McOwiti O. Thomas, Public Information Officer

Develops strategies, plans, and activities for public information Develops public information products and tools Handles internal and external public and media relations Phone: 505 277 2638 Email: tmcowiti@lternet.edu

Born and raised in Kapsabet, a small town in the picturesque Rift Valley Province of Kenya, McOwiti's responsibilities at the Network Office include the development of communication plans, strategies, tools, and products to highlight and disseminate LTER's successes and accomplishments to the broader (internal and external) public.

McOwiti holds a bachelor's degree in Physics and Mathematics from Kenyatta University in Kenya , and a Master's in Communication from the University of New Mexico. Before joining LTER, he worked for eight years as a Public Awareness Officer for the World Agroforestry Centre, the world's foremost authority on agroforestry research and development and one of 16 Future Harvest Centers of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research. McOwiti has also worked in various capacities as a journalist, and as a correspondent and contributor to various international news media.

In his free time McOwiti likes tinkering with technical stuff, watching wildlife movies, gardening and reading (currently only non-fiction, but considering trying fiction too). Although he prefers being called McOwiti (the very first name he was given at birth and which, in his native tongue, Dho-Luo, means "Son of Owiti"), he will not karate-chop anyone who calls him Thomas or Tom.