Coast Mountain College is pleased to be partnering with Northern Lights College, College of New Caledonia, and the University of Northern British Columbia to host a Global Indigenous Worldviews Project.

Harol Yoshuan Garcia Frasser, a Bruncajc Knowledge Holder from Costa Rica will be visiting all four institutions with the CMTN Terrace campus hosting him on Monday, September 29^th.

We will be touring Harol and his interpreter around the campus first thing Monday morning and then have an information session in Waap Galts’ap around 11 a.m. This session is being provided to share the incredible similarities noticed between their culture and ours as well as hear about their global experiences.

If you are interested in joining the session at 11 a.m., please RSVP to Ali McDougall at amcdougall@coastmountaincollege.ca as there will be lunch provided as well.    

About Harol

"I am Bruncajc indigenous thanks to the matrilineal lineage of my mother, Ms. Lourdes Frasser Rojas, and my grandmother Juana Rojas Morales. I also carry Black ancestry from my grandfather David Frasser D’Ane, who came from Jamaica.

My Cra rojc – my family nucleus – is made up of my Bé qui – mother Lourdes Frasser Rojas, Cabat – older brother William, and Suí rojc – two younger sisters, Ashly and Nahomy.

I live in the Bruncajc Indigenous Territory, which in Spanish means “valley or place of ashes.” However, the culture and the people are known as “Boruca,” a word that is a distortion of our true name in our native language: Bruncajc. The Bruncajc – Boruca Indigenous culture is made up of two indigenous territories (settlements), Boruca and Rey Curre, with an approximate population of 5,000 indigenous people.

The territories are a combination of natural forest areas, regenerating land, pasture, and savannahs. We are located in Central America, Costa Rica, Puntarenas province – Southern Zone, Buenos Aires canton, and Boruca district.

I carry cultural knowledge inherited and learned from the elders of the Bruncajc people, mainly related to spirituality, happiness and well-being, caring for nature and family. As a Bruncajc indigenous person, I have learned that every action and task we undertake must be done with affection and care – we must protect, build, and heal.

The most important value in the community is the respect and recognition of our elders; the So’y Xasuj (Grandmothers and Grandfathers) are the teachers of Culture and Life – they teach and pass down the value of indigenous cultural heritage, family, and the care of nature.

Learning the Di tegat – Bruncajc language, farming –agriculture, traditional housing, natural medicine, and yade’ – food prepared with the warmth of the yicra – fire. Oral history is passed down from the elders through stories and legends, enriched by Sodij qui – Art. Combined with music, fire, traditions, knowledge, and respect for nature, this is what makes us indigenous every day.

Thanks to the great cultural richness of the Bruncajc people, after being trained as a Tourism Guide (2006) and graduating in Tourism Business and Activities from the Cartago University College (2010), and as a Sustainable Tourism Manager from the Costa Rica Institute of Technology (2014), with the support and vision of my mother Mrs. Lourdes, the life project called SoCagru was born. We are an organization made up of 12 indigenous women heads of household, whose main purpose is to strengthen women and families through Culture, Nature, Art, and Tourism. We also seek the cultural revalorization of the Boruca heritage and community development through sustainable economic knowledge.

So Cagru was born in the year 2000 as a group of women who supported each other by marketing art. Then, in 2010, the association was formalized and the tourism project was consolidated, offering lodging, food, activities and tours, cultural talks, and discussions on social and indigenous rights topics. At So Cagru, my main role is Project Administrator and main Operations Coordinator. I also carry out tasks in Visitor Service and Guiding."