August 18, 2025

One tire puncture. One ruptured inner axle seal. One cracked exhaust pipe. Three lost (and found!) lug nuts. At least a dozen river, pond, or creek crossings. Countless cross-country search expeditions. Sixty interviews with pastoralists completed.

Every interview could be its own story. The time we had to pick up a participant’s mother and take her to where he was grazing their cattle and goats so she could babysit the herd while he talked with us, and then bring her back again. The many times I learned (painfully) that when a pastoralist says someone is “not far,” you should probably get the car, because it’s likely to be several kilometers. The time I completed an entire interview while holding a live chicken. But we'll save those for another day.

The audio recordings of all of our interviews are being translated and transcribed, and over the weeks ahead, I will finally get a detailed look at these. Since we ended up having to deliver the interviews in three languages (Kiswahili plus two tribal dialects), this step is critical to get right, and I’m grateful that we have resources through my advisor’s network for this. I hope to be finishing a draft research paper and public outreach materials about this study by early 2026, and will be sharing those through LinkedIn and my website for anyone who is interested in hearing the outcome.

Though the work continues, it's time to put away my field notebook for this year.* If you’ve followed me this far, thank you! Reader feedback has cheered and inspired me on the tough days when I didn’t feel like writing this summer. And I would be remiss if I didn’t call out some other key supporters that have made all of this possible:

• I am indebted to my research assistant, translator, and cultural coach Rose Mawenya. I couldn't have carried out this study alone, and her local knowledge, connections in the communities, and skills in Kiswahili and English were invaluable.

• The entire team at the Lion Landscapes site in Ruaha was exceptional to work with. Though there are too many people to name, I couldn't have been more warmly welcomed or better supported. The insights and guidance of their staff and their network of collaborators in the surrounding communities were essential to the successful completion of these interviews on a compressed timeline, and I am thankful for this partnership. 

• My advisor, Jon Salerno, was stellar. He carved 10 days out of a packed summer of travel to go to Tanzania with me to make introductions, get me oriented in town and at camp, and coordinate the field vehicle arrangements. He also came to the rescue when several of my grant applications fell through, ensuring that I could complete this trip as planned despite the funding shortfall. I am very grateful for his mentorship and support on this project.

• One of my other Committee Members, Sarah Walker, was influential in shaping the structure and language used in the interviews. She also made time to review multiple drafts, despite ramping up for her own study in Kenya this summer, and I am thankful for this guidance. 

• I sincerely appreciate the grant funding I received from The Center for Human-Carnivore Coexistence, which covered my international and domestic travel. This was an immense help, and I look forward to continuing my work with CHCC as a Graduate Fellow. 

• And finally, I am grateful to my mother, who despite having no job title and receiving no salary was an all-star on this team. From dog-sitting to airport transit to mending my field gear after the rigorous “user testing” I put it through this summer, she was always helping behind the scenes. Though she probably regrets at times that she raised a nomadic woman, she has apparently decided to keep me all these years. If you’re reading this, Mom, thank you.

* Stay tuned for a bonus post or two in the next couple of weeks about why you should consider Ruaha National Park for your budget safari, and the inspiring school that is training young Tanzanians to make a future for themselves in the nature tourism industry.

To join me on this journey, you can follow along with new posts in the Field Notes blog on this website or LinkedIn. My work is partially supported by the Center for Human-Carnivore Coexistence and the Salerno Lab. I am actively fundraising for the next phase of my research, and welcome referrals to funders who are interested in supporting work on global challenges including human-wildlife conflict, poverty alleviation, biodiversity conservation, and the impacts of a changing climate on all of these issues.