Tanzania

Explore the fragmented ecosystem composed of Tarangire and Lake Manyara national parks, Mkungunero Game Reserve, Simanjiro, Mto wa Mbu and Lolkisale Game Controlled Areas, Burunge, Randilen and Makame wildlife management areas, and wildlife corridors of Kwakuchinja, Kibaoni, and Manyara Ranch. Tarangire and Randilen are the program’s key learning excursion sites. Tarangire National Park is famous for its many African elephants and baobab trees. Depending on the season, the 1,100-square-mile park is home to diverse wildlife species including threatened and endangered species such as ebony trees, African wild dogs, gerenuk, elephants, and more. The Tarangire-Manyara ecosystem is an opportunity to examine the western conservation model of national parks and the ways various ethnic groups interact in their landscapes.

You will visit Randilen, a community-owned wildlife management area governed by the local Maasai, which has been set aside to improve their lives and ensure their children’s futures. The Maasai community protects this unique area so that it continues to support the people and wildlife that depend on it. This key area provides additional food and habitat, and features peaceful coexistence, in particular between elephants and people.

Experience a seven-day safari through the 25,000-square-kilometer Serengeti-Ngorongoro ecosystem. Serengeti National Park is home to a large and diverse population of wildlife including the “big five”: lions, leopards, elephants, black rhinoceros, and African buffalo. You you will have an opportunity to visit the western corridor to see wildebeests, zebras, elands, and gazelles, as well as giant Nile crocodiles. You will also visit the Ngorongoro volcanic crater, where tourism has had a profound impact on the Maasai. The Serengeti-Ngorongoro ecosystem also includes Oldupai Gorge, the cradle of human life and home to the most famous archaeological site in east Africa. Spend a night at Mto wa Mbu village before you visit Ngorongoro, a cross-cultural melting pot with more than 100 languages and customs. The village is located in northern Tanzania, 120 kilometers from the town of Arusha. While at Mto wa Mbu you will visit village farms, discover what the villagers grow and how they do it, learn about Makonde carving, and enjoy traditional dance.

Mkomazi borders Tsavo West National Park in northern Kenya and lies about 120 kilometers east of Moshi town. The park is in the Mkomazi-Tsavo ecosystem, which is the second largest trans-boundary ecosystem in East Africa. The park is rich in mammal species including the big five. More than 450 species of birds have also been recorded there. The park is a vital refuge for two highly endangered species, the charismatic black rhino and the sociable African wild dog, both of which were successfully reintroduced in the 1990s and managed in situ. Mkomazi National Park is among the few protected areas in Tanzania with a large and visible population of gerenuk and a massive concentration of Beisa Oryx.

Prior to Mkomazi National Park excursion, the scope of understanding on wildlife conservation and political ecology issues will be expanded by interacting with wildlife professionals from the College of African Wildlife Management in Mweka village. While in Mweka you will also visit Materuni waterfall and indulge the cultural experiences offered by yet another unique ethnic group, inhabitants of the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro.

You will spend seven days in Mazumbai Forest Reserve, an evergreen rain forest  ranging in elevation from 1,300 to 1,900 meters above sea level, located in Lushoto District in the West Usambara Mountains. This is one of the best examples of pristine rainforest remaining in East Africa. The forest not only serves as a sanctuary for rare and endemic plant and animal species in the Usambara Mountains, but also provides water catchment essential to the surrounding human population. The forest is owned and managed by Sokoine University of Agriculture.