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When Emily Proderick, a fourth-year biopsychology student at Queen’s, returned from Kenya after taking a biology field course there over the summer, she says many people asked her if she saw lions. She did, but for her that wasn’t even the most interesting part. What really stands out from the experience for her was seeing the complexity of the ecosystems with her own eyes and getting to meet local professors, conservationists, and students who taught her different ways of seeing the relationship between humans and nature.

“I don’t think any course can really engage you the way a field course can,” says Proderick. “A textbook just can’t show the richness of the ecosystems in the same way. And it can’t teach you to appreciate different perspectives on conservation and nature the way talking with people in person can.”

Over the 17 days that Proderick and her classmates spent in Kenya, they travelled to three ecologically diverse locations across the country: Lake Naivasha, Maasai Mara (a large game reserve), and the Kakamega tropical rainforest. They saw and studied many species, including different types of monkeys, snakes, frogs, birds, and, indeed, lions. Local conservation practitioners also met with the class and gave lectures to educate them about biodiversity in the region and the ways in which people in Kenya protect and interact with the ecosystems around them.

This field course in Kenya is one of many taught in the Queen’s Department of Biology, which also offers courses in China, Mexico, and Argentina, among other locations around the world, including the . Some of these courses are also open to university students beyond Queen’s through the , a unique consortium that brings together 16 universities in the province to enrich experiential learning in the field in ecology, evolution, biodiversity science, and conservation. Students enrolled at any of the participating universities can take field courses offered by any of the other universities in OUPFB.

“The focus of these courses is biodiversity, wildlife ecology, environmental science, and conservation, but a broader subtext is to introduce students to the culture, language, socioeconomics, global trade, colonialism and politics in each focal country, as these are obviously intertwined with conservation,” says Professor Stephen Lougheed, who has taught more than 60 field courses over his time in the Queen’s Department of Biology, including the recent one in Kenya. “I teach these courses because I love to and because I think they can change students’ lives – I have seen this firsthand.”

Gaining skills and inspiration for life after Queen’s

At each of the three locations students traveled to in Kenya, they learned new skills and techniques related to conducting research in the field, such as how to analyze water samples and how to take detailed descriptions of flora and fauna, that will serve students well if they pursue graduate study or conservation work.

Beyond biology, the students had opportunities to learn about Kenyan culture, such as traditional beadwork practices in a camp near Maasai Mara.

Reflecting on the class, Proderick says it opened her mind to different ways of thinking about the world and new possibilities for her future.

“This was probably the most influential course I’ve ever taken at Queen’s,” she says. “I was nervous about being in the field for so long before I left, but I really came to love it. Now I’m looking at masters programs that have a lot of field work and am interested in doing work at the Queen’s University Biological Station.”

Biology field courses are just a few of the different types of experiential learning and immersive international study experiences open to Queen’s students. Many programs offer field courses or travel opportunities of their own that students can learn more about from their faculties or departments, such as the opportunity to travel to Europe to work on archaeological sites through the Department of Classics and Archaeology. Students can also gain valuable career experience through the Queen’s Undergraduate Internship Program and take part in one of many study abroad programs, among other opportunities.

Learn more about the Kenya field course and read more student voices from the trip on the .