Alan Mickelson
Associate Professor
Electrical and Computer Engineering
University of Colorado at Boulder
425 UCB
Boulder, CO 80309
303-492-7539
mickel@schof.colorado.edu
Abstract
Several of us (The Colorado Amazon Peru (CAP) Alliance - including Alan Mickelson,
Mario Vidalon, Bernard Amadei, Mike Lightner...) are presently working with non governmental
organizations (NGOs - CONAPAC, Impacto, Aidesep,...), Universities (University of
the Amazon of Iquitos, Catholic University of Lima) and international organization (e. g.
IEEE) in order to further a program of education for indigenous people in the Loreta Region
near Iquitos, Peru where the Napo and Amazonas rivers form a cusp about the region of
interest. We would like to involve as many students from the University of Colorado as
possible in observing and/or taking part in this effort in sustainable development. We are
working to find a model for this involvement.
Anecdotal evidence holds that those that have seen the conditions in the developing world
are forever changed. What we strive for in the University is learning experience beyond that
of, for example, simple ecotourism. Development work, though, can only be carried out by
those trusted by the people in the region of development. Partnerships with organizations
working requires great sensitivity to the issues of the organizations and people in question.
In this work, I will strive to determine how a two semester hour interdisciplinary course of a
single semester duration may prepare a student to derive the most from a trip to the working
area without distracting those at work.