Student Introductions (8/8)

Lastly, Melissa and Bianca will introduce themselves and express thanks to those who helped fund and support their experience here in Botswana.

Dumelang! Ke nna Melissa. I am double majoring in Geography and Russian, with a minor in Geology. My concentration is GIS, but I’m also very interested in environmental geography, especially the topic of climate change. I decided to study abroad in Africa because it’s a region I’ve always wanted to go to, and the classes offered match my interests. The main thing I wanted to get out of this trip is actual experience doing fieldwork and a better understanding of all it entails. I want to thank the College of Liberal Arts, my grandparents and my mother for the support to make this trip possible.

Dumelang. My name is Bianca Sicich, but I am known better around the camp as Bianca “The Bush Baby,” player for the series-leading bushball team, the Kalahari Killers. When I’m not travelling, I study Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin. Next semester will be my second at the University as a transfer student. I’m a native Austinite, and although I occasionally get a yearning for Torchy’s Tacos or Juiceland, I do love it here in Ghanzi. Biology is one of my major interests, so it has been wonderful to get hands-on field experience and learn about the vegetation, wildlife, people, and culture of the Kalahari and Botswana in general. I plan to continue travelling abroad throughout my life to familiarize myself with as many cultures as possible. This is very important to me. I thank my parents for their support of this trip. There is no way I could have reached this point in my education, moral consciousness, or life without their help. I also thank my grandma Sicich for helping out with funds, and all my friends in Austin and beyond for being excited for me. This is a baby step into the life I long to lead!!