Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Location: New Guinea, Africa
jhellweg@fsu.edu

Instructor in anthropological field methods at the University of Kankan in Kankan, Guinea, West Africa. Though the language of instruction will be French, the former colonial language, Dr. Hellweg and his students and will interview Kankan residents in the local Malinke language about their thoughts on the etiology, symptoms, and treatment of various diseases, including HIV/AIDS. The goal will be to enlighten public health professionals about the extent to which local people contextualize medical ideas in thoughts about economics, politics, religion, and society, presenting these contextualizatons as bridges to dialogue about how best to approach public health education in local contexts. As a way of beginning such dialogue, Dr. Hellweg and his students will work with local performers to stage their findings in performances that air local people's health concerns.