Dr. Edwin Sabuhoro ’18

The Clemson Young Alumni Council presented its Roaring10 award to international conservationist Edwin Sabuhoro of State College, Pa.

The award is given annually to 10 outstanding individuals who received undergraduate or graduate degrees from Clemson University within the past 10 years and who exemplify Clemson’s core values of honesty, integrity and respect. Recipients are recognized for their impact in business, leadership, community, educational and philanthropic endeavors.

Sabuhoro, a native of Rwanda, graduated from Clemson in 2018 with a Ph.D. in parks, recreation and tourism management. He earned a Master of Science in Conservation and Tourism from the University of Kent in the United Kingdom in 2006 and a Bachelor of Legal Laws from the University of Rwanda in 2002.

He is currently an assistant professor in both the Department of Recreation, Park and Tourism Management and the African Studies Program at Penn State University.

Before joining Clemson, he chaired the Rwanda Chamber of Tourism, a national tourism umbrella organization, and served on the board of the Institute of the National Museums in Rwanda.

Sabuhoro has been a leader in community development and conservation in Rwanda and Uganda. He is the founder of the award-winning Gorilla Guardians Village in Rwanda, a community program that protects endangered mountain gorillas and improves the lives of the people who live in the surrounding community by providing significant opportunities for food, education, health, financial resources and security.

Among his many awards and recognitions, he was honored by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as the 2008 Young Conservationist, invited to the White House by President Barack Obama as a 2010 Young African Leader, selected as a 2015 CNN Hero, and presented with the 2015 United Nations Great Apes Survival Partnership (UN-GRASP) Ian Redmond Award.

For Clemson, Sabuhoro has encouraged and mentored students to engage in international humanitarian projects and has given lectures and presentations to groups ranging from global health classes to the university’s board of trustees. He has helped build awareness and respect for Clemson in America, Africa and beyond.

 

Members of the Clemson family nominate potential Roaring10 honorees, who are then selected by the Clemson Young Alumni Council. The 2021 award presentation will occur during the fall. 

 

The primary mission of the Clemson Young Alumni Council is to support the goals of the Clemson Alumni Association specifically on matters pertaining to young alumni. The Clemson Alumni Association is an open-membership, nonprofit organization that exists to connect alumni with their alma mater. Through a variety of programs and services, the Alumni Association works with alumni around the world to ensure they have a Clemson Experience every day.