CURRENT MISSION

To work with others to change the world. (I often travel with my wife: https://www.couchsurfing.com/people/wantokporo)

ABOUT ME

I love language and politics. In my work, I've jumped around a lot, from one area of work to another, though it has always involved teaching and has mostly also involved research. Beginning at age 55, I really found what I wanted, work that brings together what I know (linguistics and computers) in a way that is both really fun (for me) and hopefully one day also useful.

PHILOSOPHY

I believe in the power of ordinary people, organized in communities, to make history. I don't believe in good and evil, but I believe we all have both friends and enemies based on what we want to achieve and what things are important to us. I'm a materialist, in the sense that I believe everything ultimately has a physical explanation, though I doubt we'll ever discover the explanations for many things (and that's fine with me too).

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Surfing and hosting.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've met couch surfers socially in Asunción, Paraguay and Harar, Ethiopia; hosted people in Santa Cruz, California, USA; and stayed with people in Istanbul, the Basque Country, Morocco, and various places in the US. Wonderful, interesting people all.

Interests

I'm fascinated by places: the scenery, yes, but mostly the people, their history, their architecture, their art, their music, their food, and most of all, their languages. I've been lucky that my love of languages has usually been a part of the work I do and that I've often had work-related excuses to travel.
My other passion is politics. I'm interested in working outside the mainstream political system, across national boundaries, to fight for social justice.
I'm a collector: of languages, of facts about places and about plants and animals.
Music has also played a part in my life at different times. I was the co-founder, in 1999, of the first Afropop band in Indiana, Afro Hoosier Intl; I was with AHI for 8 years. I play saxophone, penny whistle, and mandolin. At the moment I am loving learning accordion.

• animals
• dining
• politics
• traveling
• music
• history
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

Some of my favorite movies: The Constant Gardener, Nine Queens (Nueve Reinas), Snow Cake, Doubt, Matewan, Land and Country, The Namesake, Everything is Illuminated, Talk to Her (Hable con ella), Galaxy Quest, Central Station (Central do Brasil), The Good Boss, The Third Murder, Butterfly's Tongue (La Lengua de las Mariposas), The Bookshop, The Color of Paradise.
A few of my favorite novels: The God of Small Things, The Dispossessed, The Grapes of Wrath, War and Peace, Catch 22, The Remains of the Day, The Poisonwood Bible, Lilith's Brood.
Music: I like almost every genre I've ever heard, but especially Latin jazz, salsa, Afropop (Congo, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Senegal, Madagascar, Mali, Algeria).

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

While my wife and I were attending a performance of one of Uruguay's best murga groups, Uruguay's president, José Mujica, and his wife, Senator Lucí­a Topolansky, were sitting in the section in front of us. There was no special security for them, and people in the audience came up freely to greet them and have their photos taken with the president. We loved the music and also the completely informal way Mujica interacts with other Uruguayans.

Teach, Learn, Share

I know a lot about language and languages, the role they play in people's daily lives and in the political life of regions and countries. I'd love to share what I know. I love to learn about other people's lives and interests, and have had a great time with my couchsurfing hosts and guests.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Cuba, Czech Republic, Egypt, England, France, Ghana, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Luxembourg, Malta, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Paraguay, Portugal, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Tunisia, Turkey, Uganda, Uruguay

Countries I’ve Lived In

Ethiopia, Germany, United States