While people from the Northern Hemisphere are often at a loss to tell you where Samoa is located and struggle to give you any more information about the people, you can be assured that there are a growing number of Americans that have a comprehensive knowledge of our country and people.

And it’s thanks to the SIT Study Abroad which for 50 years, has offered students from the U.S.A. the chance to learn from local experts: academics, activists, businessmen and women, artists, community leaders, and government officials in around 40 countries around the world.

This access to local perspectives and knowledge gives students a greater understanding of the issues and innovations within their host communities.

Last week in Savai’i a group was guided by the renowned geologist Tuapou Warren Jopling to a variety of places on the big island as part of their study of the social, economic, and political impacts of globalization, westernization and climate change in the Pacific islands.

Here are some photographs from their trip.

Additional information from the SIT website