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Index Who we are Preparatory courses Objectives Safety protocols Itinerary
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Who we are
Envoys is an innovative educational organization founded by colleagues from the Harvard Graduate School of Education. In 2013, we traveled around the world with more than 6,000 total students. Envoys is proud to collaborate with Manchester Essex High School to blend online learning, international experiences, and meaningful lessons into an intentional, research-based travel program. 6
Preparatory Courses Travel & Health Safety
Basic Preparation
Learn about your destination Students research the health risks relevant to Panama, learn about methods to mitigate those risks, and pass assessments related to health and safety.
Building a knowledge base Students review a curated series of videos, articles, and other media relevant to Panamanian history and culture. Instructors from Envoys and Manchester Essex facilitate discussions and answer questions. Students take assessments to prove their understanding.
Pack Smart Students learn about best practices for packing light and traveling smart. They provide their own potential packing lists for comment by Envoys instructors. Disease Pathways Students learn about common pathways for diseases, including vectors, food and water, and animals, as well as necessary precautions to take while traveling abroad. A mixture of assessments and practical activities ensure that they have gained the necessary skills. Situational Awareness Students learn about methods to calculate risk and the heightened potential for faulty judgments when abroad. They display their ability to make better decisions by explaining their reactions to a variety of travel scenarios.
Briefing Sheets After developing the necessary background knowledge, students select an individual research topic research topic and create a briefing sheet to share with their classmates. These sheets provide the basis for individual research areas conducted while in-country. Empathy and CrossCultural Sensitivity Through a series of introspective and collaborative exercises, students begin the process of examining their own assumptions around culture. Students take empathy assessments and create plans for developing their empathic abilities, both at home and abroad. 7
Objectives 1 What we do Build understanding of the complex balance between economic development and environmental ecosystems.
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What we do Develop student understanding of how the scientific process works in practice.
How we do it Students measure the extent of coral bleaching of the underwater ecosystem and report their findings to the Project Aware Foundation.
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How we do it We engage with nature through several avenues, including jungle canopy walks, marine coastal explorations, and hydrographic mapping.
We conduct biodiversity indices under the guidance of the Punta Culebra Nature Center, a Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute.
Students examine the realities of economic life in Panama, ranging from the massive trade conducted via the Canal to the traditional lifestyles practiced by the indigenous Embera people to the livelihoods of modern Panamanians.
How we do it
We visit communities of Embera and Galu Yuna indigenous peoples, interacting with locals and observing daily patterns of life. Students interWhat we do view each community Increase student aware- to learn about how they interact with the enviness of indigenous ronment and how their cultures and their traditional ways of life relationships have changed over time. with nature.
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Safety Protocol How we approach safety
Planning All destinations receive a regular and thorough review by Envoys internal safety committee, including pointby-point checks of transport, accommodation, and dining establishments. Our external safety committee, including former military officers, child psychologists, and travel health experts, reviews our protocols and advises according to their area of expertise. All participants in the trip, including Manchester Essex faculty and students, will be trained in the unique emergency protocols for this program.
Envoys assumes a duty of care for the participants on our programs. While no one can guarantee freedom from harm, we undertake a multi-stage process to mitigate risk.
Preparation Envoys has a custom-built proprietary online platform to ensure a constant flow of information from the field. Envoys staff provide real-time locations, photos, videos, postings, and Twitter feeds on trip activities. Our staff carry satellite phones, local cell phones, GPS transponders and two-way radios to maintain contact from the field to our school partners, our head offices, and families. Our medical team assesses each destination for particular health risks and creates a customized medical kit for field staff to carry while abroad. All students participating in an Envoys program are required to pass our Travel Health and Safety course and demonstrate understanding of the situational awareness necessary for safety while abroad.
Protection Envoys provides insurance coverage for rescue, hospitalization, evacuation, repatriation, and medical emergencies for all program participants. As a final safety measure, Envoys utilizes the private GEOS International Emergency Response service, which provides 24-hour coordination of worldwide search-and-rescue,   accessed through a dedicated satellite channel.
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PANAMA itinerary
day 1
day 2
We arrive in Panama City. Envoys staff and Manchester Essex faculty introduce the rules and protocols necessary to maintain good health and minimize the risk of accidents during the program. Divided into groups, students create a “full value contract”, where the expectations and roles of each member of the group are aligned. Individual students then lay out their learning goals for the trip, and all members make commitments to support each other’s development.
We journey around the Metropolitan Natural Park, located within Panamá City. It will be our ¬first approach to the Tropical Rainforest ecosystem where students will recognize important aspects of the fauna and flora of the country. We then visit the Miraflores Locks, allowing students to recognize one of the most revolutionary engineering works of modern times. We reconstruct the history of the site and analyze the mechanisms that allow the gate to open and close.
Arrive in Panama City
Metropolitan Natural Park Panama City
days 3 and 4 The Guna community and its relationships with the environment
We travel by 4x4 trucks to the indigenous Guna Yala region and then by boat to the San Blas Islands. We spend two days with the Guna Yala community learning about their lifestyle and traditions. We utilize lessons on systems thinking to understand environmental conservation systems are necessary to preserve the natural resources of the area. We journey around the San Blas islands and explore the natural resources, learning the main characteristics of the marine ecosystem. As students explore the reefs, they identify and analyze the marine life. Using methodology developed by the Project Aware Foundation, students conduct a detailed evaluation of the extent of coral bleaching in the area. This work is compiled and sent to ecological researchers surveying the area. Students discuss their experience and create a presentation that details the challenges of the environment in the region. 10
PANAMA itinerary
days 5 and 6 Embera Community & hiking through the rainforest
We travel to the homelands of the indigenous Embera community. Sleeping in tents within a large shed constructed by the community, students learn about the unique cultural and social traditions of the Embera people. We hike with the native people through the rainforest to learn about the use of plants for medicinal purposes and how flora and fauna have adapted to create a sustainable (though dynamic) ecosystem. At the close of our walk, we challenge students to tube down a river in the middle of jungle and take water samples from three different sections of the river. When we conclude the activity, Manchester Essex faculty and Envoys staff assist students in analyzing the samples and making hypotheses.
day 7
day 8
We trek to the El Macho Waterfalls and Thermal Pools. Students reflect on the relevance of hydrography in PanamĂĄ and recognize the origin of these water sources, their importance to the life of the place, and the conservation strategies people in the area undertake. We then visit a research center devoted to orchid and amphibian conservation. Each student chooses a particular flower or animal to consider from both scientificÂŹ and artistic perspectives. As we examine how our perception of the object changes based on the perspectives that we take, students develop a more empathic sensibility towards the world.
We travel back to Panama City, stopping in the famed bird watching area of Gamboa. Before climbing up the tower, each student is trained in appropriate use of binoculars and other instruments. Local experts teach students the most important aspects for bird watching. Students compete to see who can recognize and record the greatest variety of birds.
El Macho Waterfalls
Bird watching
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PANAMA itinerary
day 9
Visit the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
We go to Punta Culebra Nature Center, a Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute focused on marine coastal environments. Smithsonian staff members guide the visit and students share the results of their research during the trip. The visit concludes with a discussion of the role of research in environmental conservation. We tour the Casco Viejo district, built in 1671 after much of the original city had been destroyed by the privateer Henry Morgan. As we walk, students are supported to recognize the conditions that allowed Casco Viejo to stay in its unique condition, and discuss how such preservation might be possible for other sites.
day 10 End of journey
Students share the lessons that they have learned from the program and make public commitments to use this experience as motivation for their own lives. We then bid farewell to Panama and return to our families, ready to share our adventures!
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PANAMA itinerary
This information within this booklet represents our best projection of the program. Alterations will be made in the months prior to the program to improve quality and ensure our objectives are met.
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