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This page is in Development…9/2014

**South Africa: Water Woes – People, Parks, and Pollution**

Do you have a special interest in working in **RURAL AFRICAN** communities? Would you like to develop **SKILLS** that will allow you to **MAKE A DIFFERENCE** in the **WORLD**? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to **LIVE WITH THE “BIG FIVE”?** • Enjoy close encounters with large mammals and even larger ancient trees. • Interact with top scientists from the University of the Witwatersrand, University of Pretoria, North Carolina State University, and others. • Conduct field research in rural communities joining Kruger National Park and the Zimbabwe border. • Gain knowledge and experience in social-ecological research, including the complex relationships among urbanization, resource use, human health and well-being, ecosystem resilience and climate change. • Engage in collaborative research that results in valuable products for communities in need.

Clever Girl - Rural life is challenging and all family members are expected to "pull their weight" to keep the household functioning. This young girl has found a clever way to use her own body weight to pump water from a local borehole.

**CONTACT NCSU STUDY ABROAD NOW TO SIGN UP FOR THE EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME!** NR 595 Socio-Ecological Research Methods ET 495 - International Water Assessment ADN 490 - Art and Design International Studio LAR 582 - Special Topics in Landscape Architecture
 * Courses (Pick one of the course options below - each class is 6 credits)**

(Syllabi coming soon! To complete 6 credits in all of the above courses students will have preparatory meetings, classes, and assignments, as well as a project due three weeks after returning to the US)

Kruger National Park (KNP) is one of the world’s largest and most extraordinary conservation areas. This area is not only home to the “Big Five” (Lion, Leopard, Elephant, Rhino, and Buffalo), but is also a place of truly forward-thinking management strategies for biodiversity conservation. Here we can engage with scientists studying all aspects of life in the park, from wildlife management to nutrient cycling, as this is a hot spot for ecological studies. However, conservation areas are under a huge amount of stress, facing challenges associated with climate change, potential over-population of wildlife species, tourism, and, perhaps most importantly around KNP, urbanizing communities along the border facing economic hardship. This is the perfect place to evaluate key questions regarding the management of resources, ecological stability, the health and well being of communities, and sustainability. Students will have unique access to research facilities, tourist camps, and communities closed to the general public while engaging with a diversity of scientists and managers to solve real-world problems.
 * Location**

We are offering a unique experience in South Africa for both undergraduate and graduate students interested in a broad range of topics including, sustainability, environmental technology, natural resource management, conservation, public health, environmental justice, policy, planning, and urbanization. Together the faculty, students, and local African citizens and stakeholders involved with this program will explore the complex social and ecological challenges facing communities in the Global South as they aspire for the equitable provisioning of clean water. Our circuit in and around, one of the world's most biodiverse conservation areas, the Kruger National Park, will allow students to gain a more nuanced understanding of how conservation areas and communities struggle to find balance in maintaining ecosystem health and integrity with human health and well-being. Students will learn a host of critical skills associated with research in both the natural and social sciences, and have extensive training in transdisciplinary problem solving. This transformative life experience allows for students to directly engage with the wonders of the savanna in a meaningful way while developing the expertise needed to become successful sustainability scientists and practitioners.
 * Program**

The 2015 study abroad experience is an extension of the IMAGINE program in South Africa. This interdisciplinary program aims to train future leaders in sustainability to develop science that will contribute to the health and well-being of communities in-need.

We will have the opportunity to work in the field with armed rangers in close proximity to wildlife, go on many adventurous drives in open game-viewing vehicles, experience African Bushveld at night with search lights, visit remote iron–age archeological sites, work with communities on the border of Kruger National park with diverse musical traditions of dance and drumming, experience living in remote villages to observe resource use first hand.
 * Excursions and Events**

Students will stay in well-equipped and picturesque research facilities both in the park and in surrounding communities. For a few nights students will also live in home-stays within the Venda community in HaMakuya. All meals are provided by a local catering business and will include variety of high quality meals, including night-time Braais (South African grill over fire). Vegetarian options are available.
 * Accommodations and Meals**

Flight Information Students will be required to book their own flights to South Africa through a designated travel agent well in advance of the departure date. Land transportation in South Africa is arranged for by the director and the costs are already included.



Leopard - Some parts of Kruger National Park, and the surrounding area, have very high densities of Leopards. We found this remarkable specimen right outside of Skukuza, KNP. Leopards are everywhere, but are still hard to find. Likely, they see you often and you never know they are there!



Traditional Dance in HaMakuya - The people of HaMakuya make you feel at home in their rural villages. When we are there we live with the community, learn their traditions, and experience their culture, worldview, and lifestyle first hand.



Water Quality Monitoring - We have been working with local Environmental Monitors in the HaMakuya community. Here NCSU professor Terrie Litzenberger is training the EMs to monitor water quality in their own villages.



Lion Kill - a special site in a local Game Reserve bordering Kruger National Park. This reserve, called Manyeleti, is managed by the local Mnisi Tribe. NCSU in the Bushveld - In some of our research sites we actually have a chance to walk amongst these magnificent creatures! Sunset Game Drive - Again, we are in Manyeleti, enjoying the company of charismatic megafauna….and microfauna! But to be truthful, these scientists are watching lions!