April Swartz – As a native Clevelander of forty years and a die hard Cleveland sports fan, April has spread her wings and flown south for the winter. April is on a scholastic journey pursuing academia in the fields of anthropology and religion and cultural studies at the University of Central Florida (UCF) in Orlando, Florida. She has a deep interest in anthropological review and research involving the ethnography of socio-economic and political systems of various cultures, cultural practices and rituals, sex and gender, as well as studying the environmental effects of climate change on indigenous cultures.
“As a sub-field discipline, there really is no aspect of anthropology that I do not enjoy. I’m excited to have the opportunity to further my education at UCF and to be joining the Knight family.”
In addition to April’s anthropology degree, she is seeking a degree in religion and cultural studies learning various belief systems and their connections to the people of the world.
“I’ve always been interested in the inner workings of world religions and how they impact relationships in multicultural societies around the world. With the extreme divisiveness that religion can bring to our world, it is a powerful component to understanding cultural perspective”.
Besides her studies, April volunteers for the Folk Fusion Organization and Global Ambassadorship Program, a community outreach program whose mission is to preserve cultural heritage and celebrate the contributions our diverse backgrounds bring to our communities through organized events.
“I have a strong appreciation for culture. One of my first missions was to help the people of Puerto Rico resettle into the Orlando area after Hurricane Maria in September 2017. I have visited the island several times and found that they are the kindest of people with a strong sense of community. Since the events of Hurricane Maria, we have seen an influx of Puerto Rican populations on the mainland, especially in Orlando. When groups of people are uprooted, they become vulnerable to experiencing culture loss over time.”
April has also spent the last ten years involved in animal activism related to ending international wildlife crimes involving the illegal trade in ivory and rhino horn, as well as seeking an end to animal circuses. Meeting on an annual basis with community and congressional leaders in Washington D.C., she has seen her work, and the work of the animal rights community, persevere with the successful passage of several bills becoming law on the local, state and federal levels. In addition, April has met with head dignitaries of the Gabon Embassy in D. C. for conservation work related to the forest elephant, and has had the opportunity to sit down with actors Ted Danson and Mary Steenburgen to discuss conservation work of the organization Oceana which Danson is the co-founder of and on the Board of Directors.
“I am looking to incorporate anthropological research through both quantitative and qualitative analysis for finding new solutions using ethnographic study complemented with technological advances to solve the problems we face with wildlife population decline.”
In other conservation work, April has an upcoming workshop for the summer of 2018 from the Archaeological Institute of America with Messors. She will be traveling to the boot of southern Italy in the Altamura region of Puglia in Italy for a hands-on experience in the process of conservation and restoration of underground Byzantine frescoes in the rupestrian cave settlements. There she will learn art history, geomorphological studies, iconography, and restoration techniques while working on the frescoes to remove calcification that has built up over the frescoes after years of abandonment. The caves represent an important history of social and religious activities where monks sought refuge between the 11th and 16th centuries residing inside the caves and painting many frescos that today are in need of restoration.