My guest column “Climate policy is innovation policy” was published on MLive.com (Michigan newspaper consortium) on December 23, 2014. It seems to have struck a chord – it generated 1,985 comments in the first 24 hours. http://www.mlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/12/guest_column_climate_policy_is.html

Building resilience in St. Vincent and the Grenadines
St. Vincent and the Grenadines is one of the most disaster-prone nations in the world. The changing climate may make these disasters even worse. There is, however, hope in building a nation that is more resilient to storms, floods, earthquakes, and fires; more adaptable to changes in temperature and precipitation patterns; and stronger in the […]
Suggestions for Fulbrighters and others living abroad
Jen and I put together a list of suggestions and “things we wished we had known.” It is specific to our experience as Fulbrighters in Kenya, but anyone studying or living abroad might find it useful. Money and Finance Set aside about 15% of the total grant value for taxes. Set up wire-transfer paperwork at […]

Interview, pictures, and meeting a GVSU alumna in Nairobi
Erik and GVSU alumna Katie Hekstra at Nairobi National Park (with some random kids) It’s been a busy time these last few months, trying to wrap up projects before we leave in July. It’s hard to believe we’ll be back in Michigan in 3 weeks. Here are a few things we’ve been up to. I […]

More student pictures from field trip
Here are more pictures of students from the field trip. Click on the image to see a larger picture. If anyone would like high-quality copies, just ask and I will send them to you.

Student Field Trip to Western Kenya
The 3rd year environmental studies students traditionally take an extended field trip touring the western part of Kenya including the northern Rift Valley, Lake Victoria, Kakamega Forest, and Lake Bogorio. I was invited to tag along on this year’s trip. We started our journey at lunchtime on Monday, after the students had completed their last […]

Digging out the termite mound
I heard the workers in our backyard, but I assumed they were chopping up the tree stump left over from last week’s felling. After about an hour, I looked out and noticed they were digging up our termite mound. Yes, our house has a “proper termite mound” as our English biologist friend Harry put it. […]

My dad’s visit: Safari at Ol Pejeta Conservancy
The New Year started out with a visit from my dad, Bob. He arrived on New Year’s Day after welcoming 2013 with a mid-flight glass of champagne. After spending a few days adjusting to life in Nairobi, we all struck out for Laikipia, a dry grassland nestled between Mt. Kenya (Africa’s second highest peak) and […]

Holiday Trip Part 2: Mombasa
As we alighted from the plane and stepped down onto the tarmac, our senses were hit with the tropics: the smell of the sea, the heat on our skin, the muggy vegetal air of early evening. It was such a change from the stark, arid expanse of Amboseli National Park and the cool highlands of […]

Holiday Trip, Part 1: Amboseli National Park
We were driving through the Kapiti Plains, where Theodore Roosevelt spent a good portion of his 1909 safari, when we saw our first animal: giraffe. It was a good start to our big holiday trip exploring Amboseli National Park and the Swahili Coast of Mombasa. Our driver and guide, David, took us south from […]