Global Perspectives: Climate Change Reporting in Cuba
January 8­20, 2015 Professors: Mark Grabowski & John
Drew
Class hours: See itinerary below
Phone: Mark 646.820.2130
John 518.291.0738
E-mail: [email protected] /
[email protected]
General Resources:
Stony Brook Cuba Project: http://www.journalismwithoutwalls.com/cuba2012/ BBC Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3LoFX3uhctI Havana sea level rise visualized: http://vimeo.com/41972015 Environmental Defense Fund Cuba Sea Level Report: http://gulfsealevel.org/Whittle,%20Dan.pdf General: http://www.ipsnews.net/2013/06/cuba­wakes­up­to­costs­of­climate­change­effects/ General: http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/04/sea­change­in­climate­adaptation­planning­in­cuba/ General: http://unfccc.int/files/adaptation/application/pdf/cuba1.pdf &: http://www.wmo.int/pages/prog/www/tcp/Meetings/HC31/documents/Doc.4.2.8_Cuba.doc Stirring unrest: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/us­secretly­created­cuban­twitter­stir­unrest Academic Resources:
Bond, Lynne, Sinan Koont, and Skye Stephenson. "The Power of Being There: Study Abroad in Cuba and the Promotion of a" Culture of Peace"." Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad 11 (2005): 99­120. PDF: http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ891465.pdf Dasgupta, Susmita, et al. "The impact of sea level rise on developing countries: a comparative analysis." World Bank policy research working paper 4136 (2007). Herrera, Andrea O'Reilly, ed. Cuba: idea of a nation displaced. SUNY Press, 2012. Hughes, Amanda Lee, and Leysia Palen. "Twitter adoption and use in mass convergence and emergency events." International Journal of Emergency Management 6.3 (2009): 248­260. Mesa­Lago, Carmelo, and Jorge Pérez­López. "Cuba Under Raúl Castro: Assessing the Reforms." Social Welfare 2006 (2012): 119. Pertierra, Anna Cristina. Cuba: the struggle for consumption. Caribbean Studies Press, 2011. Pielke Jr, Roger A., et al. "Hurricane vulnerability in Latin America and the Caribbean: Normalized damage and loss potentials." Natural Hazards Review 4.3 (2003): 101­114. Schwartz, Rosalie. Pleasure island: Tourism and temptation in Cuba. U of Nebraska Press, 1999. Sims, Holly, and Kevin Vogelmann. "Popular mobilization and disaster management in Cuba." Public Administration and Development 22.5 (2002): 389­400. Suárez, José Antonio, et al. "Energy, environment and development in Cuba."Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews 16.5 (2012): 2724­2731. Wilson, Marisa. "Moral Economies of Food in Cuba." Food, Culture and Society: An International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research 15.2 (2012): 277­291. Wright, Julia. Sustainable agriculture and food security in an era of oil scarcity: lessons from Cuba. Routledge, 2012. * Binder for class notes and assignments. The university will make iPads, video cameras and sound recording equipment available, but access to personal digital cameras and external hard drives are recommended. Course Description:
This is a study abroad class, introducing students to the impacts of climate change and reporting about climate change in an international context. Students will travel to Cuba and visit the La Habana and more rural parts of the Cuban coastline. They will be interviewing, shooting video, capturing audio, reporting, writing and reading. They will be meeting climate change experts, local stakeholders, media professionals and government officials, and ultimately observing how climate change are converging in one of the most misunderstood and culturally rich places on Earth. Course Objectives:
This course has two core objectives. 1. To directly expose students to one of the most culturally dynamic and yet, simultaneously vulnerable places on the planet (due to its unique economic history and coastal geography); and 2. Will introduce students to the essentials of multimedia journalism — how to tell stories with images, text and video. Students will gain basic skills in still photography, shooting and editing video, international reporting, writing for the Web, and multimedia tools such as interactive maps and panoramic photos. Students will learn by doing, using the basecamp of La Habana AND Baracoa as their laboratories. Students will also study basic Spanish language and learn about the culture and history of Cuba. They will gain skills in interviewing non­native English speakers and navigating through a foreign culture. They’ll get a taste of what it’s like to work as a foreign correspondent in the 21st Century. Costs:
Although we will travel overseas during the winter break, this course is considered a spring course. Therefore, there will be no extra cost for tuition as it’s part of your normal spring tuition bill. However, there will be costs incurred for plane tickets, housing and meals, which will total approximately $3000. Be aware that this is just a tentative estimate. Student's Duty:
This class will involve extensive travel, as well as a pre­travel weekend workshop (media bootcamp) and a post­travel wrap­up session (multimedia presentations). Students are expected to participate in all aspects of the course. As it is a study abroad course, students are also expected to conduct themselves appropriately in all situations. Your behavior not only reflects on this group, but also on Adelphi University and the United States. Keep this in mind at all times. Course Requirements & Grades:
Assignments
Value
Grading Scale
Pre­travel Media Bootcamp 25% A = 93-100
Journal / Travel Blog 25% A- = 89-92
Multimedia Project 25% B+ = 85-88
Professionalism 25% B = 81-84
(participation, behavior, punctuality, etc)
B- = 78-80
C+ = 74-77
C = 71-73
Assignments:
In preparation for our trip, you will need to read and watch all the class reading and screening materials and attend the intensive introduction multimedia journalism workshop before the trip departure date. Journal: Students will be expected to journal daily. This is to be a professional, not a personal, journal, recording observations about speakers, activities and journeys during the study abroad component of the course. Your journal posts will occasionally be posted to the class travel blog. Multimedia Project: Students will be conducting interviews, reporting, taking photos, recording audio and video and compiling research and multimedia­rich content on the impacts of globalization and climate change in a local and regional Ecuadorian context, keeping an international internet audience in mind. You will choose a particular aspect of our collective research to focus on and produce a piece of multimedia journalism that will be distributed on the web upon our return. Professionalism: Program participants are expected to conduct themselves in a professional manner. This includes: • Treating faculty, fellow students and our hosts and guest speakers with respect and courtesy. • Coming prepared to group meetings with suggestions and ideas. • Attending all class sessions and showing up on time. • Acting respectfully toward interview subjects and using the equipment responsibly. • Working through challenges and conflicts in a mature, responsible way. • Being a good citizen and respecting local environment, customs and residents. Grading Policy:
Students will receive one grade for the course, based on their individual grades on assignments, journaling, tests and professionalism. Grades are based on the following standards: A Work is excellent in all respects, meeting the highest standards of journalism. It is complete, well done and turned in on deadline. Work could be published in a professional publication with little to no editing or reworking. B The work meets most but not all of the requirements of excellence. Work could be published in a professional publication with some editing or reworking. C The work meets the deadlines but only barely meets requirements of excellence. The work may lack a strong grasp of the principles of journalism. It could be published in a professional publication only with significant reworking. D Work fails to meet most deadlines and/or basic journalism standards. It could not be published in a professional publication without a total reworking. F Work is not turned in on deadline or breaches basic journalism standards. It is absolutely unpublishable. Honor Code Statement
Students enrolled in this course are expected to abide by the Adelphi University Honor Code. The purpose of the Honor Code is to protect the academic integrity of the University by encouraging consistent ethical behavior in assigned coursework by students. Following is excerpted from the Student Honor Code: The Code of Academic Honesty
The code of academic honesty prohibits behavior, which can broadly be described as lying, cheating, or stealing. Violations of the code of academic honesty will include, but are not limited to, the following: ● Fabricating data or citations ● Collaborating in areas prohibited by the professor ● Unauthorized multiple submission of work ● Sabotage of others’ work, including library vandalism or manipulation ● Plagiarism: presenting any work as one’s own that is not one’s own ● The creation of unfair advantage ● The facilitation of dishonesty ● Tampering with or falsifying records ● Cheating on examinations through the use of written materials or giving or receiving help in any form during the exam, including talking, signals, electronic devices, etc. Student Course Evaluations
During the last two weeks of the class, you will receive notification, via email and eCampus, that the course evaluation is available for your input electronically. Availability will end at the start of the final examination period. Your feedback is valuable and I encourage you to respond. Please be assured that your responses are anonymous and the results will not be available to the instructor until after the end of the semester and therefore after course grades have been submitted. University Policy on Special Needs:
Students with disabilities who need special accommodations for this class are encouraged to meet with me or the appropriate disability service provider on campus as soon as possible. In order to receive accommodations, students must follow the University’s guidelines. Students will not be afforded any special accommodations for academic work prior to disclosure of the disability. About the Instructors:
Mark Grabowski is a journalism professor at Adelphi University. Previously, he worked as a newspaper reporter for five years. His assignments included covering the suburbs for the Providence Journal, manning the night cops beat at the Arizona Republic, serving as the state capital bureau chief for a chain of daily newspapers in Pennsylvania, and tracking Congress for a wire service. He has a J.D. from Georgetown Law. He’s lived in Paris, Rome and Cairo and backpacked around Eastern Europe. He can be reached at [email protected] and (202) 360­8900. John Drew is currently an Associate Professor in New Media at Adelphi University. He also works as a web designer and a multimedia and digital video producer. His directorial efforts on Border Stories was nominated by the Online News Association for their Best in Online Video category in 2008. This project also won the Prize de Oro at the Every Human Has Rights Media Awards in Paris, France that same year. More recently, he was a Graduate Fellow at the Center for Transformative Media and Second Camera on the critically acclaimed documentary, The Harvest. John earned an MA in Media Studies from The New School in 2011 and an MFA in Design and Technology from Parsons, The New School for Design in 2013. John earned is BA from Duke University where he earned a scholarly grant to conduct research in Havana, Cuba. He has since returned to the island on several occasions and can be reached at [email protected] for more information about this particular program's itinerary and curriculum goals. Travel Itinerary / Miscellaneous
Students and faculty will travel as a unit to La Habana, Cuba. They will spend approximately 5 nights and 4 days here before traveling to the rural country side and two different coastal areas (5 nights). Everyone will then return to La Habana for an additional 2 nights before heading home to NY. Total number of travels days: 12 Tentative itinerary (subject to slight changes based on local scheduling / logistics): January 8th (D) 11:00 am Check in for departure from Miami, leaving on Marazul at 2:00PM. 3:00 pm Arrive in Jose Marti International Airport. 3:30 pm Transfer to Valencia Hostal Havana. Time to rest, snack and unpack. 5:00 pm Orientation meeting. 7:00 pm Welcome Dinner in nearby restaurant for traditional Cuban Food. January 9th (B,L) 9:30 am Miguel Coyula gives powerpoint at hotel. 10:30 am Walking tour of Old Havana. We will have a guided tour through Havana’s oldest neighborhood and learn about its historic, architectural, and cultural significance. The area was declared a World Heritage Site in 1982 by UNESCO, and since then there have been various efforts to restore Old Havana buildings, attract tourism and new investment, and improve social services for local residents. We will see buildings and homes in different stages of reconstruction and meet with some of the neighborhood’s residents. Lunch 2:30 pm
Visit to the Museum of the Revolution for a brief history of the Cuban Revolution. 4:00 pm Return to hotel; decompression. 6:00 pm John and Mark lead group discussion regarding day’s highlights and media production strategy moving forward. 7:00 pm Evening Free for cultural activities: Soak up Jazz at the Jazz Café or Fox and Crow. January 10th (B, L) 9:30 am Engage with the well known US born, Cuban photographer Roberto Salas in his home. See his photos first hand and learn of his incredible life documenting the Cuban Revolution. Curriculum emphasis on photography as communication strategy. Lunch 1:00 pm Engage with representatives from CITMA to learn about Cuba’s efforts to promote sustainable development. Learn about shared marine ecosystems with the US and concerns around climate change. Dialogue about how communities in habitat reserve areas and mountainous and coastal zones are involved in environmental and habitat protection, and to learn about local environmental pressures and conservation efforts by the Cuban people. 3:00 pm (Optional) Visit and hike in the Parque Metropolitano Havana. Learn of the city’s program to restore Havana’s urban watershed and clean up the Almendares River. Discussion of efforts to increase urban conservation. Key stakeholders identified. 4:30 pm
Return to hotel; decompress. 6:30 pm John and Mark lead group discussion regarding day’s highlights and media production strategy moving forward. 7:15 pm Evening open. January 11th (B, L) 9:30 am
Visit with a urban­based agriculture project, Organoponico Vivero Alamar. Interviews with local stakeholders will be conducted assessing the trials and tribulations of building out small­scale urban agriculture initiatives in La Habana. For more research background, see: http://www.ncdo.nl/sites/default/files/Marion%20Girard%20Cisneros%20MSc%20
Thesis%20Small­scale%20urban%20agriculture%20in%20Havana.pdf Lunch 1:00 pm Visit to farmer’s market; more time for interviews / media collection / informal discussion. 3:00 pm Return to hotel; decompression. 4:00 pm John and Mark lead group discussion regarding day’s highlights and media production strategy moving forward. 5:00 pm
Informal conversation / private concert with Pablo Menendez and Grupo Mezcla. 7:00 pm Evening open. January 12th (B) 9:30 am John and Mark lead discussion regarding media production status. 10:30 am Media production day. Open for more media collection, blogging, editing,etc 6:00 pm Check­in, status update, informal dinner outing with Invited speaker, NPR Journalist Nick Mirnoff to discuss communication and press in a changing Cuba. 8:00pm (Optional) See the Canoñazo Ceremony. Soldiers dressed in 18th century uniforms fire a cannon over Havana bay at precisely 9 p.m. o’clock. It is a historical reconstruction dating back to the colonial era. Back then, the cannon fire announced the official end of the day and the time to close the city gates for the night. January 13th (B, L) 10:00am Check out of hotel and depart for Pinar del Rio (2 hours), Cuba’s Western rural province. 12:00PM
Lunch at El Romero, in Sierra del Rosario. 2:00PM Enjoy a community guided visit in Rosario Mountains bio­reserve, Las Terrazas, an ecological community and environmental education center. Participants will meet with reserve officials and community and student volunteers working in the reserve. We will receive an overview of the history of the project and have time for a hike in the state managed park and a swim in local waterfalls. 4:00PM
Check­in to Hotel in Vinales. Evening Free. January 14th (B, L) 7:00 AM Breakfast and guided walking tour of local farmlands. 9:30 AM
Day trip to Santa Lucia / Cayo Jutias. The morning will be reserved for media collection and interviewing in town. Of the 100,000 homes destroyed by Gustav, 70,000 were in Pinar del Río, where some 500 schools were also damaged. 1:00 PM Open beach time. 5:00 PM Return to Vinales. 7:00 PM Regroup / informal discussion about day’s findings over dinner. January 15th (B, L) 9:00 AM We will leave for the Zapata Peninsula (4 hours) a UNESCO bioreserve. We will have lunch along the way. Upon arrival and checking into our hotel in Playa Giron, we will hear a lecture outlining the history of the reserve and current projects and how the community is preparing for Climate Change. 3:00 PM Open 6:00 PM John and Mark will lead informal discussion around dinner about next day’s media collection strategy. January 16th (B, L) 7:00am Early morning guided hike in the environmental reserve, Ciénaga de Zapata. Discussion of local conservation efforts of the marshland in light of climate change. Lunch / Afternoon Media Collection. 7:00 PM John and Mark will lead informal discussion around day’s media collection status. January 17th 9:00 AM OPEN DAY January 18th (B,L) 9:00am Return to Havana and stop at the Cuban Crocodile breeding farm. Lunch and time to swim at the Caleta Buena or learn about marine ecology as you scuba or snorkel (rental fees apply ). 5:00pm
Check­in to Hotel Copacabana 7:00pm
Dinner and evening are free for Cultural Activities like the Ballet, Theater for a Baseball game. January 19th (B) 9:30am Discussion / Interviews with the Antonio Nunez Jimenez Foundation for Nature and Humanity . The Antonio Núñez Jiménez Foundation for Nature and Humanity (FANJ) is a cultural and scientific non­governmental institution, dedicated to research and promotion of programs and projects for the protection of the environment as it relates to culture and society Topic: Sustainable Development in Cuba and Cuba’s response to Climate Change. Lunch / Afternoon Open for last minute media collection and/or tour of La Universidad de la Habana and/or exchange with the community arts project Murraleatist and co­founder of the project, Manuel Díaz Baldrich Manolo. 7:30 pm Farewell Dinner at Café del Oriente. January 20th (B) TBA am: Check out of hotel TBA am Check in for flight TBA for the am departure flight to Miami Make connecting flights after 3 pm to allow 3 hours for US immigration and customs.