Memo to Peace Corps Vets
From a private listserv based in Portland, Oregon
One of my more positive futuristic visions, woven into my science fiction (blogs, websites, other social media) is: my “Trucker Exchange Program” also dubbed “Truckers for Peace” (T4P).
Picture yourself as a truck driver in Ethiopia who gets recruited for, or signs up for, an academic program that will let you apprentice on distant routes, such as Beijing-Tehran (part of One Band One Road). Eventually, you might get to drive it solo, or be the teacher for someone new.
Although the freight has to keep moving in a timely fashion (a fresh driver takes over as you pull in to Kabul, having just done the Khyber Pass), individual drivers such as yourself often get multi-week tours of duty, including R&R, on various campuses, where you’ll learn local history and gain language skills, along with higher level STEM skills.
A senior trucker is a kind of diplomat polymath in this picture. A truck stop campus is more like a school of international and commercial affairs, with lots of restaurants and gift shops for the general public as well. Truckers usually drive in pairs. Some are married.
I found a Truckers without Borders group on Facebook, and joined it as a learning opportunity. I don’t post to it, not being any kind of…
