Dr. Timothy Fogarty first arrived in Nicaragua in the winter of 1988 with his wife and their two children. Fogarty and his wife worked as international partners with Habitat for Humanity, building houses in rural communities in Nicaragua. Fogarty received a PhD in Anthropology from the University of Florida in 2005 and wrote his doctoral dissertation on NGO-mediated development and solidarity travel in Nicaragua. He has served as the director of the UF in Nicaragua Program for the past five years.

What was special about Nicaragua? What prompted you to return later?

You wrote your dissertation on what you call “solidarity travel”; how do you define “solidarity travel”?

You mention NGO-mediated development in your dissertation. Can you briefly explain what an NGO is?

What is the role of NGOs in Nicaragua?

You are the director of the UF in Nicaragua program. Why did you start this program?

How do you think the UF in Nicaragua program affects the participants?

For a U.S. American interested in a long-term volunteering experience, what would be useful information to know before embarking on the trip?

You mentioned having some humility; do people often go down with the attitude, “I’m going to save the world”? Does that change on the course of the trip?