Building a Sustainable Tanzania

Fall 3-week, 2008

The Faculty

Stephen Zabor, Economics and Environmental Studies

The Course

INTD 368: Building a Sustainable Tanzania

The Program

In 1964, Tanganyika united with the island state of Zanzibar  (consisting of the Indian Ocean islands of Unguja and Pemba), creating Tanzania.  The country of Tanzania is about 1.5 times the size of Texas and has a population of around 40 million people belonging to over 100 ethnic groups who are united by the country’s official languages of English and KiSwahili. 

              The challenge in the formation of Tanzania as a nation-state lay largely in avoiding local rivalries between ethnic groups.  Julius Nyerere, Tanzania’s president for 23 years after independence in 1962 met this challenge by advocating self-government and grass-roots organizations, while promoting the use of KiSwahili as a national language.  Nyerere was a genuine statesman who did much to move Tanzania into the global economy and the modern world.

               The purpose of this study abroad program is to engage students with a culture that is significantly different than their own and to expose them to the struggles of people to improve their lives.  Hands-on experiences with NGO’s working on a variety of development issues – women’s education, nutrition, micro-finance of entrepreneurial activities, HIV-Aids education, safe water access, health delivery systems – and direct engagement with those struggling to respond to environmental change and globalization will stimulate students’ ethical awareness, sense of social responsibility, and leadership qualities.  Their experience will broaden their communicative skill base through exposure to and practice of different verbal and nonverbal languages and through the unique rhetorical challenges of studying abroad.

              This program will address political, economic, environmental, and cultural aspects of the lives of the peoples of Tanzania.  We will examine the global and regional economic and political changes that have affected quality of life in Tanzania and gain an understanding of current efforts to empower individuals and groups to take control and to create a sustainable path of development.  We will also examine how intercultural relationships and communicative practices shape these current efforts.
 

The Travel

We will spend most of the first week at Center House in Arusha, learning KiSwahili and about the culture of Tanzania and adjusting to life in the bustling tourist oriented city.  Late in the week the students will begin their work with their chosen NGOs. Then we will move (in pairs) to our home-stay families.  On weekends and other off times we will have the opportunity to visit the famous Nogorogoro National Game Park, and visit historic Stone Town on the island of Zanzibar.  We will also have the opportunity to visit craft markets and see (and purchase) the famous TingaTinga paintings and the wonderful local carved wooden crafts.

Travel Dates:

November 30 - December 22, 2008

Estimated Program Costs

$4,000 (includes all travel expenses, accommodations, and meals).  Personal expenses, passport fees, and independent travel are not included.

A $75 non-refundable fee is due upon receipt of completed application.  This fee is used to pay for processing costs, and International Student Identity Card, passport holder, and luggage tags.

Application Deadline

March 14 , 2008

For more information, please contact:

Study Abroad Coordinator
Hiram College
P.O. Box 67
Hiram, OH  44234
Phone: (330) 569-5160
Fax: (330) 569-5381
E-Mail: mickks@hiram.edu