In spring 2015 in Tanzania, Andy Chen studied East African cultures, languages, history, and politics, especially in the context of wildlife conservation, political ecology, and the environment. Following further study of Swahili under his friend and project partner Leonard Kilekwang, Andy has developed an advanced grasp of Swahili language and has further explored cultural aspects of Kenya.

Andy has been involved with the Arthur Levitt Public Affairs Center since 2013, researching water distillation and alternative energy for two summers on the Hamilton College and the University of Denver campuses.  He is very thankful for the knowledge, skills, and people that he has met or learned from these experiences in social innovation, and he hopes to combine this training with his background in biology and pursuant studies in engineering to create ecological, biomedical, and technology solutions in context of local cultures and economies in East Africa.