Last week, educate. had the pleasure of being on OT301 Radio for an hour long discussion about our work. We talked about Honduras, the structural issues of poverty, violence and inequality and the challenges in driving structural change in the area of education. We talked about the non-profit sector and its colonial roots, and how … Continue reading educate. Talkshow on OT301 Radio
Narratives support broader power imbalances, so through narratives we can either choose to further entrench existing neo-colonial ideas of power and poverty, or we can strive to challenge these dominant narratives and be part of creating a shift in our world's collective imagination of countries, people and power that rejects neo-colonial power imbalances. Perhaps by changing the narrative, we can counter this imbalance.
If you’ve been following the news, you’ll know that there has been a lot going on in Honduras recently. Since a US-backed military coup d’etat in 2009 that ousted the democratically elected president Manuel Zelaya, Honduras’ right-wing Nationalist party has been in control. In 2017, President Juan Orlando Hernandez changed the constitution to allow himself … Continue reading “We have to fight for our rights as students:” University students speak out about Honduras’ ongoing protests
“When children see their lives reflected in the books they read, they feel they and their lives are not invisible.” - Malorie Blackman. At the very first educate. library inauguration, in July 2018 at the Adrian Mejia School in El Progreso, children were clambering on their friends’ shoulders to peek through the window into their … Continue reading Latin American Children’s Books: Why Representation Matters (+ Book Recommendations!)
By Antonia McGrath A group of International Development Masters students at the University of Amsterdam recently organized a film screening and panel discussion event featuring the film ‘Schooling the World: The White Man’s Last Burden.’ This was part of a course on Education, Development and Social Justice, and as one of educate.’s directors, I was … Continue reading Schooling the World: Should we be Exporting “Western Education”?
Last weekend, we had our biggest event to date: a Latin Dance Party (aka 'Fiesta Bailable'). The whole event was organised by an incredible group of Honduran women who cooked up a storm of traditional Honduran food that had the table legs creaking under its weight - everything from baleadas and pastelitos to yuca con … Continue reading Fiesta Bailable para Honduras en Delft
(Versión en Español mas abajo) La Lima, a small city in Honduras, is steeped in history. In the 1960s, most of the North Americans from the banana corporations that flourished at the time lived here. The Tela Railroad Company, part of the well-known Chiquita brand, was also based here at the time, and one of … Continue reading “For every 100 students who enroll, most don’t make it to the end”: Bringing books to La Lima, Honduras
Versión en Español mas abajo On a sunny Thursday morning in Honduras, a truck laden with the books and desks rumbled its way up through the Honduran coffee-farming countryside to the rural town of Trinidad. Far too big for the town’s narrow streets, the truck barely made it to the school’s entrance, where the carpenters … Continue reading “Viva la Biblioteca” at Escuela Guadalupe Ulloa
Along the colourful streets of Trinidad, Santa Barbara, just out of the centre, is a small one-story building covered in brightly painted murals. Trinidad’s only kindergarten has just over 100 children, and though resources are limited, the posters and paintings that cover the walls both inside and outside create a warm, friendly atmosphere. Though it … Continue reading Closing the Gap in Early Literacy
A library inauguration party is key to creating a sense of value for the community of this new space. It acts as a celebration of the work they have completed, and creates a sense of anticipation for the opportunities to come. Chispa Project, through whom we have been working to start the Adrian Mejia primary … Continue reading A Celebration of Literacy in El Progreso
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