2011 Health and EarthRights Training Program

HEART sits in a sea of ricefields on the outskirts of Mae Sot, Thailand, with the jagged mountains of Burma visible in the distance.

The HEART grounds are a collection of dorms, a classroom and a kitchen in simple bamboo and concrete buildings. Outside are vegetable gardens, stands of bamboo, a pond and a soccer field.

The school's accommodation is housed in simple bamboo and wooden buildings with straw, leaf and aluminum roofs.

ERI staff Eliza Costello teaches students about field research and data collection methods. Staff, partners and friends of ERI and the Mae Tao Clinic often visit the school to teach classes in their area of expertise.

Group work is an integral part of the training sessions. Here, students discuss reports written by other Burma oranizations.

Many classes are conducted in English. Though the students are all conversational when they arrive at the school, some concepts require a Burmese translation. Here, ERI training coordinator Nyein Tun explains bioaccumulation of mining pollution.

Students grow much of their own food at the school. Along with fruits and vegetables such as mangoes, papaya, okra and cassava, HEART is also home to catfish, ducks and geese.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner are home-cooked by students and staff every day. Here, a staff member serves coconut soup with tofu and mushrooms.

Students outside the classroom.

Dr. Cynthia Maung, founder and head of the Mae Tao Clinic, speaks to the second class of HEART students at their opening ceremony.

The 2011 HEART class poses with their certificates, Dr. Cynthia and ERI's co-founder and executive director Ka Hsaw Wa.

HEART's 2011 graduation fell on the Thai holiday of Loy Krathong, where revelers release sky lanterns made of bamboo and rice paper. Students and friends of HEART lit lanterns after the graduation ceremony to celebrate.