Project Spotlight – Xcalak English Project

YDCCF SPOTLIGHT: THE XCALAK ENGLISH PROJECT

Here at Yellow Dog, our team believes in the responsibility of leaving the places we visit better than we found them – to use our voices, reach, and brand as a vehicle for positive change and protection. Whether that be environmental stewardship, conservation campaigns, or infrastructural investments in local communities, Yellow Dog and the Yellow Dog Community & Conservation Foundation (YDCCF) are committed to giving back to the fishing-related communities who have given us so much.

This past year, YDCCF helped launch the first annual Xcalak English Project in the small town of Xcalak, Mexico. Located on the border of the Yucatan and Belize, Xcalak is a small fishing village that has – over the years – become a preeminent destination for saltwater anglers. The Chetumal Bay fishery surrounding Xcalak provides year-round access to permit, bonefish, tarpon, snook, and numerous other game species. Introducing new economic resources through tourism and fly fishing has provided Xcalak residents with a reliable and consistent income and a foundation for future prosperity.

What the Xcalak community has traditionally struggled with, however, was an educational component for those looking to improve their English-speaking skills: proficiencies that are often-times paramount for finding work in the tourism and lodge sector. The Xcalak English Project was created to offer an immersive educational program designed to empower those in the local community with improved language skills. In coordination with XFlats Lodge, YDCCF, Bozeman High School-based ESL instructors, and Bozeman student Carson Klug, week-long curriculums were created and offered to fishing guides, hospitality staff, and their families. The program focused on oral and written language development through interactive dialogue, games, and vocabulary lessons, with continued online education to reinforce development. “Fly fishing means life for Xcalak,” commented XFlats Lodge owner Jesse Colten. “It means a sustainable economy for the community and great jobs for many of the village’s families.”

What initially began as a means of improving the communication between the lodge staff and clients quickly grew. By including local children in the program (along with guides and lodge staff), the school opens new doors for young people in what is largely an impoverished region. While the area will preserve its own language and customs, introducing English to a community supported by the tourism industry will allow future generations prosperity and growth. The idea for XEP came from Carson Klug, the fifteenyear-old daughter of Yellow Dog founder, Jim Klug, and his wife, Hillary, an educator in the Bozeman community. From a young age, Carson was impacted by the small fishing communities she visited throughout Central and South America. As she began her high-school years, she wanted to create a program that would help anyone eager to improve their education and language skills, and through family connections, her vision became a reality. “To travel to the Xcalak community and spend time working with people of all ages was an incredible experience. It was every bit as rewarding – if not more – for the instructors as it was for the students. We hope to make this an ongoing and annual project in Xcalak.”

As with all YDCCF programs, a combination of donor support and funds allocated by Yellow Dog made the project possible. When you book a trip through Yellow Dog, you can take pride in knowing a portion of your funds are going to protect, preserve, and enhance the communities, fisheries, and places that matter to anglers. Looking forward, Yellow Dog and YDCCF will continue to invest in and support the people, businesses, and projects who are collectively the backbone of the fishing communities we hold dear.

To learn more about the Xcalak English Project or to support project efforts for the future, please visit www.ydccf.org