Pre-departure Thoughts

I think it hit me sometime when I was packing my shirts that I am going to another country, alone. I realized that when I touchdown to Entebbe, I will know zero people in the city and only names and pictures of a few others in the country.

For a moment, it felt like staring into a pitch-black tunnel and I was afraid of taking the first step.

I thought about the idea of cultural and social capital. I had built connections in the United States, which keep me happy and safe. I am familiar with the culture and language here. This knowledge helps me find my way back when I get lost.

Then, I folded another shirt and placed it into my suitcase. And another one and another until I had finished packing.

There's no single reason for why I want to go to Uganda. There's just a bunch of half-baked notions. I am driven by this idea of exploring. People say that you can truly understand your own culture by exploring others. I think I agree with the general sentiment. Going back to India sharply accentuates things that I've taken for granted in America. But, I'm not going to Uganda to learn about American culture. I want to explore for its own sake. I want to eat matooke and try to bargain with a storekeeper in Lugandan.

In addition to the exploration aspect, I am also really excited to work on my project. I've always been interested in the impact of low-cost and simple technologies on people's health. Irrigation certainly fits that description. Surface, sprinkler, and drip irrigation technologies have been around for centuries. Yet, here I am doing research about irrigation to hopefully implement it in Uganda. The potential impact is tremendous. Agnes, my research mentor told me that farmers have been losing their whole crop yield because they were planting either a month early or a month late. Climate change is changing the way of life for people around the world, and in Uganda, it has led to food insecurity.

As a Loewenstern Fellow, I have come to realize that I am seen as an ambassador for the university, FSD, and the US, whether I like it or not. So, I think the biggest thing that I need to do is be careful and always think about the repercussions of my actions. This at least is an incentive to learn about the local cultural traditions because I don't want to accidentally offend anyone.

Overall, I am very excited for these next 9 weeks. Fun pictures coming soon!