Before visiting this website, I had never heard of the Out of Eden Walk, and I am honestly surprised considering how much of a feat this is. A modern day Odysseus, Paul Salopek is currently on a 24,000-mile odyssey from Africa to the southern tip of South America. It is special because he is following the path our ancestors made as they migrated across the Earth. Along the way he is covering the major stories he encounters from the eyes of the people I didn’t even know existed. From climate change to technological innovation, from mass migration to cultural survival, Salopek is giving voice to the people who inhabit the places he is journeying through every day.

Walking for several years now, Salopek has obviously been to many places. Alongside gaining popularity for this odyssey, he has also inspired educators across the world to teach globally. As a future teacher, I am going to have the task of teaching students about the world ahead of them, and that means more than just learning about their city, state, or even country- it is about teaching that the world is way larger and has so much more to offer than what is on TV or in the news. So much of today’s society is based upon quickness and cheapness, rather than time and quality. Paul Salopek can simply visit big named places in each of the countries he visits and be done in a few months. Instead, he is emphasizing the slowness of it, which really brings meaning to his work and allows for those genuine human interactions. In this blog post, I am going to talk about a few of the place’s Paul has been to.

The first stop for us is the most recent one for Paul: The Gaoligong Mountains, in Yunnan, China.

According to Salopek, around 5,000 species of plants, around 700 species of animals, and 1,690 different insects find refuge in the mountain range. One of his guides says the forest floor was so covered with salamanders, the only way he could leave the forest was by walking through creeks. These places are untouched by technology and because of that are often overlooked. That is no problem for those who inhabit areas near the mountain range, in fact, they prefer it. An administrator of the mountain range spoke with Paul and explained there is a saying that goes, “You cut my trees? I cut your hands”. They are very passionate people and have the utmost respect for nature, something that we should all learn from and admire. Yang Xue Liu is a 74 year old man Paul encounters in a village in the mountain range. He sells medicinal herbs and each one has its own purpose. He explains that if people knew plants, they would use them and that is something very important in a science classroom. A teacher could give a whole lesson on plants or nuts that are safe to eat, which can help students learn how to use the environment around them and not always rely on processed food.

The next stop is a step back into time for Paul, but a new future for me and those alike who have no idea a place, named Baku, Azerbaijan, exists.

Baku is home to many different empirical influences, from Russian to Persian, Ottoman (Turkish), and even British. It is also home to apparently the world’s largest KFC: a fact I did not ask for, yet did not know I needed to hear. This city has a reputation for taking in widely different influencers and somehow manages to create its own spin on it. This kind of city would be great for a social studies or history class, as it is proof that we live with history everyday. Paul links a walking tour of the city that I think greatly shows the user just how diverse and culturally rich this city is.

Continuing with the theme of being unexpected, the last stop in this blog is where Paul Salopek started, Herto Bouri, Ethiopia. It is interesting to read what expectations he had for his journey, and how excited he was. Salopek in 2013 predicted to be in South America by 2020 and it is crazy to think about how much of the future is unknown especially writing this blog in 2021 dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. His journey beginning reminds me of beginning school for the first time as a 6 year old. Like Paul, I had no idea of the journey I was in for, and I still do not now. Just as my parents and other adults have done before me, I walked through school everyday, enjoying the ride and discovering new things about myself and others. Now, on the cusp of ending my school career as a student, I begin a new walk in school, as a teacher. Like the guides that help Paul on his journey, I too am now a guide for the students who are now where I once was. Keeping him and his journey in my thoughts, I will use this Walk of Eden as a teaching point about the globe, but also one about ourselves. A quote by a fifth grader in the U.S.A. about the Out of Eden project really sums up the importance of this project: “I think when exposed to the details of others’ lives, you start noticing your own…”—Annie 5th grade student, Massachusetts, USA.