In August, a group of students participating in the Academy’s Women in Natural Sciences (WINS) program embarked on a life-changing adventure. For 10 days, the students journeyed to South Africa, where they learned about the country’s history, culture, and biodiversity.
They toured Johannesburg and Soweto to learn about South African culture and the history of apartheid, connected with South African students from Wild Impact’s Echo Program to share and explore each other’s cultures, and had the chance to learn about conservation and biodiversity with wild game in the Phinda region.
The Students
For more than 40 years, WINS has engaged young women in the city of Philadelphia and beyond with the natural world, offering unique experiences and mentoring opportunities. The students start the summer before ninth grade and can stay well into college. The South Africa trip was available to students in the WINS II and WINS III components. WINS II includes our 10th – 12th grade students and WINS III includes our undergraduate participants.
The students who offered to share their experiences on the trip are:
Na’ila Lewis, Sophomore, Central High School
Sharon Grijalva, Junior, Philadelphia Performing Arts Academy
Payton Thomas, Sophomore, Central High School
Grace Scollon, Senior, Central High School
Kennedy Williams, Senior, George Washington Carver Engineering & Science
Asstan Cisse, Senior, Barnard College
Karma Alston, Senior, String Theory Performing Arts Charter School
Sarayah Wims, Sophomore, North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University
What was the most surprising thing about the trip?
Na’ila: The most surprising thing was their relationship with nature. Coming from a city like Philadelphia and going to Phinda, I was very surprised to experience being so close to animals in their natural habitats. Seeing lions, giraffes, and rhinos during the safari rides was so exciting. Being able to see animals like zebras and buffalo in such a large quantity was, too. It gave me a new perspective on these animals that I would usually only think of in a zoo.
Sharon: The most surprising thing was probably seeing the difference between the U.S. and South Africa and how we view life and how we live it. It’s very different than America. We are always on the go and always wanting to know what’s next, and planning for the future but we never really live in the moment like South Africans. They live life to the fullest, no matter how hard it gets they always view it as a blessing.
Payton: The most surprising thing was learning about the systematic effects of apartheid on Johannesburg. Throughout the tours, our guides provided us with a lot of history relating to how they were split up and divided in their own city. Though they were affected so long ago, their history remains embedded in present day society.
Grace: One of the most surprising things that happened during the trip was being able to watch the lions hunt. I was also surprised to learn how you can tell the gender of a giraffe by their horns.
Kennedy: The most surprising thing about the South Africa trip was the history I learned about the country. Learning the country’s ground and how the country was in apartheid, the ways that they were oppressed through dividing people and disrespecting their tribal practices, I was able to compare it to the oppression that happens in my home country and see the similarities between the oppression to both countries.
Asstan: The most surprising thing I learned was that Ponte City once had a trash tower that rose up to the 14th floor. It’s hard to imagine what 14 flights of trash looked like, and even harder to think about people being forced to live in those conditions because they were not allowed in other areas due to the color of their skin. The conditions were truly unfortunate, but the resilience of the community shines through—they endured those challenges and still proudly call the tower home today.
Karma: It is a beautiful thing to be able to see the world for yourself than on a big screen. Learning the history was the most surprising/triggering due to having the actual artifacts and proof of the experience that African ancestors went though.
Sarayah: The most surprising thing that happened during the trip was when we learned about Ponte City and the fact that building hijacking existed, and gangs would take over whole buildings.
What did you enjoy about spending time with our South African student partners?
Na’ila: [I enjoyed] noticing both our differences and the experiences we shared. Visiting their school was especially eye-opening—they had large jugs of rainwater for daily use, which I thought was a smart and practical way of adapting to their environment. Something that really stuck with me was the fact that South Africa has 11 official languages. Growing up in Philly, it’s not unusual for kids my age to speak two languages, but many of the South African students spoke at least three. What impressed me most wasn’t just the number of languages they knew, but how complex and challenging those languages were.
Sharon: It was absolutely amazing. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I never thought I would experience and having them also experience it made me feel that there are people out there wanting to change the world and wanting to learn and understand other cultures.
Payton: Finding similarities in our major differences. We live so far away from each other and live very different lifestyles, I believed I wouldn’t be able to connect to the South African students. However, due to our common interest in dancing, singing, and our love for animals, we were able to bond together and share enjoyable moments.
Karma: The most interesting thing about being able to spend time with our South African student partners are the instant bonds of sisterhood that were developed. You would think many of us would be nervous, which we were, but everyone being friendly became natural.
What challenges did you face during the trip?
Payton: The most challenging part of the exchange for me was digesting the idea of me being across the world, so far from home. Being in Africa was very surreal, oftentimes I caught myself zoning out and trying to understand how different and complex Africa was compared to America.
Grace: Trying to take everything in and imagining living their everyday life.
Kennedy: Being able to keep up with the packed schedule we had. There was always another activity we had to do so I feel like it was hard for me to truly process everything I was learning at that moment.
Asstan: The history was the most challenging part for me to process. Learning about apartheid in South Africa was overwhelming, especially because it parallels so closely with Black history in America. Being from Philadelphia, it made me reflect on that history in a very personal way. It was heavy to take in, but I’m grateful I was able to learn about such a profound history of resistance and perseverance through pain.
Sarayah: I struggled with the lack of historical preparation before the trip. I believe participants should have had at least one or two lessons on apartheid before traveling, rather than relying solely on Zoom calls with South African students. That context would have deepened the impact of the experience, particularly since we visited many historical sites and were confronted with difficult truths about oppression in South Africa.
Any final thoughts?
Grace: Everyone being so friendly and welcoming was something that made the trip.
Na’ila: Something that really stuck with me was how many different kinds of birds I saw. I never really paid attention to birds at home, but when we went to the safari sites at Phinda, there were so many different species. It made me realize how much biodiversity South Africa has, and it actually got me curious about what kinds of animals and birds we have back home too.
Sharon: I know that this once in a lifetime experience changed me and made me feel like I need to travel the world to view these different culture… I know that I will cherish it for a lifetime and I can’t wait to share this information with everyone else. I’m so grateful that I was able to share it with you guys.
Sarayah: Overall, I truly valued my time in South Africa, largely because I made myself aware of these challenges and created my own learning framework to get the most from the experience. I believe I was able to do this more effectively because I was older than most of the other students. If WINS has another opportunity for an exchange like this in the future, I believe there is important work to be done to ensure the experience reaches its fullest potential.
You can support the Academy’s research efforts to understand the natural world and inspire everyone to care for it by becoming a member or donating to our scientific collections.
Tú también puedes apoyar los proyectos de investigación de la Academia, y así ayudar a entender y proteger la riqueza natural convirtiéndote en miembro o haciendo una donación a nuestras colecciones científicas.