And finally, I am excited to overuse every single Belize pun out there, because that’s just the person I am. I can’t wait for the adventure ahead! I can’t BELIZE it’s actually happening!