Student Reflections: Stanford’s Global Risks Course ‘17
The following is a series of interviews with students from indigenous communities in Mexico, who participated in the course ‘Global Risks: Biodiversity, Security and Governance in Latin America’ at Stanford’s Center for Latin American Studies during the summer of 2017. Their comments have been translated from Spanish.
The ‘Global Risks’ course is a joint effort between Stanford’s Center for Latin American Studies, Mexico’s Autonomous Institute of Technology (ITAM), Mexico’s National Association of Universities and Higher Education Institutions (ANUIES), and the U.S. Embassy to Mexico.
Maximiliano Hernández Cabrera
School: Universidad Veracruzana Intercultural sede regional Huasteca (Intercultural University of Veracruz in the region Huasteca region)
Ethnicity: Náhuatl
I am currently in the sixth semester of my bachelor’s in Intercultural Management for Development, and my research topic is the promise of the Holy Rosa ritual as a healing process. In addition to being a student, I am also a traditional doctor and I am very proud of my traditional knowledge.
The reason I joined the “Global Risks” course is because I found it very interesting. In my municipality, there are a lot of issues with the bad governing of the mayors, and there is also corruption during the candidacy periods when there is conflict between the candidates themselves to obtain the post of municipal mayoralty.
What was your final presentation about?
“The Legalization of Poppy.” After conducting an analysis of narco trafficking and corruption, I realized that embedded in this entire situation is poppy, a drug that has not yet been legalized and that has a high demand since Mexico is the country that produces the greatest amount of poppy and it is imported to the United States. Additionally, the producers do not receive adequate compensation for their harvests, and another finding is that poppy has properties to cure diseases. As a conclusion, we suggest the legalization of poppy to reduce violence and narco trafficking, and the use of poppy as medicine to treat illnesses.
What were some of your favorite parts of this experience?
The experience that I liked the most about this course are the topics that are analyzed during the program’s sessions on governance in Mexico, violence, and narco trafficking, as well as the trips to San Jose and San Francisco; however, the most enjoyable part was getting to know Stanford. It was an honor staying at Stanford. I also liked exchanging knowledge with my classmates and learning about the experiences of some doctorate students at Stanford.
How has this course deepened your understanding of these issues?
I have deepened my knowledge on the issues discussed in such a manner that I relate them with the issues that arise in my state/municipality since there are similarities between all these issues discussed; violence and narcotrafficking are issues present in the majority of the states.
How has this experience impacted you personally, or academically?
This course has impacted me now that I have acquired new knowledge that will help me contribute to and complement my work addressing the problems my community faces, so that there is change and violence decreases.
Anything else you’d like to add?
I would like to thank the United States Embassy for giving me this scholarship and for the opportunity to participate in this summer course. I take with me new knowledge from this course that will help me in my development.
Tlascamati miak (Many thanks).
Erik López Díaz
My name is Erik Lopez Diaz, I have lived in the city of Guadalajara, Jalisco, for six years. At this moment, I am studying at the University of Guadalajara for a Bachelors in International Relations. However, I come from a small community called hukupaá, north of the state of Jalisco. I am wixarika, by inheritance and decision as I am very proud to belong to such a great culture for which we are known worldwide. I decided to migrate to the big city to have more opportunities for growth, professional and personal, always bearing in mind my commitment to the community that saw me grow, and which has its hopes of development in young people who live the same situation as me.
How/why did you became involved in the Global Risk course?
Currently, I serve in an office of the University of Guadalajara: UACI — Unidad de Apoyo para Comunidades Indígenas (Support Unit for Indigenous Communities), which offers different supports for our best performance in the city as students representing different cultures. It was there that, through an email addressed to me, I was notified of the course by the administrative staff of that unit. Once I had read the announcement, I decided to quickly apply for the scholarship offered by the United States Embassy in Mexico to participate in the course, passing through rigorous filters for which I attribute the credit, to finally be selected finalist and live this great experience.
What was your final presentation about?
It is a public policy initiative to legalize the production of poppy in Mexico. Specifically, we have focused on studying the case of the state of Guerrero, where 60% of the republic’s total production is focused. Another reason why we chose this issue was the particularity of the organized crime that this region is exposed to, as the territory is disputed by different groups that fight the monopoly of the production and consequently the migration, the obligated production of narcotic drugs by laborers, the decrease in the presence of different institutions of the state such as IMSS [the Mexican Institute for Social Security] and SEP [the Mexican Secretariat of Education], among others, and the insecurity and integrity of the habitants. The objective of this policy is to have the state demand this product for implementing it in medicinal uses, such as opioids and morphine, which our public health institutions lack. Although we are aware that our initiative would not change all of Mexico, it would reduce by a significant percentage the market of this drug that brings so much violence with it.
What were some of your favorite parts of this experience?
First, definitely getting to meet such illustrious personalities who already have a fair trajectory in the subjects that are of my personal and local interest. Second, being able to share interests, knowledge and this unforgettable experience with students and graduates of different cultures, ethnicities, economic status, and political inclinations that have made this course more interactive. Lastly, honestly, was being able to leave your country and find a world very different in all the areas that we are accustomed to in our communities; this is more personal, but it is very nice to be a part of this program — thank you.
How has this course deepened your understanding of these issues?
The reality is that I already had knowledge of certain issues, but I had never understood them in such a manner that made me analyze personal and local problems as this course has. Everything has been so enriching that I have been awakened the need to collaborate in this center of studies for my own professional development, thereby supporting the ease with which to better understand the subject matter of many of my colleagues present here.
How has this experience impacted you personally, or academically?
The impact that this course is having is so great that, as my stay in this university progresses, I am invited to more activities in Mexico, in my university, in my municipality, and in my school. All this together makes it difficult to calculate the ultimate impact it would have, as I am just setting foot there. However, I am certain that this experience will open many doors for me to develop personally and professionally here in the USA, as in Mexico.
Anything else you’d like to add?
In two years, I envision myself as a student in the Public Policy Master’s program at Stanford University, collaborating in research with Beatriz Magaloni.
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