Related links:  Send your comments to info@nabasque.org Basque Continuity Challenge   GUREA Cultural Literacy   Celebrate + Educate = Perpetuate ZER | WHAT:  A series of workshops to learn about various aspects of Basque culture as we celebrate + educate = perpetuate NORENTZAT | FOR WHO:  young and old, with a special emphasis on getting families together. NON & NOIZ | WHERE & WHEN: TRI-STATE SCHEDULE   ARRIVE: Aug. 4 (Wed) to Salt Lake City Aug 5 (Thu):  Drive and arrive in Winnemucca Aug 6-7-8:  NEVADA workshops: Winnemucca Click on Winnemucca workshops schedule (MS Word) Aug 9: Depart for Yellowstone (they will be on their own) Aug 12 (Thu):  Arrive in Buffalo Aug 13-14-15:  WYOMING workshops: Buffalo Click on Buffalo workshops schedule (MS Word) For more information email bighornbasque@wyoming.com; phone: (307) 217-1575 Aug 16: Depart Buffalo (open dates) Aug 19: Arrive SLC Aug 20-21-22:  UTAH workshops: Salt Lake City Click on Salt Lake City workshop schedule (pdf) DEPART: Aug 23 (Mon): from SLC back to Euskadi

These workshops are made possible by the support of the Basque Government and the hosting of local Basque clubs.

Aimar Rubio aimar-rubio@ej-gv.es The 'A' Team Visiting team of Basque Country instructors (they are about 25 years old) Asier Ortega asier-ortega@ej-gv.es

WORKSHOP MENU SELECTIONS.  Your club can select which of these they would like, mixing and matching, and the preferred time of day, etc.

Activity: Introduction to the Basque Country Nowadays (I)
(40-50min speech. PowerPoint available)
The workshop would consist on a brief presentation of the Basque Country, where the main topic would be to focus on the culture & history of the three different legal and political entities.
>Source: “The Basque Country” Insight into its culture, history, society and institutions. Published by Eusko Jaurlaritzaren Argitalpen Zerbitzu Nagusia, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Euskadi (2009)

Activity: Introduction to the Basque Country Nowadays (II)
(40-50min speech. PowerPoint available)
The workshop would consist on a brief presentation of the Basque Country, where the main topic would be to focus on the Society & institutions of the three different legal and political entities.
>Source: “The Basque Country” Insight into its culture, history, society and institutions. Published by Eusko Jaurlaritzaren Argitalpen Zerbitzu Nagusia, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Euskadi (2009)

Activity: Curiosities of Bizkaia, Araba and Gipuzkoa
(10-15 min speech each territory. PowerPoint available)
This workshop is focus on the curiosities of Bizkaia, Araba and Gipuzkoa. The aim is to consider and tell things that did not appear on the tourist guides.
>Source: each grant-holder is from one territory, so we could be able to tell some things about our country, and piqued the curiosity of the people.

Activity: Basque Film festival (Kids session)
(3-4 days long, 120 min pass approximate)
This workshop is focus on the screening of some films, related to the Basque Country. After the screening, playful activities will be available for kids, around the topic of the film.
…Need to fill out film list…

Activity: Basque Film festival (Adult session)
(3-4 days long, 120 min pass approximate)
This workshop is focus on the screening of some films, related to the Basque Country. After the screening, we can performance a round table to chat about the topic of the film.
1.       Aupa Etxebeste
2. …Need to fill out film list…
3. …Need to fill out film list…

Activity: Euskadi's Government programs for Basque Diaspora
(30 min speech. PowerPoint available)
This workshop is focus on the programmes of the Basque Government for the Basque Centres. The aim of this activity is to make an institutional introduction and memory about the activities and programmes of the Government for the Basque Centres, such us “Gaztemundu”, “subsidizes”, etc…

Activity: Transmitting the Basque heritage through games and play (for kids)
(3-4 days long, 1-2h. sessions)
This workshop is focus on Children’s Games, Games for sharing, Euskal pilota, Herrik kirolak (sports activities which specifically contribute to the promotion and enjoyment of the emotion of sports), etc…

Activity: Basque Workshop (for kids)
(3-4 days long, 1-2h. sessions)
This workshop is focus on painting, Basque handicrafts, etc…

Activity: Euskal Kondairak (for kids)
(50 min session, PowerPoint available)
This workshop is focus on Basque mythology, and would consist on a short presentation of Basque magic warlocks, fairies, etc…

This Basque film from 2005 is a great comedy.  When money runs out for the family, there will be no usual vacation trip to the sea but what about the shame?  So they sneak back into their apartment and hide there all the while pretending they are on vacation.  It's very clever.

Why these visiting workshops?  In some of our clubs we are finding some success in drawing youth participation; in some of our clubs we are getting families together on a fairly regular basis for an opportunity to not only celebrate but to educate about Basque culture.  If that is what you have going in your local community, we'd love to hear about it so that we can make this idea available to other clubs.  Most of our clubs, however, are up against it with various challenges in keeping Basque things going.  That is why NABO in conjunction with the Autonomous Basque Government of Euskadi, is organizing a series of visiting workshops that would come to your town for a few days.  It would entail hosting (room & board) 2 or 3 young adult instructors from the Basque country, and they would present  workshops on various aspects of Basque culture--for young and old--in an effort to get families together in your community to learn a few more things about Basque culture. 

"If Mohammad can't go to the mountain, let the mountain come to Mohammad."

As the above saying states, it makes sense for us too.  If people are not able to attend NABO events, then we have to develop initiatives where we bring the action closer to them.  If we can't find viable ways of keeping things active and engaging in our local Basque communities, then larger regional or national Basque events will not likely appeal to them because they have long-since not been connected.

Basque clubs regularly receive inquiries from European Basques that go along the lines of:  "would like to meet Basque-Americans" and "prepared to work at whatever to cover expenses while there" and "want to help teach about Basque culture."  In practice, very few of these inquiries ever meet with much success.  Meanwhile, Basque clubs are always in search of ways of communicating information about "Basqueness" (Basque culture & identity) to their local membership.  The proposal is to meld these two elements.

Once again, the key is to create some events where families can get together because of the main things that Basque culture has to offer--what we have to "sell" sort of speak--is that we do things across the generations.  In our society, that is not usually the case.  Teenagers hang around their own age group, senior citizens with their own etc.  So the more we do things like this, the better chance we have of showing what special things Basque culture possesses.

For Basque culture to endure we'll need to find a viable balance between the fun of being Basque (e.g., festivals) and knowing something more about what being Basque is about.  That is why NABO is following the motto Celebrate + Educate = Perpetuate.  The educate part of the equation is being developed in our GUREA Cultural Literacy program.  Gurea is Basque for "it's ours."

TEAM TRAINING. The Directorate of Relations with Basque Communities of the Basque Government prepares the team. This preparation will enable them to present various workshops for both children and adults.

ROTATION. This team (probably a pair) would spend a few days in a host community then move to the next town, covering from 3-4 communities during the course of a summer. 

HOSTING REQUIREMENTS.  Room and board while they are with you (either a hotel room or staying with a family).  Each club would have to make the necessary arrangements to secure a large room of sorts for the meetings.   

It's not largely automatic being Basque.  Not anymore. Those of us who identify with being Basque do so mostly because we were raised that way.  So if parents today don't make an effort to teach their kids about being Basque, then it will all be ending soon for one of the world's oldest of cultures. This initiative is about developing ways of bringing families together to recreate and educate about being Basque.