Kyla Egan Presents…
Kyla Egan is a Research Fellow with Human Connections, a local non-profit organization. http://humanconnections.org
Kyla is originally from Peterborough, Ontario, and graduated from the University of Toronto with a Master’s in Social Geography, focusing on the social impact of tourism in Latin America. While pursuing her Master’s Degree, Kyla conducted extensive fieldwork and worked as a research assistant in Bocas del Toro, Panama. She has also worked teaching at the University of Toronto in the departments of Geography, Urban Planning, and Critical Development Studies.
In her role as Research Fellow, she, “investigates and studies the community of expats that live in this area, how they learn about Mexico, and where they get that information from.” In doing so, she studies travel writing and expat forums, and also speaks with members of the community.
Human Connections is hosting a series of informative discussions, and Kyla is pleased to present the next workshop, “Expat or Migrant? Dangerous or Paradise?”
These seminars are created for foreigners living in the area, either full-time or part-time, who are interested in community engagement, learning more about Mexico, and philanthropic causes.
She gave us some examples of what topics she will cover in “Expat or Migrant? Dangerous or Paradise?”
- labour and the way people discuss workers
- ideas of paradise, you might think it’s positive but it actually has negative implications on how people act when they’re here
- who is classified as a migrant and who is classified as an expat, and the different connotations of the terms
- representation of indigenous people
- how representations in travel writing and every day conversations are an extension of the responsible tourism movement
She will also include historical context for why these topics exist and are commonly discussed.
“The information that we read about Mexico influences how we perceive Mexico and our behaviour while here.”
We asked Kyla, what drew her to study and work in this field. She explained, “When I was a child my family lived in Zihuatanejo each winter and that sparked an early interest in Latin America and Mexico. When I entered university I continued learning about tourism, migration, and urban planning in Latin America, and eventually started to study the topic of expat communities in Latin America. I thought it was interesting because of my own personal experience but also the blend of different cultures existing in the same space.”
Kyla arrived here in September and, aside from her work with Human Connections, has also committed time to volunteer at the Bucerias Migrant School as well as various community events.
Plan to attend the free workshop, “Expat or Migrant? Dangerous or Paradise?”
Thursday, March 5, 10:30am to 12:30pm, at the Human Connections office. See the notice under our latest “Up and Coming” column, and RSVP to kyla.egan@utoronto.ca
And, stay tuned for further details announcing the next seminar, planned for the end of March. It will outline such topics as; cultural awareness, difference in communication styles, body language, and how you build friendships across cultures.
