Academic News
The Public Health Students are off to a great start! They have been busy since day one learning about Kenyan and Maasai culture as well as the community and environmental health issues facing the area. The students were welcomed to a neighboring Maasai homestead where they learned about traditional Maasai lifestyle, customs, and traditions. Dr. John Kiringe and Salaton Tome took students for a field lecture to show first hand some of the major issues and conflicts surrounding water usage and contamination in the Kuku Group Ranch, where they will be doing most of their field research. Students also visited and toured the local government operated health center to learn about their facilities and services as well as the biggest health problems seen at the clinic.

The students got their first chance to do some community service at a local secondary school that is starting a tree nursery that will eventually be used to plant trees both within the school compound and in the surrounding community. Students spent the morning planting the nursery and a few large seedlings within the compound. They were involved in all parts of the process including fetching water from the nearby river. In the afternoon, the Public Health students taught lessons to each of the classes about health topics including hand-washing and HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention.

The students also got a taste of the local wildlife during a visit to Amboseli National Park. They saw giraffes, zebras, hyenas, and lots of elephants up close. At the Maasai cultural village inside Amboseli students were invited to join in songs and dances as well as traditional Maasai jumping. They also enjoyed an afternoon at a lodge inside the park where they visited the lodge clinic, which serves the communities in and around Amboseli.
- Sarah Yerian, Student Affairs Manager                                              

One week into our work in the Kimana at the Kilimanjaro bush camp and we are now familiar with the environment. We spent the first week familiarizing ourselves with Kimana camp, having orientation lectures, touring Amboseli ecosystem, and visiting a typical Maasai boma. The climax to the first week was on Sunday when we toured Amboseli national park and it was a fabulous experience for all of us. Thanks to the staff that organized the tour and guided us through: kudos Sarah, Sussy and Daniel! On Saturday we had a good time doing community service in Ololei secondary school.

We are now in our second week and it's quite busy. Kathreen Semrau from Boston University and Dr. Samson Ndege from Moi University have already joined us and are helping us to prepare a tool for the survey. The survey that we are going to conduct will be on Water and Sanitation in Kuku group ranch. We are all working tirelessly to develop and conduct a flawless survey and all is going well. However, we also have a non-program day on Friday and the non-program day committee has already planned for us to visit Oloitoktok town. We are all looking forward to that day to have a break from our busy schedules and also do some shopping.

The staff here is quite friendly and organized. They are always with us all the time which is quite amazing. We eat all our meals together as a family and we have an excellent cook crew lead by Mr. Wahome. They do us justice in preparing food for us daily and ensure they capture everyone's taste in all the meals. African dishes and western dishes are cooked as well as vegetarian options.

There is no genuine reason not to try this place. It is simply wonderful! The director, Dr. Seno is doing an amazing job and is a very good example of how decentralization of power can be excellently applied! Bravo to Dr. Seno. All who get a golden opportunity like this one, don't hesitate, come and see for yourself!!!
- Faith Irene Wagaki-Moi University

Habari! It has been just over one week since the 18 of us arrived at Kilimanjaro Bush Camp and we have much to report about Kenya's culture, medical system, and wildlife. So far we have visited two traditional Maasai bomas and the local market, toured both a public and private medical clinic, taught a health education lesson and planted trees at a local secondary school (see picture), and went on a safari at Amboseli National Park. We've also squeezed in two Kiswahili lessons, two nature walks, sat in on a lecture from a local herbalist who practices traditional medicine, took a field trip to observe the water access and use in the Amboseli region, completed literature reviews about water and sanitation, and survived our first quiz. Our professors have been fantastically full of interesting information; Dr. Seno has much to offer about the Maasai culture, Salaton Tome has shared information about the political economy of Kenya, Dr. Kiringe can answer any questions on herbal and traditional medicine, and Katherine Semrau arrived yesterday and is quickly teaching us about designing questionnaires. Because our time here is short, we are certainly making the most of it.

During our visit to Amboseli National Park we took many photographs of the elephants, zebras, wildebeests, gazelles, buffalos, hippos, and giraffes. We will surely not forget about the friendly vervet monkeys who almost took over our vehicle. The Wildlife students arrived yesterday and all of us in the Public Health program are happy to have an extended family that can teach us about the local bird species.

This week we are refining the questionnaire we will be administering to a local community to assess the impact of water and sanitation on household health. As a member of the household illness episodes team, I have learned that sanitation-related diseases, water-borne illnesses, and HIV/AIDS are a growing concern in this region due to poor access to health care. We are all eager to implement our questionnaire, present our findings, and provide recommendations to the community to improve their overall health.
- Maureen Heneghan, Fordham University

Hamjambo! The first week in Kenya was wild! Immediately after leaving Nairobi there were giraffes and ostriches bounding through the grass near the road. Visits to the Kimana market and the Maasai boma (house) were equally fascinating – even the day-to-day activities of the Maasai are foreign and exciting. The week's finale came when we went to Amboseli National Park. The elephants, zebras, wildebeest, water buffalo, and hippos made it an unforgettable experience. It's all a bit overwhelming, and I still can't believe I'm actually living here!
- Jon Strong, University of Minnesota/Twin Cities