South Africa Bound
So sitting at the airport waiting for my flight, it still has not truly sunk in that I am headed to South Africa. Until this point it has simply been a topic brought up during social gatherings and other small talk opportunities. Otherwise, it has been an excuse for my parents to continuously call me to quadruple check that I have my passport. Yes dad, I had it last week so I think I still have it this week! Regardless, everyone is excited but it still has just not sunk in that for the next two weeks I will be exploring Kruger National Park in South Africa. It is not like I haven’t traveled in the past but there is a significant difference between a few days to Michigan and leaving the country completely!
The first day will consist of exploring the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg, which our professors have been holding in their back pocket as some sort of climactic unveiling of the material we have since been studying about South Africa and their wildlife policies. My peers who are traveling with me have been split into two focus groups. On one hand, you have those students who are focused on sustainable water solutions for villages we will be staying in for a period of time during our stay. I like to consider this the smaller scale immediate issue that impacts people’s daily lives. The other group will focus on the more large scale, long term solutions in policies of the wildlife economy. A lot of people may automatically think this relates to the predominantly Western perception of poaching and trophy hunting, which play their part in the problem but are only a small piece to the much larger puzzle. As unintuitive as it feels, they are not always the evils that they may be perceived to be. Trophy hunting is actually a much more sound practice that generates revenue, promotes development and actually sustains the natural ecosystems when compared to the destructive practices of cattle grazing. It also has unintended benefits of holding game ranchers accountable for keeping the ecosystems that these animals thrive in healthy.
I honestly can’t wait to get there and learn more. I want to understand the realities of the day-to-day lives of those who live within the situations and gain some insight to alternative perspectives that will help guide not only myself, but others, to more sustainable personal and societal growth.