Author: Harper Haynes | Major: Earth Science | Semester: Summer 2024

Valencia, Spain

In a meeting to discuss my Honors thesis this March, I spoke with Dr. Laurence Hare about my interest in conservation, environmental philosophy, and the role of the community in driving sustainability initiatives. It was then that Dr. Hare told me about the Global Changemakers program in Spain, a faculty-led course centered around social change businesses in Catalonia. He had worked with Rogelio Garcia Contreras to design the Changemakers program and encouraged me to apply and utilize the experience as a research opportunity for my thesis. So after my last final of junior year, I was left with 24 hours to move out of my house in Fayetteville and pack for the airport. I hadn’t let myself even think about the time I would get to spend overseas due to extreme procrastination and blind fear over the fate of my final projects. Miraculously, everything fell into place, and then I was hurtling through the air to Barcelona. The program lasted 10 days during the May 2024 intersession, and the itinerary included meetings with organizations that centered on social change missions and visits to significant cultural sites.Along with eight other University of Arkansas students, I got to experience an intimate, first-hand introduction to Catalonia. Part of what made this program so special was the regional and historical context provided by Dr. Hare and Rogelio Contreras. Walking miles in these ancient cities with our faculty leaders made me feel like I was actually absorbing some of what made these places so special, and more able to compare their challenges to domestic issues in Northwest Arkansas.

One of the most impactful moments of the Changemakers program was our visit to Ebro Delta in Valencia. Designated as a UNESCO biosphere reserve, our group was given the rare privilege of visiting Buda Island- a vulnerable wetland historically used for rice production. While driving into the island, we saw hundreds of birds flitting through the reeds and marsh, flamingos taking flight over the water, and even herds of wild horses. Upon our arrival, we met with a descendant of the Borés family- who purchased the land in 1924. With Rogelio translating, he told us the history of the island’s slow subsidence into the sea, how over 800 hectares of lost coastline had hindered their traditional rice cultivation practices, and detailed the threats introduced to wetland stability by climate change (“We have created a new enemy”). I had my ears perked the entire conversation: here was the real-world application of so many concepts I’d been unable to grasp in class fully- the effects of artificial dams, seawater intrusion, land reclamation, and trophic-chain disruption. We toured the family estate and poured over historical maps that tracked the slow loss of the beachfront. This meeting was so vivid and meaningful to me because I could finally connect the environmental processes to their impacts on rural livelihoods.

I came into this program interested in the human interest side of conservation, and how environmental resiliency is intrinsically tied up in the strength of the community. Originally, I intended to focus on our site visit to L’Olivera winery for use in my thesis on commons management as it relates to sustainability and traditional agriculture. However, during our meeting at the winery, it quickly became evident that the organization’s mission was undergoing a kind of fracturing and the representative we met with had very little information relevant to my research questions. But the beauty of the Changemakers program is its focus on problem-solving skills, and how we can turn challenges into opportunities. Whereas before I would have been paralyzed by my initial research topic not working out, I felt calm and at ease with the idea of pivoting to include another organization as my thesis focus. I think I was most surprised at the changes I felt in myself after the program ended. Superficially, I came out of the experience a lot more buff- walking miles on uneven streets for hours every day is an insane workout. Coming to Spain was kind of a way to test my capability for rolling with the unexpected- I had no precedent for how life worked anywhere but my tiny world in Arkansas. Getting outside of your bubble presents the opportunity for a psychological shift- How do I move in this new environment? What truths about myself are way more obvious outside of the comfort zone? I would recommend the Global Changemakers program to anyone looking for that kind of personal challenge.