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Submission: Joseph Luther
This past July, I had a chance to visit for the first time in person our partners in Nicaragua. I was afforded the opportunity through a travel grant from the Education and Culture Program of Partners of the Americas, Inc. The Education and Culture Program will fund the travel and related expenses up to $100, as well as the cost of visas up to $100, for any willing Partners volunteer once a year. The program is aimed at public diplomacy and typical travel purposes include, but are not limited to: assistance with local transportation; performances; professionalization of educators; civic education and civic participation; environmental education; understanding economic development and trade; and the promotion of human rights of minorities and indigenous people.
I arrived the night of the 14 of July and met briefly with W/NP Executive Director, Nancy Mischnick, who had already been in the country for five days, regarding the outcome of her activities thus far. Also present were the famed W/NP driver and sometimes tour guide, Moisés Guillen, and rock-solid office manager, Mirna Angulo. It was a privilege to meet these two with whom I had been working from across the globe and had heard so much about.
The subsequent ten days were a tightly scheduled, well orchestrated (thanks to the conduction of the staff in Managua) torrent of meetings, appointments, and rendezvous.
The security checkpoints at the U.S Embassy and the U.S. Agency for International Development were painstaking, where the Ambassador and USAID representatives were cordial and receptive. W/NP's history of successes and plans for the future were discussed.
Visits with the leaders from the Padre Fabretto Foundation and the Rainbow Network were sensible and productive. Both of these Non-Governmental Organizations and W/NP share considerable histories of action and successes. Areas of mutual concern and potential cooperation were discussed.
Meetings with officials from the Universidad Nacional Agraria and the Jinotega Partner City Committee were lively and interactive. These groups are both hopeful for collaboration with W/NP on drafted projects that they have in the works. Here my Spanish was tested as nobody from either of the groups had any sort of proficiency in English. Consequently the dialogue proceeded in "Spanglish" and so was peppered with the occasional furrowed brow or chuckle.
In Los Cedros, Cardenas, Jinotega, and Managua, I was fortunate enough to be able to view first-hand ongoing projects in which W/NP is involved. I was provided tours through a Learning Center, a Casa Base, and a Urological Hospital where donations of surgical equipment from W/NP are being used. It was an important opportunity to become familiar with some of the day to day challenges that confront the people involved in operating these facilities.
I met with local artists at the Cultural Center in Granada to discuss opportunities for them and their work to become part of an ongoing cultural exchange program between Wisconsin and Nicaragua. I met with the Bomberos, Nicaragua's fire and emergency volunteers, at their headquarters in Managua to view their use of donated equipment and vehicles from W/NP and to discuss future needs.
I participated in an "office tour" and "warehouse assessment" in which I was able to meet the rest of the W/NP team in our Managua office - Leonor Guerrero, Lucia Vega, Patricia Ruiz, Fernando Miranda, and Vania Siezar - and participate in discussions pertaining to the teamwork and administrative functions of both the Wisconsin and Nicaragua offices. It was also a privilege to meet my counterpart, the W/NP Managua Program Director, José Crus, and to discuss with him the utilization of new funding that may be funneling into the Central American region over the next year. Additionally, I was involved in the viewing and assessment of property intended for use as new W/NP office space.
Finally, I represented W/NP at a donation of a telescope to the Instituto Nicaraguense de Estudios Territoriales (INETER). An ipegue (an indigenous Nicaraguan word meaning a bonus or "freebie") to my trip were the numerous "accidental" encounters with individuals representing a broad spectrum of organizations involved in disparate activities in Nicaragua - always potential collaborators.
I look forward to drawing from the rich and copious experience I gained while in our partner country to work toward W/NP's goals of improving the lives of people in Wisconsin and Nicaragua.
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