Tulane Researcher to Combat AIDS with Garden Supplies
Tulane University international health researcher Laura Murphy believes garden hoes are part of an important approach to combating the burden of AIDS in Africa. The Newcomb Institute is funding Murphy's work in Bukusu-speaking communities in Kenya.
Murphy's project, titled "Gender, Poverty and Globalization: African Women's Farming Tools and Techniques in the 21st Century" aims to develop multimedia materials based on her ongoing National Science Foundation research. Those materials will be distributed to women in affected communities and will also be used to educate Tulane students.
The impact of AIDS is felt most strongly by women of childbearing age, says Murphy, who are responsible for running family farms and caring for their children and their elders as well as family members with AIDS.
-Madeline Vann
