MIT Sloan Event Champions Innovation through Roosevelt Africa Trail, Transforming Marathons and Heritage Tourism
CAMBRIDGE, MA – May 3, 2025
The MIT Sloan Africa Business Club successfully hosted the US–Africa Business Connect, an innovative gathering spotlighting transformative opportunities in tourism between the United States and Africa. The event, held at MIT Sloan School of Management, featured strategic discussions centered around two groundbreaking initiatives: the Roosevelt Africa Trail, inspired by President Theodore Roosevelt’s historic 1909-1910 Smithsonian African Expedition, and Uganda’s Rwenzori Marathon, the world’s only marathon crossing the equator.
The conference spotlighted the Theodore Roosevelt African Heritage Trail, a groundbreaking cross-continental initiative inspired by President Theodore Roosevelt’s historic 1909-1910 Smithsonian African Expedition. Stretching through significant Roosevelt expedition landmarks including Uganda’s Murchison Falls National Park and Lake Victoria, the trail aims to boost eco-tourism, conservation, and regional economies through sustainable heritage and adventure tourism.
The conference opened with a landmark panel, “Tech Synergies in Global Marathons: Boston & Rwenzori,”spotlighting the intersection of endurance sport, innovation, and economic development. Featured speakers included John Korir, 2025 Boston Marathon champion; Ron Mann, elite coach; Pauline Ndirangu, CFO of Farisi Manufacturing; and Amos Wekesa, founder of Uganda’s Rwenzori Marathon and CEO of Great Lakes Safaris.
The session explored how data-driven training, performance nutrition (such as Farisi’s premium Ugali), and tourism strategies are fueling Africa’s emergence as a destination for world-class athletic events and regional development.
Following the panel, endurance athlete and influencer Matt Choi joined virtually to announce his participation in the 2025 Rwenzori Marathon, the only marathon in the world that crosses the equator. Known for his recent 300-mile run across South Korea, Matt shared how running can drive global connection, community-building, and cultural storytelling.
The event also featured a film trailer premiere of Born to Run – Kapchorwa to the World, followed by a second panel on tourism innovation, and a keynote on immersive technology’s role in transforming global travel.
The second panel, Revolutionizing Tourism and Cultural Preservation through Innovation, brought together leaders from NABU, Roosevelt Africa Safari Coffee, and the Uganda Embassy. Taylor Jean-Jacques, Global Board Member at NABU, shared how mother-tongue digital storytelling is preserving identity and boosting literacy. Adrian Braka, Director of Partnerships at Roosevelt Africa Safari Coffee, unveiled the brand’s work in leveraging Uganda’s heritage agriculture and Roosevelt’s 1909 expedition legacy to create immersive, narrative-rich experiences—including the ambitious Roosevelt Africa Trail initiative. Benon Kayemba, Consular of the Uganda Embassy, reflected on the role of policy in protecting cultural assets and building tourism corridors with diaspora support.
A keynote by Rus Gant, MIT XR+AI researcher, delivered a powerful vision of how immersive technologies—like virtual reality trail previews, AI-powered museum experiences, and AR navigation—are transforming how people learn about and visit African destinations. His talk emphasized how extended reality (XR) and artificial intelligence can create emotionally resonant, educational, and ethical tourism experiences rooted in African narratives.
The event closed with remarks from Hon. Rebecca Miano, Cabinet Secretary of Kenya’s Ministry of Tourism and Wildlife, who praised the role of youth, technology, and diaspora leadership in shaping the continent’s future through tourism.
A live raffle draw awarded one attendee an all-expenses-paid trip to Uganda, including a spot in the 2025 Rwenzori Marathon and a gorilla trekking experience in the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest — a UNESCO World Heritage site.