Chilean outdoor education industry looks to NZ

Media release – 19 September 2013

Chilean outdoor education industry looks to NZ

The Chilean outdoor education and adventure tourism industries have a lot to learn from New Zealand says a Chilean outdoor educator.

Tai Poutini Polytechnic Outdoor Education tutor Zak Shaw and top 2012 Outdoor Education student Tui Kraal recently travelled to Chile as part of a reciprocal arrangement between the polytechnic and Chile’s Instituto Vertical. 

The pair spent time at Vertical’s base in Santiago and then accompanied a group from the University of Pennsylvania’s prestigious Wharton Business School undergoing MBA leadership training.  The trip included high altitude trekking in the Andes mountain range, abseiling and zip-lining across canyons, rock climbing and trekking in the Atacama Desert.

Mr Shaw says their role was to work with Vertical staff, share ideas and facilitate some of their leadership training with the MBA students.  “The Wharton students are the future movers and shakers of the US business world paying USD$93,000 a year in course fees.  They are extremely intellectual students, however putting them into an outdoor context is not where they typically perform and removes them from their comfort zone," he says.

“It was a great trip, we hiked from mountains to valleys, past isolated communities and saw incredible wildlife and scenery.  Even though the Atacama Desert is the driest place in the world it rained and hailed and snowed while we were there,” says Mr Shaw.

Instituto Vertical’s Aldo Boitano says the New Zealand outdoor training sector is much more developed than Chile’s and Instituto Vertical benefits in many ways from the relationship with TPP.

“It has been wonderful to work and learn from TPP as TPP has lots of experience and keeps challenging and improving.  Our relationship is evolving and growing strong with TPP getting involved in projects we do with other partners like the Wharton Business School,” he says.

A tutor from Instituto Vertical will visit TPP on an exchange next year and a Vertical graduate is applying to do the Diploma in Outdoor Instruction and Guiding in 2104.  If their application is accepted TPP will offer them a scholarship.

ENDS

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