Effective Date: July 2026 · Last reviewed: July 2026

Purpose and Scope

This policy governs all laboratory fieldwork conducted away from the University of Florida campus, with particular reference to our long-term programme on the Mara River in Kenya. It applies to faculty, postdoctoral researchers, graduate and undergraduate students, staff, and visiting collaborators. Field camp and research operations in Kenya are run by Soiyou Adventures, a Kenyan company whose staff are employed by Soiyou rather than by UF; where this policy sets a standard for how the whole party works, it is a standard we ask Soiyou to work to under contract, not one we impose on their employees directly.

UF has no field research safety policy, so this document is the operative standard for this laboratory rather than an implementation of a university programme.10,11

This policy is structured around four domains of safety: physical, social, financial, and psychological.34,33

For every proposal that proposes off-campus or off-site research, the Authorized Organizational Representative must certify that the organization has a plan in place for that specific proposal regarding safe and inclusive working environments. The certification itself is enumerated at Chapter II.D.1.d(viii) of the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide, currently NSF 24-1, effective 20 May 2024, and the governing substantive section is Chapter II.E.9. The Cover Sheet carries an Off-Campus or Off-Site Research checkbox introduced under PAPPG 23-1.1,3,4,5

Certain funding opportunities additionally require a Safe and Harassment-free Fieldwork (SAHF) plan to be submitted to NSF as a supplementary document, reviewed under Broader Impacts. Under the BIO and GEO pilot this is a two-page document submitted in lieu of the organizational plan required by PAPPG Chapter II.E.9, though the AOR certification is still made. Note that the two terms operate at different layers: “Safe and Inclusive Working Environments” remains the live PAPPG certification language, while SAHF is the name of the separate plan document, which was earlier called Safe and Inclusive Fieldwork (SAIF). Members preparing proposals should search for both terms.1,2,6

A SAHF plan must be a complete stand-alone document specific to the project, and it must address four components:

  1. The field setting and its unique challenges for the team.
  2. The steps taken to nurture a harassment-free off-site working environment, including codes of conduct and training.
  3. Communication processes that minimise singular points within the communication pathway.
  4. The mechanisms the team will use during field excursions to respond to harassment if it arises.1

The requirement extends to all team members collecting data off-site, to subawardees and contractors, and to solo researchers. It does not apply to personnel who only analyse previously collected data.2

Emergency Information

Filled in before every season and printed in the field pack.

Contact Detail
Nearest trauma facility to be completed per season
Nearest facility stocking rabies post-exposure prophylaxis to be completed per season
CISI 24-hour assistance line (covers faculty, staff, graduate students only) to be completed per season
US Embassy Nairobi to be completed per season
PI mobile (Kenya and US) to be completed per season
Second contact outside the reporting line named in the Field Safety Plan
UF Compliance Hotline (US toll-free, may not dial from a Kenyan mobile) 877-556-5356
UF Title IX Office titleix@ufl.edu, 352-273-1400, report.ufl.edu

A Field Safety Plan is the written, per-campaign document described under Field Safety Plans below. It records the hazard assessment, the communication and check-in strategy, emergency procedures, required training, and the named second contact. It is completed before departure and is one of the pre-departure items.

Pre-Departure Requirements

No laboratory member travels internationally on laboratory business until every verifiable item below is complete and on file: travel registration, confirmation of insurance cover, Travel Authorization and myAssets export review, completion of required training, and the Field Safety Plan. The occupational health and advisory items below are attestations that a step happened, not records the laboratory collects.

Immigration status. Members who are not US citizens confirm with UF Immigration Services that their status permits re-entry, and check visa appointment availability, before travel is booked. Where re-entry risk exists the trip is rescheduled or the role adjusted. Note that the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program referred to below is a US-citizen service; non-US members should register with their own consulate instead.

Travel registration. All UF faculty, staff, and graduate students travelling abroad on University business are required to register with the UF International Center prior to travel. Undergraduates register through the Student Travel Registry. Registration should not be filed more than six months in advance.7,8

Insurance. UF provides travel health insurance through CISI, including emergency evacuation, repatriation, travel assistance, and security coverage, at no charge to faculty, staff, and graduate students. Undergraduates are not covered by that arrangement, and neither are Soiyou Adventures staff, whose cover is a matter for their own employer. Before each season the laboratory confirms in writing what cover every person in the party actually holds, including confirming with Soiyou for their staff, and purchases evacuation cover for anyone in our own party who would otherwise have none. Nobody deploys uncovered. Members must not assume this policy covers psychiatric emergencies; many travel medical policies exclude them, and the laboratory verifies coverage before each field season.7,8,27

Travel authorization and equipment. A Travel Authorization in myUFL and the international travel acknowledgement are required for all foreign travel on University business. Equipment taken abroad, including telemetry receivers, data loggers, and laptops, requires a Foreign Travel Request in the myAssets Portal with pre-approval from UF Asset Management and export control review.9

Security advisory review. Kenya currently carries a US Department of State Level 2 advisory, Exercise Increased Caution. The advisory must be re-checked before each season. The Department names specific areas to avoid, including the Kenya-Somalia border counties of Garissa, Wajir, and Mandera, Tana River County and the coast north of Malindi, western Turkana and West Pokot, and the Eastleigh and Kibera neighbourhoods of Nairobi. UFIC asks graduate students planning research in Level 4 countries to contact it directly. Beyond registration and insurance, we could find no published UF approval gate keyed to advisory level, so do not assume one exists in either direction: confirm with UFIC.8,12

Minors and non-matriculated participants. If anyone under 18 who is not a matriculated UF student joins field or laboratory work, UF’s Youth Compliance policy governs, including registration lead times, background screening, and staffing ratios. Route it through UF Youth Compliance Services rather than through this policy.43

Occupational health. This laboratory does not set its own vaccination or medication requirements. Those are set by UF through its own risk assessment.

  • Anyone who handles live animals or unfixed animal tissue, body fluids, or waste, is listed on an IACUC protocol, or accesses ACS-managed facilities enrols in the UF Animal Contact Program, which the IACUC verifies. Tetanus immunisation within ten years is required of all participants; rabies immunisation or a positive titre within two years is required of those handling wild, feral, free-roaming, or unvaccinated carnivores.41,42
  • Other occupational vaccinations are recommended by the UF Biosafety Office or the IBC through the Biohazard Project Registration risk assessment. Under UF policy vaccination is voluntary: where a vaccine is recommended the individual completes the Acceptance, Declination, or Request for Additional Information form, and declining is handled through a UF General Counsel waiver rather than by exclusion from the work. Cost falls on the department or PI, not on the individual.11

Travel vaccinations and malaria chemoprophylaxis are individual medical decisions, made with UF Occupational Medicine Services or a travel medicine provider prescribing against current CDC and WHO guidance. What this laboratory asks is that the consultation happens before departure and that you carry whatever certificate the consultation produces. The laboratory does not hold a copy. We do not require, verify, or record what was prescribed.15,16,17

Two things to raise at that consultation. Kenya requires a yellow fever certificate from travellers arriving from countries at risk of transmission, which catches members routing through another African country even though it does not catch a direct flight from the United States.12,13,14 And Kenya’s National Malaria Control Programme places Narok County, which contains the Kenyan Mara, in the moderate burden stratum at 54.0 cases per 1,000.18

Bite prevention is a laboratory requirement rather than a medical decision: EPA-registered repellents, long sleeves and trousers, permethrin-treated clothing, screened accommodation, and treated bed nets at remote camps.17

Training. Before first deployment, every member completes wilderness first aid, harassment intervention training, and the pre-trip meeting described below.33

Water Contact

The laboratory’s work requires contact with Mara River and hippo-pool water.

Treat all fresh surface water in the study system as schistosomiasis-infested. CDC states that most freshwater surface water sources in Africa are potentially contaminated, and advises travellers to view with scepticism any local claim that a body of freshwater, including a fast-moving river, is free from schistosomiasis. Cercariae penetrate skin on contact, there is no vaccine, and brief incidental contact transmits.19,20,21,22,23

Laboratory controls:

  • Barrier protection for all planned water entry. Waders or equivalent, inspected before each use.
  • Vigorous towel-drying immediately after any unavoidable skin contact. This helps and must not be relied on alone.20
  • River water used for washing is treated by one of the CDC-listed methods before use. The current methods and contact times are on the CDC prevention page; do not work from memory.20,21
  • Raise water exposure with UF Occupational Medicine Services before and after each season. Whether to test for exposure, and when, is a clinical decision for that provider, not one this laboratory makes or records.21

Large Animals, Water Craft, and Vehicles

No authoritative government or intergovernmental standard exists for work around hippos and crocodiles. The clinical literature is limited to case series establishing severity. The laboratory therefore sets its own controls.23,24,28,29

Laboratory controls, which are not negotiable in the field:

  • A local guide or armed scout is present for all work at or adjacent to water occupied by hippos.
  • No wading in, or immediately adjacent to, an occupied hippo pool.
  • Daylight-only water entry.
  • A dedicated spotter is posted to watch for surfacing animals whenever anyone is in or beside the water.
  • Defined boat standoff distances from hippos and crocodiles, agreed at the pre-trip meeting and not reduced for sampling convenience.

Drowning is by contrast well documented as a leading cause of injury death among US citizens visiting countries where water recreation is a major activity, driven by unfamiliar conditions, inability to swim, and absent supervision. Personal flotation devices must be appropriately sized and US Coast Guard approved or comparable. No member swims alone or in unfamiliar water. A swim-competency check is required for all personnel entering water.25

Boat work follows the USGS standard: a worn, USCG-approved PFD at all times aboard small craft; a dedicated operator plus sufficient crew while underway; CPR training for all watercraft operators; and a float plan filed with a supervisor or someone knowledgeable of the intent to operate, listing craft description, occupants, departure and return times, emergency equipment, route, communications, and the action to take if the party is overdue.38,39

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of non-natural death among US citizens abroad, and fatal crash rates in sub-Saharan Africa are among the highest in the world. Seatbelts are worn at all times. No night driving in rural areas, consistent with State Department guidance to avoid travel after dark in Kenya. No alcohol before driving. Helmets meeting US standards for any two-wheeled travel. Overcrowded public transport is avoided.23,25,12

Wildlife handling. Gloves are worn for handling any wildlife. After any bite, wash with soap and running water for at least 20 minutes, and for suspected rabies exposure stop the journey and seek care where appropriate post-exposure prophylaxis is available.24,36

Field Safety Plans, Lone Work, and Communication

Every field campaign has a written Field Safety Plan before departure, documenting hazard assessment, communication strategy, emergency procedures, and required training. A mandatory pre-trip meeting covers the plan, logistics, the pack list, and any outstanding training.36,37

Members avoid working alone where possible, a standard that applies with particular force to private property, controlled sites, and areas lacking reliable phone service. All three describe our field sites. Where solo work is unavoidable, the Field Safety Plan must specify check-in procedures, and the member must carry a field radio or satellite communication device.36

Communication redundancy is an NSF requirement. The reporting pathway must minimise singular points, which in concrete terms means that at least one reporting route must not pass through the Principal Investigator, since the PI is a plausible subject of a complaint. A second contact outside the field team’s reporting line is named in the Field Safety Plan before each deployment, with their institutional role and their reporting obligations stated explicitly, and is selected by the Department Chair rather than by the Principal Investigator. The UF Compliance Hotline (877-556-5356) is in the Emergency Information table above as a standing route that depends on nobody in the party, with the caveat that it is a US toll-free number and may not dial from a Kenyan mobile. Itineraries and lodging are shared, check-in expectations are set explicitly, and members enrol in the State Department’s Smart Traveler Enrollment Program.1,26

Stop-Work Authority

Every member of the field team, including undergraduates and Kenyan field staff, has unconditional authority to stop any field activity they judge unsafe, and no explanation is required at the moment of stopping.

No US federal or university document grants blanket stop-work authority to field researchers in those words. We grant it here, drawing on the USGS provisions that give a watercraft operator final authority to abort and protect anyone reporting an unsafe condition from reprisal. Where a crew member calls a stop and the operator disagrees, the activity stops.38,40

Retaliation against anyone who exercises stop-work authority is a violation of this policy and of the Laboratory Code of Conduct.

Conduct, Harassment, and Wellbeing

The Survey of Academic Field Experiences found that 64 percent of respondents had experienced sexual harassment and 21.7 percent sexual assault at field sites; that harassment of women came predominantly from superiors while harassment of men came predominantly from peers; that over 90 percent of targeted women and 70 percent of targeted men were trainees or employees; and that fewer than a quarter had ever worked at a field site with a sexual harassment policy, and fewer than a fifth were satisfied with the outcome when they did report. This laboratory’s field teams span undergraduates to principal investigator, and field-site climate also shapes career trajectories.30,31

Accordingly:

  • A written code of conduct with explicit reporting protocols and consequences is signed by every team member before deployment.33
  • Risk is not uniform across the team. Members are informed of the risks some colleagues may face so that best practice can be defined together, rather than a single generic protocol being imposed. This includes a pre-season conversation about identity-based risk in the field context.32
  • Workload and rest are planned realistically, including bathroom access.33
  • Trusted local on-ground contacts are established in advance.33
  • No member fronts their own money. Field costs, required training, the pre-travel medical consultation, travel vaccination, chemoprophylaxis, and personal protective equipment are paid by the grant or the PI in advance rather than reimbursed afterwards, and emergency funds are reachable from the field. Required training days count as work time for paid members.33,34
  • The pre-travel consultation covers mental as well as physical health. As with every other medical matter in this policy, the laboratory does not learn, verify, or record diagnoses or medications, and no consultation outcome is a basis for excluding anyone from a field season. Members are encouraged to check with that provider whether any medication they take is legal and available in-country, to arrange telehealth before departure, and to note that high ambient temperature can affect the stability of some medications.27,35
  • A structured debrief follows every field season.33

Review

This policy is reviewed annually, before each field season, and immediately upon any change to NSF off-campus research requirements, UF travel policy, or the State Department advisory level for a destination country.

Policy Acknowledgment

Please print and sign if hard copy is required, or confirm via email.

Member Name (print): _______________

Member Signature: _____________
**Date:** ________

Principal Investigator Signature: _____________
**Date:** ________

Member Acknowledgment: Everyone within the scope of this policy, including visiting collaborators and Kenyan field team members, must read and sign it before their first field deployment and before each subsequent field season. A translated copy is provided where English is not the signer’s working language.

References

  1. U.S. National Science Foundation. Safe and Harassment-free Fieldwork (SAHF) Plans.
  2. U.S. National Science Foundation. FAQ Regarding Preparation and Submission of Safe and Harassment-free Fieldwork (SAHF) Plans under the BIO/GEO Pilot. NSF 23-071, 22 March 2023.
  3. U.S. National Science Foundation. Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG), NSF 24-1, Chapter II: Proposal Preparation Instructions. Effective 20 May 2024. See Chapter II.E.9.
  4. U.S. National Science Foundation. Summary of Changes to the PAPPG (NSF 23-1). Effective 30 January 2023.
  5. U.S. National Science Foundation. Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide. NSF 24-1 applies to proposals submitted or due on or after 20 May 2024.
  6. U.S. National Science Foundation. BIO Virtual Office Hours: Safe and Harassment-free Fieldwork (SAHF) plans and other changes to proposal submissions. 13 November 2023.
  7. UF International Center. Online Travel Registration. University of Florida.
  8. UF International Center. International Travel. University of Florida.
  9. University of Florida CFO Division. International Travel Acknowledgement of UF Directives and Policies. Applies to travel on or after 1 January 2022.
  10. University of Florida Environmental Health & Safety. Policies and Guidelines.
  11. University of Florida Environmental Health & Safety. Vaccination Policy for Research Personnel.
  12. U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Consular Affairs. Kenya International Travel Information. Travel Advisory Level 2, updated 17 March 2025.
  13. World Health Organization. International Travel and Health, Annex 1: Countries with risk of yellow fever transmission and countries requiring yellow fever vaccination (PDF). 18 November 2022, revised 3 January 2023.
  14. World Health Organization. International Travel and Health country list: yellow fever vaccination requirements and recommendations, malaria situation, and other vaccination requirements (PDF). 1 July 2020.
  15. Staples JE, O'Laughlin K. Yellow Fever. In: CDC Yellow Book: Health Information for International Travel, 2026 Edition. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 April 2025.
  16. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Choosing a Drug to Prevent Malaria. Last reviewed 18 July 2024.
  17. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preventing Malaria While Traveling. Last reviewed 12 March 2024.
  18. Ministry of Health, National Malaria Control Programme, Republic of Kenya. Kenya Malaria Strategy 2023-2027 (PDF). 2023.
  19. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. About Schistosomiasis. Last reviewed 17 June 2024.
  20. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Preventing Schistosomiasis. Last reviewed 4 March 2024.
  21. Straily A, Secor WE. Schistosomiasis. In: CDC Yellow Book, 2026 Edition. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 April 2025.
  22. World Health Organization. Schistosomiasis fact sheet. Updated 23 February 2026.
  23. Geissler A, Kasule JN, Ojwang J. African Safaris and Climbing Expeditions. In: CDC Yellow Book, 2026 Edition. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 April 2025.
  24. Cossaboom CM, Wallace RM, Barton Behravesh C. Zoonotic Exposures: Bites, Scratches, and Other Hazards. In: CDC Yellow Book, 2026 Edition. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 April 2025.
  25. Ballesteros MF, Decenteceo FM, Zia M, Alvarado-Ramy F. Injury and Death During Travel. In: CDC Yellow Book, 2026 Edition. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 April 2025.
  26. Lehner VM. Safety and Security Overseas. In: CDC Yellow Book, 2026 Edition. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 April 2025.
  27. Valk TH. Mental Health in Travelers. In: CDC Yellow Book, 2026 Edition. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 23 April 2025.
  28. Haddara MM, Haberisoni JB, Trelles M, Gohou JP, Christella K, Dominguez L, Ali E. Hippopotamus bite morbidity: a report of 11 cases from Burundi. Oxford Medical Case Reports. 2020;2020(8):omaa061.
  29. Matanzima J. Negative Human-Wildlife Interactions at Lake Kariba: Emphasis on Crocodile and Hippo Attacks on People. In: The Materiality of Lake Kariba. Springer Nature Singapore, 2024:135-172.
  30. Clancy KBH, Nelson RG, Rutherford JN, Hinde K. Survey of Academic Field Experiences (SAFE): Trainees Report Harassment and Assault. PLOS ONE. 2014;9(7):e102172.
  31. Nelson RG, Rutherford JN, Hinde K, Clancy KBH. Signaling Safety: Characterizing Fieldwork Experiences and Their Implications for Career Trajectories. American Anthropologist. 2017;119(4):710-722.
  32. Demery AJC, Pipkin MA. Safe fieldwork strategies for at-risk individuals, their supervisors and institutions. Nature Ecology & Evolution. 2021;5(1):5-9.
  33. Nordseth AE, Gerson JR, Aguilar LK, Dunham AE, Gentles A, Neale Z, Rebol E. The Fieldwork Wellness Framework: a new approach to field research in ecology. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment. 2023;21(6):297-303.
  34. Walsh LL. Enabling Fieldwork for All (EFFA) Framework: Supporting physical, social, financial, and psychological safety in the field. Science Advances. 2026;12(9):eaeb6753.
  35. John CM, Khan SB. Mental health in the field. Nature Geoscience. 2018;11(9):618-620.
  36. University of California, Office of the President, Risk Services. Field Operations Safety Manual (PDF). 2019.
  37. University of California, Berkeley, Office of Environment, Health & Safety. Field Research.
  38. U.S. Geological Survey. Survey Manual 445-2-H, Chapter 31: Watercraft Safety (PDF). March 2020 revision.
  39. U.S. Geological Survey. Survey Manual 412.1: Watercraft. 22 January 1990.
  40. U.S. Geological Survey. Survey Manual 445.1: Occupational Safety and Health Policy and Responsibilities. 6 September 2023.
  41. University of Florida Environmental Health & Safety. Animal Contact Program.
  42. University of Florida Environmental Health & Safety, Occupational Medicine. Medical Monitoring: Animal Contact.
  43. University of Florida. Youth Compliance and Child Abuse Reporting (Policy 5-002).