Otundo Completes Inspirational Bridge-Building Mission in Israel
A University of Arkansas at Little Rock professor has returned from an academic exchange program to explore Israel’s history, government, culture, and economy with a changed world view on Israel and new ideas for international research projects.
Dr. Joseph Otundo, an assistant professor of health education and promotion from Little Rock, participated in the 2023 Summer Faculty Fellowship program from May 27 to June 9.
“Generally, it was a very good trip, and it was eye opening,” Otundo said. “I learned so many things about Israel from social life, economic life, water conservation, history, and religious sites. I would highly recommend this trip to anyone who likes adventure.”
Through the support of Jewish National Fund-USA’s Boruchin Center and individual donors, the tour, in which more than 600 people have already taken part, is a fully paid intensive program to Israel for full-time U.S.-based academics from recognized universities/learning institutions.
The group visited six universities and eight colleges. Otundo met with Israeli professors from their respective disciplines and with the same, or similar, research interests – all with the goal of developing collaborations, research projects, co-authoring articles, and establishing exchange programs between faculty and students.
“The Israeli professors that I talked with were optimistic and excited,” Otundo said. “Some were looking for opportunities to work with international colleagues. I met a professor from Hebrew University whose research focuses on tobacco control and smoking cessation. Since I also work in public health, I had a conversation with her, and we hope to come up with some joint research projects in the future.“
Geographically, Israel is approximately the size of the state of New Jersey, so Otundo and the other 31 faculty participants of the trip were able to visit many cultural and historic sites around the country.
“My favorite part of the trip was visiting some of the places I’ve only heard about from the Christian experience,” Otundo said. “We went to Jericho, the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, Jordan River, and the Dead Sea. Just visiting those places was very exciting for me.”
During the trip, Otundo said he had some experiences that he found very surprising. One example is the co-existence and sharing of one place of worship by three religious denominations..
“I was surprised to find a holy place with a Synagogue that is used by three religions,” Otundo said. “Jews, Christians, and Muslims all use the same facility. I never imagined that could happen, and I found that very interesting.”
“Visiting the region near Gaza strip was another unique discovery. More than 30 Palestinians cross the border every day to work in Israel. Visiting Yad Vashem (the Israel Holocaust museum) left me wondering why someone can hate others to the extent of murdering innocent people.”
Otundo grew close to many of the other faculty members participating in the trip to Israel, and the tight-knit cohort made plans to collaborate on a research project while they traveled in-between sites on the bus.
“I’ve gained a new group of colleagues to work on research projects,” Otundo said. “We are targeting Africa and would like to research women empowerment, especially in areas where women are lacking economic development opportunities. Overall, Israel is a very nice country, it’s hospitable, and very diverse.”
