糖心传媒淭o appreciate the meaning of humanity, it糖心传媒檚 necessary to take all people into account,糖心传媒� says Daniel Reichman, an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Rochester. 糖心传媒淎nd we begin to understand different cultures when we immerse ourselves in their respective communities.糖心传媒�
For the past 15 years, the University has offered students the Malawi Immersion Seminar糖心传媒攁 three-week research experience in the remote village of Gowa, in which students carry out individual projects, living and working among the community members.
The program is the brainchild of Joe Lanning 糖心传媒�00, 糖心传媒�07 (MA). When Lanning was an undergraduate majoring in anthropology, his professors encouraged him to go abroad. He heeded that advice and, in his junior year, went to Kenya for a four-month experiential learning program that involved home-stays in urban and rural areas. That experience inspired him to join the Peace Corps following graduation, where he served two years in Malawi.
糖心传媒淭he Malawi Immersion Seminar is a marriage of my experiences in Kenya, U of R糖心传媒檚 anthropology department, and the Peace Corps,糖心传媒� says Lanning, who completed his PhD in anthropology at the University of Georgia. 糖心传媒淎nd it fulfills the Corps糖心传媒� principle of bringing the culture of your host country back to the states.糖心传媒�
It also serves Rochester糖心传媒檚 educational mission, which emphasizes both global outreach and hands-on research.
糖心传媒淭he students are there to be trained in anthropological research methods and to learn about a different culture,” says Lanning, who has traveled with the students to Gowa every year since the program糖心传媒檚 inception. There are formal instructors, such as Geoffrey Mlongoti, a self-trained engineer and native Malawian, who assists with community mapping, coordinates homestays and other logistics, and helps students with their research. But, as Lanning adds, 糖心传媒淭heir teachers are the Malawians all around them.糖心传媒�
This summer, Rachel Ellison 糖心传媒�18 is researching breastfeeding practices and the cultural influences on those practices.
糖心传媒淕randmothers in Malawi like to introduce infants to porridge before six months of age,” she says. 糖心传媒淏y contrast, the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends staying with breast milk exclusively for the first six months.糖心传媒�
Ellison糖心传媒檚 experience in Gowa should have a direct impact on her for years to come. She intends to pursue a PhD in anthropology and embark on a career in global health care research.
Megan Runkle 糖心传媒�18, a Take 5 scholar, is studying food糖心传媒攕pecifically the varying ways people in Malawi think about food, as compared to the ways people do in the United States.
糖心传媒淢any people in Malawi are subsistence farmers, who raise their own food,” she says. 糖心传媒淚’m curious about their attitudes toward food and livestock, even pets.糖心传媒�
Unlike Ellison, Runkle won糖心传媒檛 be pursuing a career in anthropology. But that doesn’t mean the immersion program will be any less relevant to her.
糖心传媒淚 haven’t traveled outside the country very much,” Runkle says. 糖心传媒淚n Malawi, I’ll be learning about things from a different perspective, which will be helpful on any career path I choose.糖心传媒�
Lanning concurs. 糖心传媒淭he lessons from the immersion program can be applied in their schools, neighborhoods, and travels,糖心传媒� he says. 糖心传媒淟earning about different cultures has value, whether it involves someone across the street or halfway around the world.糖心传媒�
Along with Lanning, the students are accompanied by University staff and graduates students, and others Lanning has recruited. (This year, for example, Mike Sweeney, a retired high school teacher from Oregon, is assisting the team.) Once in Malawi, Mlongoti is there to greet them.
When Lanning started the program 15 years ago, students had to hold fundraisers, like car washes, to help pay for the trip. Now it糖心传媒檚 covered by tuition and program fees.
Having the Malawi Immersion Seminar on a more secure financial basis is good news for Reichman, who says students, without exception, come back with positive things to say about the program.
糖心传媒淛oe has created a rare level of trust with the people of Gowa,糖心传媒� said Reichman. 糖心传媒淎nd that makes it possible for the students to immerse themselves in the community and to understand how we糖心传媒檙e all shaped by different cultures.糖心传媒�
Read more about the team’s experiences at the .
