HOW TO APPLY Applications will not be processed or reviewed until they are complete. Please turn in all ap-plication materials simultaneously to:

A completed application (available at www.umd.edu/studyabroad)

A sealed official copy of your transcript from each college or university from which you earned at least nine credits. (Freshmen: please submit high school transcript)

150 – 300 word personal statement about yourself and what attracted you to this course. Indicate how participation in this program contri- butes to your overall academic planning and goals.

The name, address, and e-mail of a University Faculty member or TA who may act as a reference.

Non-refundable application fee - check or money order for $30 made payable to the University of Maryland.

Copy of the photo page of your passport.

A letter from your doctor indicating that you are in good health and do not have any contagious diseases.

NOTE: If admitted to the program, a $270 non-refundable deposit will be charged to the student’s UM account or billed to non-UM students. The remainder of the program fee will be charged to the enrolled students’ UM accounts in April or billed to non-UM students.

Last day to Apply: Wednesday, March 3, 2010

For program and course information, please contact

Janet Chernela at chernela@umd.edu

outside your borders

B R A Z I L

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E n v i r o n m e n t a l C o n s e r va t i o n &I n d i g e n o u s P e o p l e s

U n I v e r s I T y o F MArylAnds T U d y A B r o A d

This course to the Brazilian Amazon will address tropical

forest ecology; conservation of Amazonia; and the role of the

indigenous Kayapó and other local groups in the Amazon

region.

The Amazon basin is the largest remaining tract of tropical

rainforest in the world, and is also the home to many different

types of human communities: indigenous groups, river dwelling

families, rubber tappers, farmers, ranchers, and miners. Because

of the widespread development and expansion in the Amazon

region, a number of indigenous and local communities now

participate in arrangements of “partnering” with outside entities,

intended to increase the security of their lands and their well-

being. In this study abroad course, students have the rare

opportunity to visit with and learn about the many different

actors and activities in the Amazon region.

The Kayapó territories represent one of the largest

remaining tracts of neotropical rainforest in the world. The

Kayapó, who continue to practice hunting and horticulture,

have effectively protected their lands through organization,

political prowess, and technological advances. In 1989, they

earned worldwide recognition for their precedent-setting vic-

tory in halting a large hydroelectric project that would have

inundated their lands.Today, the Kayapó supplement their own

on-the-ground monitoring of their territory with overflights

and landsat imaging made possible through their partnership

with environmental nGos.

The Pinkaiti Ecological Research Station has been

in Aukre, center of the Kayapó indigenous area, for 15 years.

during this time, researchers have studied the sustainability of

local hunting practices and their impact on fauna. In a rare part-

nership with Pinkaiti, the University of Maryland has arranged

for a small class of students to learn about the reserve, meet the

Kayapó, and be taught by them along with researchers.

Ju ly 14 - August 3

ANTH 498C/698C, LASC 498C

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STUDY ABROAD OFFICE1101 Holzapfel HallCollege Park, Md 20742P: 301.314.7746 F: 301.314.9135studyabr@umd.eduwww.umd.edu/studyabroad

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ADMISSIONS This program is open to both graduate and undergradu-

ate students from all U. s. universities. Admissions for the

program are made on a rolling basis, and decisions will be

given in a timely manner. decisions will not be made on a

daily basis, so you should expect a delay between when you

submit an application and when you receive notification.

Because admission to summer programs is competitive and

space is limited, early application is advisable. Meeting the

minimum GPA requirement alone is insufficient to guar-

antee admission. All required materials will be considered

during the admission process. you may also be asked to

interview with the faculty member directing the program.

SCHOLARSHIPS The study Abroad office offers scholarships for under-

graduate UM students to attend summer term programs.

These scholarships are awarded based on academic

achievement and financial need. The last day to apply is

February 18, 2010.

ACCOMMODATIONS AND TRANSPORTATIONThe group will travel by van for all in country travel. In

excursions students will stay in his or her own tent; three

meals per day will be served in an indoor communal

eating-and-seminar center. All transportation and accom-

modations are included in the price.

ACADEMIC PROGRAM This six-credit course will consider conservation and

development from the standpoints of local communities

and conservationists. The objectives of the field

course are to gain an understanding of:

socio-economic dynamics of the Amazonian frontier

and drivers of deforestation;

Tropical forest biology with special attention to

regeneration

Forest-dependent indigenous and local cultures and

their struggle to determine the future of the land and

communities that depend upon it

students will enroll in one of the following 6-credit

courses:

ANTH 495 (ethnographic Fieldwork),

ANTH 698C (Advanced Field Training in ethnology).

LASC 448C (special Topics in latin American studies:

Brazilian ethnography).

FACULTY DIRECTORS Faculty director Janet Chernela is a professor of

Anthropology and latin American studies at the

University of Maryland. she has been working among

indigenous people of the Brazilian Amazon since 1978.

ITINERARYStudents will be based initially in Belém, and will travel on

many excursions in the surrounding area to learn about

community-conservation issues. The course will feature a

visit among the Kayapó and first-hand experience of the

Kayapó’s partnership with environmental NGOs. In the

rare event that student are not permitted to enter the Kay-

apó area, students will make several excursions from Belém,

and get a first-hand experience of ecology and river-dwell-

ing communities in the Amazon region.

PROGRAM COSTThe program fee of $3,980 covers all lodging and

in-country transportation, Kayapó entry fees, a community

fund, and the $250 UM study Abroad fee. In towns students

will be responsible for meals and incidental personal

expenses. The course begins in Belém, and students are

responsible for arranging their own transportation to Belém.

In addition, students are required to obtain a visa

and appropriate immunization at their own cost.

The study Abroad office will suggest a group itinerary and

travel agent. However, each student may make individual

travel plans. The estimated round-trip airfare from Wash-

ington dC to Brazil is $2,000. once admitted, you should

expect to purchase the flight in mid-march.