Reflection on Earthsys 115N

         Before taking this class I knew very little about Namibia. Over the past ten weeks I have learned so much about the history, culture, and ecology of this country. It makes me feel more prepared in some ways, but part of what this class has shown me is how much there still is to learn. I feel confident in all that I have learned, but every new piece of information opens up more questions and more areas to study. I know far more about Namibia and about desert biogeography now than I did at the beginning of this quarter, and now I am even more excited to actually go to Namibia. Namibia has started to feel like a real place rather than just a country I read about or heard mentioned on the news.

         I’m very thankful to be going to Namibia with a lot of background knowledge about the country. In the past when I’ve traveled I learned about the location when I was there. While this can lead to amazing discoveries and revelations, I’m excited to try traveling with the background knowledge to understand what I’m seeing. I’m hoping that the things I have learned in this class will help me make connections that I otherwise wouldn’t have seen and better understand Namibia.

-Laura Spielman