Out Of The Blue

Two days ago, Living Roots received its first "out of the blue" communication via our web presence. Shane J. Macfarlan, Ph.D., a professor of Anthropology at Washington State University Vancouver, contacted us after stumbling upon www.livingrootsbaja.org; he was excited and pleasantly surprised. He and his wife (an archeologist) have been working with Baja rancheros over the past five years - actively researching, documenting, and attempting to preserve this unique culture. Professor Macfarlan is in the process of preparing a manuscript on the cultural geography of one of the arroyos in the southern Sierra de la Giganta, the mountain range where Living Roots is currently working.

Recently, Prof. Macfarlan used Living Roots as part of a learning exercise for a course he teaches - Anthropology and World Problems. He had students consider the natural and cultural assets of sierra communities and how different stakeholders value these resources differently, which impacts how they are used and managed. Finally, students discussed how Living Roots is attempting to build community capacity through sustainable development principles. He said his class really enjoyed learning from our website and that it provided students with valuable information; needless to say, we are excited and pleasantly surprised.

It's exciting to keep meeting and learning of others who are interested in revitalizing ranchero and Baja sierra culture ~ thank you Professor Macfarlan for reaching out! We look forward to keeping in touch.