The Bus-Ride Diaries: a medicinal exploration in Perú
In South America, the craft of adventure and exploration is not the sailboat on the rugged ocean but the public bus on the turbulent, even tempestuous dirt roads. It is on these avenues that we propose to explore our interests in ecology (Ana’s forté) and cultural photography (Justine’s), and our mutual passion for human health and wellbeing.
Environment is a key determinant of cultural adaptations. We chose Perú as our sea of exploration because, much like Darwin’s Galapagos islands, it provides a range of natural and cultural diversity. The country can be split into three main biogeographic regions: La Selva (the Amazonian rainforest), La Sierra (the Andean highlands and mountains), and La Costa (the coast). With Peru’s high environmental variability and the altering forces of land use and climate change in mind, we propose to study medicine use at a time when illness regimes are changing along with the climate. Particularly, we are interested in the interface between traditional and modern medicine, and people’s perspectives toward these two systems. This leads us to the following hypotheses:
Hyp 1: Peru’s biogeographic diversity results in adaptive variation in traditional medicinal ethnobotany. Hyp 2: The blend of modern and traditional medicinal practices varies across Peruvian communities in differing biogeographic regions. Hyp 2a: Perspectives toward modern versus traditional medicine are also regionally specific.
Through these hypotheses, we seek to characterize the underlying causes of the predicted diversity in medicine use, and how cultural diversity emerges as a response to differences in plant species richness and geographic space. For example, we expect that the plant biodiversity in tropical areas will lead to greater variety and reliance on traditional medicines than along the dry coast. Geographic space not only conditions biodiversity but also sophisticates cultural patterns of urbanization, land use, and mobility. Along the coast, for example, we expect to see stronger reliance on modern medicine because the coastal populations are less enclosed and largely disjunct from their historic ancestors. Further, we predict that choice of medicine will also depend on factors such as: availibility of alternatives, degree of contact with “Western” world, income and social class differentials, form of subsistence, and rural versus urban settings. We hope our experience will shed light on the interplay of these factors and uncover other factors as well.
We see this journey as a culmination of our respective academic backgrounds and a foray into our possible futures. Peruvian specialist Fernando Cabieses stated that traditional medicine is a “medical system, because it does not involve isolated knowledge about the healing properties of some elements, but forms part of a doctrine of health, illness, and the relationship between humans and nature.” Ana sees the systems approach to medicine as a parallel to that in her Earth Systems major, and believes that it is precisely the last part of Cabieses’ statement—the relationship between humans and nature—that is her niche in this proposed study.
Conversations about medicine create a portal into people’s lives and personal connections to their culture. Medicine links the individual with their societal context, and we will explore this nexus both from the perspective of health professionals and from within people’s homes. Justine sees her background as an Art Studio-Photography major as a lense for cultural investigation that can put into focus cultural aspects otherwise missed by science. By capturing the subject suspended in a moment of time, she can simulateneously pin down a reality and open a pandora’s box for interpretation.
Armed with Ana’s earth science background to understand the ecological context and Justine’s experience in holistic assessment to depict the cultural backdrop, we wish to explore our hypotheses in two ways: (1) observation and participation in medical centers, and (2) interviews with people in the medical field, local people in several key destinations, and anyone we meet along the way. We have arranged a three-week stay with the Takiwasi medical facility where we will work alongside medical staff at its drug rehabilitation center and learn how its researchers study the properties of traditional medicines. Our interviews will focus on what types of medicine people use, how they access them, and what their perspectives are toward traditional and modern medicines, but will also include demographic aspects of people’s backgrounds that may shed light on underlying causes of medicinal preferences. We have identified several organizations and curanderos (herbal healers) to interview, and will ask to see the local curanderos along the way[1]. We intend to approach a wide variety of people so as to decrease accidental bias that may result from the type of people that may be most predisposed or convenient to interview.
Our proposed 12-week journey will take us to four key locations (as detailed in the itinerary) spanning Perú’s different biogeographic regions. We will spend 2-3 weeks at each destination, and allow ourselves ample time to travel between them. We see our pre-set destinations as basecamps for the surrounding areas, which we plan to explore to the extent that it is possible. Rather than scheduling rest days, we give ourselves large time-buffers to accommodate rest as needed—although we specifically plan to indulge in restful discovery at Machu Picchu toward the end of the trip.
We wish to give back to the communities who host us by doing volunteer work within our capacities (we have already arranged to help with patient care and research at Takiwasi). Additionally, we see this cultural exchange as an opportunity to share our skills and education according to people’s interests—be it environmental education, artistic ventures, help with English language…or even circus.
Journal-keeping is somewhere between second-nature and obsessive habit for both of us, and we plan to use this to chronicle our findings, impressions, and adventures along the way. Justine will further document our journey through black and white film photography. Back in the U.S., Justine will display a collection of photographs and Ana will reframe the interviews and journal entries into a creative non-fiction narrative. These complementary visual and literary pieces will integrate our scientific findings with our personal experiences and ultimately, we hope to submit a joint book for publication.
We recognize that this journey has inherent dangers, but we believe that we are mitigating those in several ways: we speak Spanish; we have reliable contacts in each of our key destinations who will serve as allies in our safety net; we have chosen our routes and bus companies to maximize safety; we have considered the potential effects of the El Niño year[1]; and, we are both veteran travelers with highly-evolved instincts for identifying and evading dodgy people and precarious situations.
[1] Because shamanes (spiritual healers) may be involved in dangerous commercial rings, we will not seek them out.
[2] El Niño will most likely come to a close before our trip begins, especially because its onset came late, which typically means it will be relatively small and short. However, we are prepared to change our destinations to safer parts of Perú if the climate deems it necessary.
Thank you to Stanford Anthropology Department's Beagle II Award, both for the money and for the confidence in us and our project. Ditto for our families :)
Hasta pronto...
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