May 7, 2008 

Two weeks ago we were honoured by a visit from Dr. Jaime Gárfias, a professor from the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México in Toluca, Mexico. Dr. Gárfias was born in Oruro, Bolivia and completed his master´s and doctoral degrees at Université Laval in Canada before heading to Mexico, where he has worked for many years… so he’s very well travelled and has a unique perspective on our project!

Hydrogeology lesson: Dr. Jaime Gárfias, visiting professor, lectures on groundwater modeling.Dr. Gárfias was here to teach a short course in basic physical hydrogeology to our 12 M.Sc. candidates and to a large group of professionals who are working in the groundwater sector. The course was a great success and the visiting professor was an inspiration to our Bolivian grad students, who are lapping up all the information available in hopes of defining their thesis topics.

Last weekend I made the trip to Cochabamba, in large part to see Canadian author/activist Naomi Klein present her latest book, “The Shock Doctrine”. I was really impressed that Naomi included Bolivia as a stop on her journey. (Bolivia is often overlooked by South American tours; many international visitors (including some prominent rock bands!) choose to visit Bolivia’s wealthier neighbours but effectively jump over South America’s poorest country.) She was very well received in Cochabamba, a city renowned for its political activism ever since the “Water Wars” of 2000, when “Cochabambinos” (local residents) took to the streets to protest the privatization of their municipal water supply. If you’re interested in “The Shock Doctrine”, check out: http://www.naomiklein.org/shock-doctrine.

Author visits Bolivia: Naomi Klein presents her latest book, "The Shock Doctrine", in Cochabamba.