Emma Budden: Discovering My Passion for Field Work
Fulfilling…is the word I would use to describe the two months I spent doing field work in the Warm Heart of Africa.
Upon landing in Lilongwe, Malawi, we drove the bumpy roads up to Mzuzu, seeing the vibrant orange sunset; it was a surreal feeling to know that this would be home for the next two months.
With passion for global water, sanitation, and hygiene (WaSH), I had the opportunity to do field work in Malawi through the International Research Experience for Students (IRES) this summer. IRES is a grant funded by the National Science Foundation, which aims to provide students an opportunity to gain field work skills. From May 15 through July 15, I traveled with seven other students from the United States to Malawi, where we did field work, service activities, engaged in scientific collaborations, and explored the beautiful country of Malawi. Throughout this experience, I had the pleasure of collaborating with international scientists. Through the dissemination of a household survey and testing environmental samples (water, food, soil, animal feces, and pit latrine) for total coliforms, Escherichia coli, and anti-microbial resistant E. coli, I, along with Caitlin Niven, Ben Clark, and Norah Patterson, aimed to understand water, food, and energy insecurities in peri-urban Malawi.
Our first full day in Malawi was spent meeting Mzuzu University students, who were immensely gracious in showing us around, taking us into town to get SIM cards and groceries, and most of all, being extremely welcoming individuals. We spent the following day volunteering at Girl’s Science Day, which is a day-long camp for girls to learn about WaSH. I deeply admired the emphasis placed on, “Breaking barriers and building futures,” empowering girls to pursue their dreams. Throughout the month, we worked with Mzuzu University students in collaborating to build, code, translate, and pilot our household survey instrument, which would be later used in the launch of our study. Throughout these collaborations, we became close friends, learning about each other’s backgrounds, families, and cultures. We also had the opportunity to explore, where we went on hikes, swam in beautiful Lake Malawi (Figure 1), and made a lifetime of core memories. I will forever remember sitting next to Lake Malawi listening to “How Big is the Lake,” a song written to describe Lake Malawi.
During the piloting stages of our research, we learned how to navigate many obstacles. On one occasion, we tested our environmental sampling procedures using IDEXX quanti-tray. IDEXX requires the use of sterile water to process samples. To have sterile water, we not only need distilled water, but a sterilized container as well. Using a glass bottle, a pot, and the stove in our accommodations, we steam pressurized a glass bottle. We then boiled water in an electric kettle, allowed it to cool, and tested the water as a lab blank. While we were slightly stressed about the situation, we made the best of it, brainstorming and laughing our way through the obstacle. Our lab blank came back without any contamination!
On June 14, we said our farewells to Mzuzu and travelled 12 hours south Malawi University of Science and Technology, where we launched our study. During our first couple of days in Blantyre, we collaborated with Mzuzu University students and Malawi University of Science and Technology students to iron out details related to the launch of the study. On June 17th, we launched the study, and each day following, we prepared the field team, lab, and when enumerators finished sampling (photo attached), we processed the samples in the lab. Some days, I went to the field and assisted in collecting pit latrine samples. On most days, I was in the lab prepping, processing, and documenting results. As we finished our lab work each evening, we played “Closing Time,” marking the conclusion of another day of field work.
While this was my first-time doing field work, I am confident that it will not be my last. At the end of our study, we had successfully enrolled over 240 households. While I found so much passion for the work we were doing, I found immense fulfillment from the people I worked with. Having the opportunity to learn from and collaborate with Mzuzu University and Malawi University of Science and Technology students was the opportunity of a lifetime; this project would not have been possible without every person involved. While some days were long and stressful, it was hard to not love every moment of it. From here, I am currently working on data analyses, focusing on risk factors for antimicrobial-resistant E. coli in soil, to first author a paper. Next year, I plan on pursuing graduate school, where I hope to research pathogen transmission in the environment, and one day, become a professor. My experience conducting field work not only allowed me to indulge in my academic passion, but it also allowed me to meet people whom I will have lifelong collaborations, memories, and friendships with.