Student and Alumni Spotlights
I am Junior Amboko, a /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/field conservationist /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/from the Democratic Republic o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f the Congo. I really love animals, yes, but I really love primates. I sometimes /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/forget internet and socio-media conversations (WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook,) with my /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/family and /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/friends while I am out watching a group o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f Bonobos (Pan paniscus) in the canopy in the tropical rain /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/forest. When trying to capture important behavior o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f what they do, like a /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/female grooming her young, it sometimes gets me crazy. It makes me realize even more that we have the duty to protect them.听
I did not know until I started my master鈥檚 program in Anthropology the role that understanding the culture o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f people surrounding a protected area (Park) plays. I am lucky to be doing my master鈥檚 in Anthropology. By combining skills in conservation and anthropology, I have no doubt I will be well equipped to view conservation in a new way. This will reshape my behavior when it comes to applying my conservation skills. As a newcomer in the United States, I have to comply with a new culture in order to be integrated into a new society. It鈥檚 hard and amazing at the same time. The way the /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/faculty members in the Anthropology Department have welcomed me has helped me overcome any /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/fears I had. I have learned about Anthropology through the way they treat us in our classes. Thank you to the department and all o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f the nice people in it. I encourage others to come and join us in this lovely Department!听
Love Anthro!
Macarena Vargas (Spring 2020 graduate): I enjoyed the hands-on education I received听while studying anthropology. I plan to /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/further my education in the next /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/few听years and pursue a career in archaeology.
On May 30th, anthropology graduate student Sarah Craw/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/ford received noti/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/fication o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f a research award /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/from听Sigma Xi听 Grants-in-Aid o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f Research.听The Sigma Xi grant program has a highly competitive application process and approximately 17% o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f applicants receive any level o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/funding. She was awarded the maximum amount o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f $1,000 /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/for her research.
Sarah鈥檚 research /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/focuses on the diets o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f the听Cercopithecus听monkeys at Gombe National Park (GNP), Tanzania. Her work explores di/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/ferences in the diets o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f听C. ascanius,听C. mitis听and the hybrid monkeys. Her work is multi-modal.听 Part o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f the analysis requires translating Swahili /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/field notes on guenon /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/feeding into English and the input o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f data into spreadsheets. 听She will also carry out /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/fieldwork in Gombe National Park, working with听research assistant Maneno Isa Mpongo to per/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/form ten minute /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/focal /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/follows on individual monkeys.
This research will increase our scienti/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/fic understanding o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f the ecological role that听Cercopithecus听monkeys play within Gombe and help build a more comprehensive database o/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f the park鈥檚 ecology. It will also help us to understand i/artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/f the hybrids have developed a separate dietary niche than their parental species, which can have /artsandletters/anthro/spotlight/student-alumni/future evolutionary implications.
