Local Research - Learning from Elders
At Noonkondin Secondary School in the Maasai village of Eluwai (run by Aang Serian), all our Access Course students take part in a tailor-made course in 'Indigenous Knowledge'. Participants receive a list of questions to ask their parents, grandparents and other tribal elders, relating to personal and local histories, oral literature, daily life, rituals and ceremonies. Each research session is followed by a class discussion, led by a facilitator. This project was cited in an official United Nations report of September 2003 as a model for "appropriate education and training for indigenous and local communities that can enable sustainable development while being compatible with their traditions" (UNEP/CBD/WG8J/ 3/INF/3, page 53).

The aims of the IK Course include documenting traditional knowledge in both tribal and non-tribal societies; encouraging youth to take an interest in preserving their cultural heritage; and helping them to develop research skills that they can later use in independent study projects. We are now exploring collaborations with new partners to enable the course to be used in adult education and staff development programmes.

After completing the Access Course and gaining admission to Form 1 (equivalent to UK Year 8), students take a structured co-curricular program in Environmental Studies.  This also includes a research component, learning from community elders about traditional environmental knowledge.  Independent study projects are carried out in the June/July vacation.  This course is aimed to supplement the Tanzanian national curriculum in Biology, Geography and Civics. 

In the future, we plan to establish similar programmes in Traditional Medicine, Sustainable Agriculture and Livestock Management.  We are also investigating the possibility of carrying out student-led research projects on the use of local medicinal plants for treating tuberculosis/chronic cough and preventing malaria.

Aang Serian has recently launched a UN-funded project to document and record traditional knowledge in three villages in Tanzania.  For more information please visit the Intercultural Education page.

International Research – Learning Together
Aang Serian has worked in collaboration with the UN Development Program and Arusha-based NGO Terrawatu to carry out research on medicinal and other uses of plants in two Maasai villages. Gemma Enolengila, International Liaison Officer, was awarded an MSc in Environmental Anthropology for her work on the utilisation of forest sites for traditional healing and strengthening rituals, and has acted as an informal adviser to a number of visiting researchers and postgraduate students working on health and environmental issues.

Research students are welcome to work together with Aang Serian on projects relevant to the organisation’s mandate, provided that they: (a) obtain all the necessary permits and official documentation; (b) enter into a written agreement with village leaders, giving details of how they intend to follow international ethical guidelines; (c) make a small contribution, either in cash or kind, to Noonkondin Secondary School; (d) undertake to return research results to the community in a useful form. For more information on research please contact Gemma Enolengila .  Recent projects have focused on indigenous knowledge education, local knowledge about malaria, and women’s health provision.

Medicinal Plant Handbook
We are collecting and translating published information on medicinal plants utilised in the communities where Aang Serian works, so that it can be put to practical use. This information falls into two categories: (1) medicinal and other uses of the plant species elsewhere in the world, and (2) the results of pharmacological and toxicological tests carried out in laboratories to determine the efficacy and safety of these medicines. Click here for a provisional list of plants. If you have any published references to these species, other than standard reference books, please contact us for a handbook submission form.

Publications
Recently published article on Aang Serian’s approach to rural education in Africa:

Burford, G., & Ole Ngila, L. (2006) ‘Intercultural education in a Tanzanian secondary school’, COMPAS Magazine for Endogenous Development, 10, 15-17.

Books on traditional and complementary medicine co-edited by Gemma Burford:

Bodeker G, Ong C-K, Grundy C, Burford G, Maehira Y (2005) WHO Global Atlas of Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Text and Map Volumes. Kobe, Japan: World Health Organization Centre for Health Development (WHO Kobe Centre), 347pp.

Bodeker G, Burford G (2006) Traditional, Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Policy and Public Health Perspectives.  London: Imperial College Press.

Research carried out by Aang Serian leaders on the Maasai ritual of orpul (olpul):
Burford, G., Rafiki, M.Y., & Ole Ngila, L. (2001) `The forest retreat of orpul: a holistic system of health care practised by the Maasai tribe of East Africa', Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 7(5), 547-551.

Literature review on the medicinal properties of two popular agroforestry tree species (Gemma Burford as co-author, with colleagues in Oxford):
Bodeker, G., Burford, G., Chamberlain, J., Bhat, K.K.S. (2001) `The underexploited medicinal potential of Azadirachta indica A. Juss. (Meliaceae) and Acacia nilotica (L.) Willd. ex Del. (Fabaceae): a case for a re-examination of priorities', International Forestry Review, 3(4), 285-298.

Book chapter with information on traditional medicine in Tanzania:
Burford, G. (2003) ‘Tanzania’. In C. E. D’Avanzo & E. M. Geissler, eds., Cultural Health Assessment: Third Edition, Philadelphia: Mosby

Other Articles
Burford, G. (2003) ‘Education, indigenous knowledge and globalisation’. Science in Africa, March 2003, http://www.scienceinafrica.co.za/2003/march/ik.htm

Webzell, Bob (2002) 'Learning with the Maasai', Insight pp20-23, Thames Valley University, London

Webzell, Bob (2003) 'Africa's Indigenous Knowledge' ILTHE Newsletter No 10 pp8-10, Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, York, UK

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