Mapping Myself And Planet - an unknown country turns close, not closed

MMAP Project mission

We started this project to help people open up their countries to the world, to know more about their own country, and to find our where we stand in our country, on our continent, and on our planet.

Groups of international mountain bikers go around Belarus, an unknown country in the middle of Europe, and find links to the their histories and cultures.

We realize this project with the organizational support of Adventure Racing Federation (Belarus).

Everybody benefits

This is the complicated diagram we devised for the project. Impressive, eh? Actually, the idea is simple--all groups involved give and get.

Bicyclists, both local and foreign, interact and learn more about other countries and about their own as well. Jointly they make presentations and talks for school kids of in small towns and villages. In exchange, local people tell the bicyclists about their life, interesting places, events, and people of their town.

For the first set of quests we chose the topic full of social, political, cultural, and religious aspects: "The Beginning of the American Nation, The War of Independence, and the American Constitution".

Surprisingly enough, during our trips we found quite a few connections between provincial towns in Belarus (Kokhanava, Sianno, Viciebsk), and this very international topic...

Our first route for three quests

We started with the part of Belarus least represented in tour guides. A small town of Kokhanava, a slightly bigger administrative center the city of Sianno, and Viciebsk, the administrative center of one of the six provinces. North-Eastern Belarus (old Litwa), where none of Western tour guide books indicate any significant historical places.

Though located in the geographical center of Europe, Belarus in general is a very unknown country. For many centuries it was a supplier if 'raw demography material' for the rest of the world. Indeed, the most important resources here are its people and its geographic location.

Our first quest along this route was in August 2010, the second was in October 2010. We plan to organize yet another one in late April-early May 2011, meet the same school kids and social activists. Then we plan to go to Mahilyow, an equally underrepresented region.

Our first quest along this route in August 2010
Our second quest along this route in October 2010
Our third quest along this route is planned to be in April-May 2011

A new set of quests, to Mahilyow region, is planned to be in summer 2011