International Musings

As the global jaguar population declines rapidly, the jaguars of Belize are on the brink of extinction. Belizean conservation forces have banned together in protection of the Maya Forest Corridor- a small piece of critical land, spanning just 90,000 acres. This narrow strip of land is essential to the wellbeing of the Belizean jaguar population, as it serves as the connection for two of the largest jaguar habitats in Belize and Guatemala.  If Jaguars are unable to pass via the Maya Forest Corridor, populations will drop dramatically due to isolation. The Maya Forest Corridor (MFC) is already far too small to properly sustain the current jaguar population, but due to the growing threat of deforestation, as well as the insertion of large building developments is at risk of shrinking even more. Currently, conservation organizations are purchasing the land on which the MFC covers, hopefully preventing further development in the area. As of right now, only 30,000 of the 90,000 acres of the

     Narrative 4 is a cross continental organization built on the principal of providing students and artists with the opportunity to share their stories with one another, cultivating community and international empathy for those with differing realities. After having had the opportunity to participate and multiple story exchanges, it was incredibly illuminating to hear from our three panelists about the goals of N4 as well as their personal experiences with the organization. I was especially moved by the exchange between the students from the Bronx and the students from Ms. Castaneda’s school in Mexico. As both sets of students had been exposed to, and experienced consistent acts of unimaginable violence, the story sharing between these two groups was incredibly effective and impactful. Something else that really stood out from this event was the explanation of action steps that fulfilled N4's motto: Empathy Into Action. Prior to this event, the latter of those two felt more abstr