[Written January 19]
We’re back in Davao for the end of our trip, staying in the same hotel as the first couple of nights, and it’s a very strange feeling because remembering that feels like a century ago. We have traveled all across the island at this point, and even stayed briefly on Samal island last night to have a day of swimming on the beach and allowing our brains to melt a little bit. It’s hard to describe all the ways in which I’ve changed in just two weeks, but I know that my eyes have been opened a little more to the Mindanao conflict. I’ve sat down and calculated, so here’s the rundown of our two jam-packed weeks spent here:
We’ve had meetings with 22 groups of various actors, including civil society organizations, NGOs both local and international, a military branch, religious leaders and organizations, and villages. We’ve stayed in 7 different hotels which I can barely remember, except for where we saw the biggest cockroaches and where the best (or worst) food was. We’ve tried durian and mangosteen, and eaten pounds upon pounds of mango, watermelon, pineapple, bananas – not to mention some of those bananas were boiled. We’ve spent at least 26 hours in debrief sessions within our own group, reviewing, absorbing, and processing all the information that we’ve accumulated. And, of course, having needed to go all across the island, we’ve spent about 40 hours riding in our cramped white van with a trusted and talented driver who could give the Queen’s Guard a run for their money, because none of our group could get him to talk.
For tonight, we’re going to our departure dinner with CRS, and tomorrow morning we’ll have our final meeting with them to present everything that we’ve learned. What has been floating around in my head is the question that two CRS staff members have apparently asked Dr. Iyer for the conclusion of our trip: how are we relating this trip with our studies? Are we applying what we’ve learned to the trip, or is the trip going to inspire or be a part of future projects and courses? I knew upon registering for the course that we’d be coming back to Monterey to share the stories that we’d heard while traveling here, that we’d have to do something with all the information we’d gathered. But beyond that, I hadn’t really thought in detail about what I wanted to do with this experience. Sure I want to use it for background and context as I continue my studies, but is that it?
I’ll have to keep thinking on those questions to fully be able to answer them, but I’ll try to siphon through where I’m at now. I thoroughly enjoyed this experience. I enjoyed getting a glimpse of one conflict from all different and human perspectives; I enjoyed trying my hand at the art of questioning and researching; of feeling myself grow and improve, and of tasting what it might be like “in the field”. Lastly, of course, I really loved being out of the US again, and sharing the course with my group. We’ve undergone changes in our dynamics and it’s really incredible to see how the first day has differed from our more recent meetings. I think at this point, the best way to take advantage of this experience here on out is make sure that I don’t forget what I’ve learned here, to share the stories we’ve heard, and to keep those changes present in my mind as much as possible to remind me that there is a lot to be done in Conflict Resolution, and hopefully I can contribute a little.