Sustainable Development Study Abroad Programs in Kenya

In this summer fundamentals course, the world-famous national parks and reserves of Kenya will be your classrooms. Through safari drives, field excursions, and an emphasis on the human role, study wildlife found nowhere else on the planet. Discuss different wildlife management and conservation approaches and learn about traditional knowledge and culture from Maasai and other community groups. SFS students live and study at the Center for Wildlife and Human Dimensions of Conservation. The Center is located in the middle of Kenya's Rift Valley, among three world-renowned national parks. The snow-capped peak of Mt. Kilimanjaro towers over miles of savanna, replete with diverse wildlife. Our sprawling, grassy campus includes traditional thatched cabins and a central building just down the road from the small town of Kimana.

The South Rift Valley of Kenya, stretching from the Maasai Mara National Reserve through Amboseli National Park, is one of the most spectacular wildlife areas on the planet. Earth Expeditions has partnered with the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden and the African Conservation Centre to advance community-based conservation in this dynamic landscape. This effort builds on the decades-long research of Dr. David Western, former head of the Kenya Wildlife Service, and the centuries-long research of the Maasai pastoralists, who have long co-existed with wildlife in an open grassland ecosystem populated by elephants, lions, giraffes, zebra, wildebeests, and a remarkable diversity of other species. With the rise of nontraditional lifestyles, private ranches, and fenced lands that prevent needed wildlife migrations, communities of the South Rift have recognized the need to understand the impact of these changes and work together for a better future. Before and following the field experience in Kenya, students will complete coursework via Dragonfly Workshops' Web-Based Learning Community as they apply these experiences to their home institutions.