Two groups of Geography students, 21 from the University of Cologne and 19 from the University of Bonn, recently visited the University of Namibia (UNAM) Main Campus as part of their academic field trip around Namibia.
The trip comprised numerous activities including a trip around the City of Windhoek to show the cohort of students, lecturers, and a professor, the natural and man-made landscapes of the City while exploring the relationship between people and the environment across different neighbourhoods.
Geography lecturer in the School of Science, Ndapewa Nakanyete, remarked that the trip did not just focus on geographic features, but also included the history of these features.
“The Windhoek excursion provided the students with an opportunity to understand and experience the city, exploring residential areas, the colonial history, road networks, informal settlements, as well as the state of urban gardening”, said Nakanyete.
During the visit, Cologne students and staff were privy to a lecture delivered by Professor Godfrey Tawodzera titled “Urban Food Security in Southern Africa: A Regional Perspective.” The lecture focused on the interconnectivity of food security systems in Africa and how these practices influence national systems.
Prof. Javier Revilla Diez and Dr Carolin Hulke from the University of Cologne relayed that this excursion forms part of the universities course field trip to augment their master’s students’ knowledge and experience.
“Our master’s students participate in a two-week field trip once during their studies to gain practical field experiences and this is the first time that we have organized such a trip to Namibia”, said Dr Hulke.
She further remarked that while on the excursion, students are expected to transfer theoretical knowledge on aspects of social, political, economic, and urban geography, as well as conservation, tourism, agricultural development, and colonial history into context.
Dr. Hentze from Bonn University has been organizing such trips to Namibia since 2011. He last visited with 24 Geography students in 2019 but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, he could not return with new students for the past two years. The group stayed in Namibia for three weeks.
This visit and the University of Namibia’s participation forms part of the partnership the university has with both institutions. Through this agreement, a total of 40 students and staff visited the university on respective staff and student exchange activities.
