Network

The pursuit of achieving Zanzibar Project's research and education objectives is generously supported by an expanding network of advisors and supporters as well as mutually beneficial partnerships. Those interested in becoming involved with the Zanzibar Project, please see Involvement Opportunities.

Advisors and Supporters

The individuals who generously advise and support the Zanzibar Project are listed in Advisors and Supporters.

Partnerships

Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC)

Contacts: Dr. Patricio Bernal, Executive Secretary; In the Capacity Development Section: Dr. Ehrlich Desa, Head of Section; Dr. Joannes Berque; and Stefano Mazzilli

One of IOC's mandates is to promote capacity development in the marine sciences in the developing world. In the East African region, a capacity development priority is coastal modeling, which was determined during a series of IOC leadership workshops that started in 2005. To enable a contribution to IOC's capacity development effort in East Africa, the IOC Capacity Development Section, most notably Dr. Ehrlich Desa and Dr. Joannes Berque, initiated in 2005 a collaboration in coastal modeling between Dr. Jurgen Theiss at Theiss Research, USA and Dr. Alfonse Dubi, director of the Institute of Marine Sciences (IMS) in Zanzibar, Tanzania. This collaboration has now become the Zanzibar Project and the IOC Capacity Development Section has been giving invaluable advice and guidance.

The Zanzibar Project has also the privilege of benefiting from IOC's vast network of experts and initiatives. In particular, those involved in the Zanzibar Project are invited to participate in relevant IOC workshops or symposia in the East African region.

Links: IOC, IOC Capacity Development, IOC Leadership workshops in 2005 and 2006, IOC Capacity Development Documents

University of Cape Town

Contacts: Prof. Chris Reason and Majuto Manyilizu

Prof. Reason has had an active interest in the East African region by studying its coastal and regional ocean dynamics as well as training its researchers. His initiatives, described below, are intimately linked to those of the Zanzibar Project.

Dr. Juliet Hermes and Prof. Reason developed a Regional Ocean Modeling System (ROMS) model of the tropical Western Indian Ocean (Hermes and Reason, 2008), which provides insight on the large-scale processes that might affect the Zanzibar Channel as well as possibly initial and boundary conditions for the ROMS model of the Zanzibar Channel that is being developed by the Zanzibar Project (Research).

Prof. Reason is currently supervising the development of another ROMS model in order to study the Tanzanian shelf circulation. This model development is part of the Master's thesis work of Mr. Manyilizu, who is a research staff member at IMS in Zanzibar and currently taking a Master's course on Applied Marine Science in Prof. Reason's department. On his return to IMS, Mr. Manyilizu will most likely be contributing to the Zanzibar Project.

Prof. Reason has a unique perspective on Africa, having supervised many African students, including two other Tanzanian Master's students (Kijazi, 2003, Ngwali, 2007), who now work at the Tanzania Meteorological Agency, and by being the co-Chair of CLIVAR Africa. His perspective is of great benefit to the Zanzibar Project.

Prof. Reason will visit IMS in Zanzibar in 2009 while the US students will be there.

Oregon State University

Contacts: Dr. Ted Strub, Dr. Hal Batchelder, and Gabriela Mayorga-Adame

Mrs. Mayorga-Adame, who participated in the Zanzibar Project in 2007 (Gabriela Mayorga-Adame), continues to study the Zanzibar Channel. Furthermore, as the first US student participant of the Zanzibar Project, Mrs. Mayorga-Adame will be able to provide advice and guidance to future participants. Naturally, there is a strong partnership between her and the Zanzibar Project.

Mrs. Mayorga-Adame is currently working on a Master's thesis at Oregon State University supervised by Dr. Ted Strub and Dr. Hal Batchelder. She is developing a ROMS model of a much larger area than that of only the Zanzibar Channel, which she considered while participating in the Zanzibar Project in 2007. The latitudinal extent of the model domain is approximately 10 degrees along shore, roughly from the latitude of the northern tip of Madagascar to the latitude of the northern border of Kenya. The resolution is 3-5km. It is forced with data from global databases (e.g. NCEP surface forcing). Mrs. Mayorga-Adame's work will provide useful model data with which the Zanzibar Project's ROMS model of the Zanzibar Channel can be forced.

Tanzania Fisheries Research Institute (TAFIRI)

Contact: Shigalla Mahongo

Mr. Mahongo at TAFIRI, who was a trainee of the Zanzibar Project in 2008 (Trainees), is planning to develop a ROMS model of the Tanzanian coastal waters in close partnership with the Zanzibar Project if funding becomes available. TAFIRI will also rent one of its research boats to the Zanzibar Project and it is hoped that the measurements that will be taken in the Zanzibar Channel will not only benefit IMS in Zanzibar but also TAFIRI.

Possible Future Partnerships

Depending on the specific future development of the Zanzibar Project partnerships with possibly related projects of the following organizations could be developed. To most of these organization contacts exist already.