In this honors seminar, students from across colleges and disciplines will combine research into humanitarianism, social responsibility and the principles of design thinking into the development of a project that will benefit a non-profit organization doing work in impoverished communities in rural Tanzania.

In spring 2013, we will explore how the fields such as engineering, nursing, medicine, education, business, liberal arts, design and more are all critical in the development of effective and inspiring humanitarian design projects. Together, we will explore the social, cultural and technological issues inherent in the field of humanitarian design and work collaboratively to create and implement projects that will have a positive impact on communities in need. The course includes a required trip to Tanzania during Spring Break 2013.

The projects will be designed and implemented in three villages in rural Tanzania through the Cincinnati-based non-profit organization Village Life Outreach (www.villagelifeoutreach.org). They have been working in rural Tanzania since 2004 bringing medical outreach, design and engineering solutions and educational initiatives to the region. Groups of 15-35 practitioners, educators and students have traveled to the region on brigades twice per year and several UC students have done 6-month co-ops in engineering and design.

This breath-taking region of Tanzania borders Lake Victoria and includes members of the Luo tribe, well known as a result of President Obama’s family lineage. The members of Village Life Outreach have a long-standing relationship with these communities. These communities have lived in this region for generations with extremely limited access to water and nutrition. There is no power, extremely limited resources as well as no health care available within a 4-hour walk of most members of the community.

The students enrolled in this course will develop proposals for design solutions that will benefit this community. We will work collaboratively with members of Village Life Outreach to define areas where your disciplinary knowledge can be put to work. Once proposals have been defined, we will create design solutions that will be implemented on-site in Tanzania. We will travel with Village Life Outreach to northern Tanzania during Spring Break. We will spend a week on-site and two days on safari en route to Nairobi, Kenya.

Class will meet Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:00 - 12:20 PM (tentative, subject to change).

Study Tour
This study tour will occur over Spring Break, March 14-25. Please note that the group may need to leave the day before the start of spring break and return the day after classes begin. Participants will be traveling to and from Tanzania with those in Telling True Stories in Tanzania: A Journalism Seminar. While the two courses are separate, some collaborative discussion during travel should be expected.

Tentative Itinerary:
Day One:        Fly from Cincinnati to Nairobi, Kenya
Day Two:       Arrive in Nairobi
Day Three:     Drive to Shirati, Tanzania
Day Four:       Begin implementation of projects in Tanzania
Day Eleven:       Safari
Day Twelve:       Nairobi
Day Thirteen:    Return travel to Cincinnati

Learn more about past brigades and what to expect by reading this 2011 brigade packet (MS Word).

Costs
Expected costs will be updated as final travel plans are made and are highly contingent upon airfare.

Total expected cost paid to UC is $2550. The actual cost per person for UC is $4200, but this will be offset by a $1000 grant from University Honors as well as a $650 grant from UC International, making the actual total expected cost around $2550. All participants will receive the grants.

Costs include airfare, accommodations, visa fee, some meals, ground transportation in Africa, guides and translators, some tips for guides/porters.

Costs do not include tips (est. $25.00) passport, some meals (at airports, in Nairobi), some snacks, vaccinations (Yellow Fever vaccination required), personal supplies (bug spray, sunscreen, etc.), souvenirs, or ISIC (international student identity card, $25). It is recommended that students bring at least $100 USD with them.

Students are required to purchase an ISIC (International Student Identification Card) from UC International for $25. This is not included in the total expected cost.

Vaccinations and Health Precautions
Contact your physician to discuss what vaccinations and heath precautions (like taking antibiotics with you or malaria prevention) are recommended.

Yellow Fever vaccination is required. All participants must be vaccinated and carry with them proof of yellow fever vaccination.

In addition, look at the US Center for Disease Control (CDC) webpages on Tanzania and Kenya (most of your time will be spent in Tanzania, but the group will fly into and out of Nairobi, Kenya) -
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/tanzania.aspx
http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/destinations/kenya.aspx

Other Details
We expect 12 students to participate.

Class is expected to meet Tuesdays/Thursdays from 11:00 AM to 12:20 PM during the spring semester.

Passport
All participants must have a valid passport. Passport must be valid for 6 months after travel. Passport costs are the responsibility of the student.

Application
The application for this course is now closed.  The interview process has now begun.

UC undergraduates who are not in University Honors are encouraged to apply to participate, provided the student has a cumulative university GPA of 3.4 or above. All participants will receive the honors grant mentioned under costs.

Questions?
Contact Course Director Michael Zaretsky or André Durham of the Honors Program.