Sawasdee Newsletter VOLUME II FALL 2005, MID-SEMESTER CIEE-THAILAND, WWW.CIEE.ORG

Greetings from Thailand! Welcome back to our mid-semester newsletter. Thank you for all of the compliments we received on the last one! As mentioned in our last newsletter, the farmers that students met with in Surin province have carried out their Fair Trade USA Campaign successfully with the support of ENGAGE (Educational Network for Global and Grassroots Exchange). The tour went so well that some of the organizations they visited in the US will in return be visiting the farmers in the coming months. Two of our students wrote up an article about the importance of rice to farmers and the potential impact of the pending Thai/US FTA and were published in Thailand’s leading English newspaper, the Bangkok Post!

At the end of our last newsletter the students had just completed the food unit where they spent time living and learning with rice farmers in Northeastern Thailand (I-saan). Since then the students have traversed most of I-saan and covered five more units exploring the nature of development in Thailand today. This group of students has come a long way this semester in understanding the issues facing Thai communities and have developed a strong group commitment and understanding of how to work effectively with one another.

as a result of their ability to work so well together, the students have found ways to have very candid exchanges with diverse groups of people. Be it world financial organizations, the government, international NGOs, or rural villagers; the students have always shown great prowess in getting to the core of the issues we are studying. Their good group process has also allowed the students to come to better conclusions even in the face of so many differing view points. This unique group ability has allowed them to hone a collective vision for entering project time.

Unlike many other groups in the past, the students began talking about their group vision for project time as early as the third unit. Usually those talks are saved for the weekend before final project time! The talk right now seems to be centered on “Community” and its importance here in Thailand, as well as the importance of building/rebuilding communities in the US. It should be exciting to see what they come up with for projects.

U n i t 2 : W a t e r After the Food unit students transitioned into their next unit to explore another ingredient essential to life: water. For this unit students had the opportunity to visit three separate sites along the Mun River where large dams have been constructed. At each site students had the opportunity to engage many different perspectives in dialogue. Students met with the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand, the Royal Irrigation Department, villagers affected by the dams, as well as the Thai Baan Research Center run by villagers trying to record and preserve the way of life of villagers that are dependant upon the river.

At each of the sites the students were surprised to see the different levels of organization amongst the communities being affected. At the Pak Mun Dam area, students witnessed a high level of organization in resisting the dam carried over many years. At the Rasi Salai Dam area, students saw a community in confusion. Finally, at the Hua Na Dam area, students saw an unorganized community unaware of the potential affects the dam may have on their livelihoods when it is operational.

Seeing the diverse levels of organization amongst the villages we visited in the water unit also helped students to begin assessing the importance of strengthening their own group process.

U n i t 3 : L a n d In the land unit students explored the nature of mining in Thailand by visiting a proposed Potash-salt mine site in Udorn Thani, Thailand. Potash is a major ingredient for producing fertilizer. Seeing that the potash mine could have a negative impact on the livelihoods of local villagers, the students began to question the environmental feasibility of mining, as well as their role as consumers that are dependant on extractive industries. This unit stirred many discussions about consumption, the environment, and community organizing.

Among the many exchanges from government offices to dinners with villagers, the students were particularly inspired by an exchange they had with a local 17 year old villager named Nan who is working to organize the youth of her village. They were impressed to see so much passion in a person so young who is working to protect the rights of the village she grew up in. Students are already planning to return to Udorn Thani to learn more from Nan during their final project time.

B u d d h i s m T r i p s

Students have been able to explore a variety of Thai Buddhist perspectives. The group first traveled to meet with Pra Paisan, the abbot of a forest temple, to investigate socially engaged Buddhism. The group then visited a Santi Asoke community, a back-to-the-land Buddhist movement that has intentional communities throughout the country. Students were able to enter their life, farm, and even climb mountains without any shoes! (an Asoke tradition). In Bangkok, The group visited Wat Dhammakaya, one of the biggest temple in Thailand, to learn of their unique meditation philosophy. Then, the group met with Dahmma Nanda, Thailand’s first and only female ordained monk, and shared her inspiring story.

U n i t 4 : B a n g k o k T r i p The Bangkok unit always serves as a time for students to see the bigger picture of the issues they have been studying out in the villages of Isaan. It also marks a transition point in the program from focusing on development from a rural viewpoint to focusing on development from an urban perspective.

This semester students had a chance to meet with: the US

Embassy on global trade issues, the World Bank to better understand how global financial institutions function in developing countries, Secretary General Dr. Amphon Kittiampon at the National Economic and Social Development Board to learn more about Thailand’s new development plans, Dr. Nitra Pibulsongkham, the former Thai Ambassador to the US to discuss the pending Thai/USA FTA agreement, Oxfam-GB, a global NGO, to broadly discuss international development issues, Sunee Chaiyarose the Commissioner of Thailand’s National Human Rights Commission, and Roong Aroon School to learn more about alternative education in Thailand today.

As you can probably tell, our week in Bangkok was filled with exchanges that left students overflowing with information as well as a little homesick for the more Sabai Sabai (relaxed) atmosphere of life back in the NE of Thailand.

U n i t 5 : H e a l t h a n d G e n d e r The health and gender unit was a time for the students to understand more about themselves and other people around them. This semester students explored the perceptions of sex and gender in Thai society in a variety of exchanges, met with HIV/AIDS patients in Mahasarakham, and visited a local Khon Kaen village women’s weaving cooperative.

U n i t 6 : U r b a n

The urban unit brought students full circle in understanding the changing face

of ‘livelihood’ in Thailand. At the beginning of the semester students spent time in rural communities to understand the traditional ways of life of villagers, and now students had the opportunity to see the effects of development in an urban setting. Students spent several days living with the local Khon Kaen landfill community.

Students have been left grappling over the meaning of ‘development’ and what exactly people mean when they say ‘development’. Development of whom? Development of what? Is development that works towards building an urban lifestyle the correct path, or is development about getting back to more traditional and rural ways of life? Or, perhaps some balance in between this spectrum?

At the moment students are busily preparing for the next month of final projects. One of the group projects that all of the students are working on this year is the COMMON GROUND publication. Through this project you will see a reflection of what the students have been studying and learning about over the course of the semester. The students have decided to focus their publication on “community” in Thailand, and “community” in the world. Our final newsletter this semester will be this student publication! We on staff were happy to

see this common vision of the importance of community emerge for final project time. It showed that the students not only grasped the importance of community in Thailand, but even the importance of developing community within their own group. This vision probably would not have emerged had students not developed such a strong group conscious early on in the program. Every semester there are different lessons to learn depending on what previous groups have passed on. This collective group vision of the importance of community will be a great lesson to pass onto the next group of students and see where they go with it.

We are expecting to see some wonderful projects materialize over the coming month. See you next time!

Sincerely yours, David, Arunee and Adisak Address: CIEE-THAILAND, P.O. Box 91 Khon Kaen University Khon Kaen THAILAND Tel. 66-43-374922 D a v i d Streckfuss, Resident director dstreckfuss@yahoo.com mobile: 6 6 - 1 - 7 0 8 1 8 5 2 A r u n e e Chubkhuntod, Language Coordinator, Office Manager aruneee@yahoo.com 66-1-9653400 A d i s a k Kaewrakmuk, Field Study Coordinator numerosak@gmail.com 6 6 - 1 - 9 7 4 0 2 9 0