Class of 2022 alum uses lessons learned on CA campus during life-changing college research trip
When she was a Cheshire Academy student, Temilade Onile ’22 loved meeting all the students who came to campus from around the world.
But this past summer, she was the one doing the traveling: the Boston College junior spent three weeks in Zanzibar, Tanzania, researching the impacts of tourism and environmental change on coastal communities.
“We conducted a series of interviews with hotels, business owners, Maasai tribesmen, and locals gathering information about the changes tourism has brought to the island,” she said.
As a finance and international studies double major, Onile worked with BC’s Schiller Institute for Integrated Science and Society and spent a week in Stone Town to learn about the island’s history and culture. They also learned about ways groups like the Blue Economy Ministry and the Milele and Mwambao foundations are working to better coastal livelihoods and conditions for marine life.
Next up, Onile’s group traveled to the village of Paje for two weeks, where they met local farmers who refine seaweed into soaps, oils and other products through the Furahia Women’s Cooperative. Onile interviewed the women, asking how tourism impacted their access to natural resources, finetuning her perspective on the realities of the industry’s impact on both the country and the people who live along its shores.
“My favorite part of the trip was interacting with locals and experiencing Zanzibar how they do,” Onile said. “My other favorite part was the nature. The water, the sunsets, the scenery, everything was so beautiful.” She and her group finished their tour by presenting their research and findings to Blue Economy Ministry. The informative trip dovetailed nicely with her interests in wealth management and sustainable investing.
Onile credited Cheshire Academy with prepping her for both the rigors of a double major at BC and for her ability to dive into such once-in-a-lifetime experience.
“The best gift I got from CA was understanding the value of relationships,” she said. “CA exposed me to different types of people and experiences that set me up to be a well-rounded individual.”
