Lauren Bartholomew '09 recently learned that her plans to spend next semester in Kenya had been cancelled due to mounting violence and protests within the country in the wake of last December's contentious elections.
Bartholomew, along with three other juniors and one sophomore, hoped to take part in the ecology and evolutionary biology (EEB) department's Tropical Biology Program in Kenya this spring. EEB chair Daniel Rubenstein made the decision to cancel this year's program at the beginning of reading period.
Kenya has been gripped by sporadic violence since the Dec. 27 presidential election in which incumbent Mwai Kibaki was declared the winner by a thin margin over opposition candidate Raila Odinga despite evidence of ballot rigging. Opposition parties have staged protests in and around the Kenyan capital of Nairobi over the past month, leading to violent clashes between police and demonstrators.
"The chances of peace returning are slim, and even if it did, the up-and-down cat-and-mouse game would continue," Rubenstein said in an email. "Given the unpredictability of the situation, I do not feel comfortable bringing students into Kenya for a prolonged period of time."
In an email sent to President Tilghman, Dean of the College Nancy Malkiel, and Associate Dean of the College and Study Abroad Program Director Nancy Kanach on Jan. 8, Rubenstein explained that while the program's primary site at Mpala Research Center is in a safe area, the course includes a trip to a cement factory quarry near Nairobi that would involve greater risk.
As of now, demonstrations against Kibaki continue in Nairobi while rural areas are witnessing brutal clashes between the Kibaki-supporting Kikuyu and the opposition's Luo tribes.
"If a coup occurs or the country drifts into civil war, then the students would truly be at risk," Rubenstein said.
Students intending to take the trip were given the option of spending their spring semester in the EEB department's Tropical Biology Program in Panama, and four of the five have decided to do so.
"The EEB department was very good about providing us with alternatives. They looked into other study abroad programs in Africa for those of us who really wanted to go," said Bartholomew, who has decided to go to Panama.
Laura Morales '09, who participated in the Panama program last year, decided instead to get an early start on her thesis work but hopes for the opportunity to do the Kenya program as a senior.
"I was disappointed because I was really looking forward to the opportunity to do field work, but I trust [the EEB department's] judgment," Morales said.
The Kenya program offered four classes taught by Rubenstein, mechanical and aerospace engineering professor Wole Soboyejo, civil and environmental engineering professor Kelly Caylor and EEB lecturers Philip Muruthi GS '97 and Paula Kahumbu GS '02. With a mix of EEB and engineering courses as part of the curriculum, the program was opened to engineers this year, Morales said, but none decided to participate.
Participants in the Kenya program went through significant preparation over the past two months. Not only did Morales need to find clothing to wear in a tropical climate, but the program also required her to get a variety of vaccinations against polio, hepatitis, typhoid, rabies and malaria.
Despite the extensive and often cumbersome preparation required for the program, Morales said she would have liked the chance to do field research with other undergraduates.
"I was really looking forward to getting to know all of them. For this kind of work you have to get to know people, make connections," Morales said.
Read More
‘A willingness to forge new ground’: Nobel laureate and her Ph.D. advisor discuss time at Princeton
Andrew BosworthMary Brunkow GS ’91 received the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine on Monday. In interviews, Brunkow and her Ph.D. advisor at Princeton, former University President Shirley Tilghman, discussed her path through Princeton and her career.
Mary Brunkow GS ’91 received the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine on Monday. In interviews, Brunkow and her Ph.D. advisor at Princeton, former University President Shirley Tilghman, discussed her path through Princeton and her career.
New Princeton bus route proposed at town council meeting
Luke Grippo and Christine WoodsThe Princeton Town Council meeting on Wednesday included proposals for new buses and a new bus route.
The Princeton Town Council meeting on Wednesday included proposals for new buses and a new bus route.
Nine people, some with alleged criminal records, detained by ICE in Princeton, Jersey City
Sena Chang and Luke GrippoNine Chilean nationals with alleged connections to transnational crime organizations were arrested by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Newark in Princeton and Jersey City on Sept. 19, according to a Sept. 29 press release.
Nine Chilean nationals with alleged connections to transnational crime organizations were arrested by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Newark in Princeton and Jersey City on Sept. 19, according to a Sept. 29 press release.