Dr. Bernard Kitheka has lived in five different countries working in sustainable tourism and community development.  

With this Carnegie fellowship, he will live in country number six – Tanzania. His placement begins on Sept. 1, 2025, and ends on Nov. 30, 2025. 

Kitheka, an associate professor in the School of Earth, Environment and Sustainability (SEES), recently received a 2025 Carnegie African Diaspora Fellowship from the Institute of International Education. This award will allow him to work at the Sokoine University of Agriculture in Morogoro, Tanzania, for 90 days. 

“Many universities in Tanzania don’t have the capacity for research,” he said. “It’s a great award and an amazing opportunity to help,” he said. 

Tourism governance 

A native of Kenya, Kitheka completed his master’s and doctoral degrees in the United States.  

He joined Missouri State in 2016 and worked in the McQueary College of Health and Human Services for eight years. He moved to the SEES in the College of Natural and Applied Sciences last year.  

Kitheka’s current research focuses on tourism in East African countries. 

“Many developing countries depend on nature-based tourism, especially Kenya and Tanzania,” he said. “They’re prime destinations for safari tourism.” 

He notes the importance of tourism to Tanzania.  

“Tourism contributes about 10% of the country’s economy,” he said. “A lot of its foreign exchange and exports, like most other countries in the region, come from tourism.” 

His research goal while in Morogoro is to analyze the power and governance structures at play in the tourism industry. 

“I want to explore how power structures and stakeholder involvement impact tourism,” he said. “It’s important to look at: Who benefits from tourism? Who makes the governing decisions? Who decides how to manage parks?” 

Mentorship and outreach

Kitheka will also assist faculty members in student preparation while in Tanzania. He will engage in curriculum development, graduate student mentorship and research collaborations. 

“I want to give back to the community,” he said. “To be in this work, a spirit of volunteerism drives you.” 

That is why Kitheka journeys there to meet a need in the country. 

“I want to fill that gap and empower universities and communities that aren’t as resourced,” he said. 

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