What’s a Baserria?
Baserria Institute takes its name from the word Baserri - The Basque word for farmhouse (the “a” at the end is the article - the Basque language is complicated). Why did we choose to name the organization after a Basque farmhouse? Well, let me tell you a story...
The Basque Country represents a crossroads of cultures, unlike anything else in Western Europe. The Basque language is a language isolate, so old that no one really knows where it came from. Not even the Romans, who imposed their culture on every other part of the continent around the Basques, got the Basques to stop speaking Basque. Instead, the two cultures cooperated, each getting something out of the deal that they wanted or needed.
The Baserri was always at the center of the culture. These buildings were multigenerational homes where everyone worked in a clearly defined hierarchy to grow, harvest, and preserve food for the community. Thousands of Baserria are still scattered across the Basque Country today. Some are farming in the same way that they always have.
Perhaps the most compelling reason for the name involves Dr. Aric J. Visser, Founder of the institute. Like many who work in the study abroad or international education, Aric had his own formative experience in a small town hidden away in a corner of the Basque Country. He is painfully aware that he is probably overly nostalgic about the Basque Country. Still, he can't get away from the fact this it was, in fact, a life-changing experience.
Baserria Institute exists to help students and educators find their potential and create experiences that change lives. We are mission-driven and unapologetically optimistic about the future and willing to do the work to make that future possible.