This is my travel companion in Africa, the African Regional Coordinator of Aluka, Dr. Siro Masinde. He was Head of the Natural Museums of Kenya before accepting our position and is a very noted botanist. He believes in Aluka entirely and is the most polite gentleman I have ever met.
He never once complained, never once seemed frustrated. I believe the word is unflappable. For example, he hates spicy food and never said so until questioned hours after the dinner of Indian food that even I found spicy. He was probably running to the bathroom all night, granted with a smile on his face.
He and I are working out a proposal to do some training with 2-man teams (I can only assume the two of us) to portions of Africa, such as East Africa. He is based in Nairobi, Kenya, and he mentioned that we could do Nairobi, Dar es Salaam (Tanzania), Zanzibar (Tanzania), Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) and perhaps even Maputo (Mozambique), all in one go, in one two week journey. Those are all cities, by the way.
It would be wonderful from an organizational level. Aluka is a complex tool that we are hoping to increased exposure of and I don’t know of any better outreach program other than direct training. It creates a personal connection with an electronic, ambiguous resource.
On a personal level, while I relish the opportunity to see these places, I immediately asked if this could wait to next year, as it might take that long to convince Jen I would be safe. And I am really tired.
If you want to get some idea of where these places are, the map above is useful. Only Maputo in Mozambique is not present (it is south of Tanzania).
This is all speculation at this point, mind you. Just something I have been thinking about.