Morgan Sherburne:
Welcome to the Michigan Minds Podcast, where we delve into the vast knowledge from faculty experts at the University of Michigan. I’m Morgan Sherburne, a public affairs representative for the Michigan News Office. I would like to welcome Brian Stewart, an associate professor of anthropology and curator of African Archaeology, who’s here to discuss his research in Lesotho and the ramifications of the Trump administration’s tariffs on this small African nation. Welcome, Brian, to the Michigan Minds Podcast. We appreciate your presence.

Brian Stewart:
It’s great to be here.

Morgan Sherburne:
Lesotho has recently grabbed headlines due to President Trump’s remarks about its size and significance, as well as his imposition of steep tariffs on the country. Many Americans may not be familiar with it. What should we understand about Lesotho and what does the U.S. import from there?

Brian Stewart:
Lesotho is a tiny nation—its dimensions are comparable to Belgium. It is entirely encircled by South Africa. This fact alone is noteworthy because it is one of the few nations globally that is completely surrounded by another country, which also lacks access to the ocean, akin to the Vatican and Monaco. Very few independent sovereign states have this situation.
It’s an extraordinarily picturesque mountainous nation. The mountainous terrain is connected to its status as an independent country, which relates to self-defense against colonial forces during the 19th century. It is indeed a very elevated country. Additionally, it features the highest lowest point of any nation in the world. Many compare it to Switzerland, and some term it the Switzerland of Southern Africa.
Conversely, in Lesotho, citizens remark that Switzerland is the Lesotho of Europe. It has an incredible, captivating narrative of resistance against colonial powers that shaped its identity. Another lesser-known fact is that its fashion and history have inspired the Wakanda Forever motif in the Black Panther film series. The iconic blankets that Lesotho is famous for prominently appear in the costumes of the movie.
Under President Trump, Lesotho’s tariff rate was declared one of the highest globally, just shy of China at nearly 50%. This formula was based on the trade deficit, which naturally leans toward Lesotho due to America’s wealth allowing for extensive imports from the nation, whereas Lesotho, being impoverished, struggles to import much in return, as many have noted.
This creates a trade deficit not out of a reluctance from Lesotho to import U.S. goods, but rather from economic reality. So, what does the U.S. import from Lesotho? The bulk of imports consists of textiles; Lesotho is a significant producer of textile goods like denim, knitted wool suits, and t-shirts, alongside precious stones, particularly diamonds. Lesotho is rich in diamonds.
Although most are not of the exceptionally high quality found in South Africa, many are suited for industrial uses, and the U.S. imports a substantial quantity of these. Moreover, Lesotho also exports similar products, including diamonds and textiles, to South Africa and other members of the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Surprisingly to many, the primary export to other Southern African nations, particularly South Africa, is water. Lesotho is one of the wettest areas of the subcontinent. Whereas much of Southern Africa is typically arid, water is a precious resource, and Lesotho has an abundance of it. Its steep, deeply carved valleys are perfect for building hydroelectric dams and reservoirs.
With minimal evaporation rates, the water remains largely intact. Consequently, infrastructure is being developed to transport it into South Africa, sometimes over significant distances, including urban centers such as Johannesburg. Johannesburg initially thrived on gold, lacking a river or navigable waterway that most cities depend on.
Thus, it lacks a natural water source or aquifers sufficient for its population, which now exceeds 12 million. Consequently, water obtained from Lesotho has been pumped to Johannesburg for decades. Lesotho’s regional significance is enormous; it’s often referred to as the water tower of Southern Africa for these evident reasons.

Morgan Sherburne:
Could you elaborate on the archaeological significance of Lesotho and highlight some of the key discoveries made there?

Brian Stewart:
Certainly. To address that inquiry, it’s critical to provide a brief context regarding why Southern Africa holds importance in paleoarchaeology. Southern Africa harbors a historical record extending back to the dawn of hominins and humans millions of years ago. However, to grasp Lesotho’s significance, we must recognize the importance of Southern Africa in tracing our own species, Homo sapiens.
Protracted debates through the ’80s and ’90s have established that our species emerged specifically in Africa approximately 300,000 to 200,000 years ago and began migrating from Africa around 100,000 years ago, interbreeding with earlier hominins that had left Africa. However, this interbreeding remained limited, affirming that we are predominantly African in origin.
The Southern African record has been vital for decoding not only our anatomical evolution but particularly our behavioral evolution, as some of the earliest material archaeological indications of distinctly human behaviors—such as symbolic actions represented in artifacts like engraved ochre tablets or jewelry—have appeared in Southern Africa. Lesotho is critical as it broadens our understanding of early behaviorally modern Homo sapiens beyond coastal regions where much of this early evidence has been identified.

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evidence originates from deeper interior regions and from lowlands ascending into highlands.
And we find this particularly fascinating because we are keen on understanding how humans adapted to varied environmental conditions over extended periods. This adaptability then facilitated our swift migration out of Africa to utilize the vast array of global ecosystems.
We believe that more demanding environments, such as high mountain regions like Lesotho or challenging desert landscapes, are crucial to the narrative of developing resilience and adaptability before effectively leaving Africa over a lengthy timespan. I’m not suggesting that immediately before our exodus from Africa we had it all figured out and thought, “Yes, we’re ready to go.” These are extensive evolutionary processes for which Lesotho plays a significant role in providing insights.

Morgan Sherburne:
You’ve been conducting research in Lesotho for 15 years and have uncovered a wealth of information about early humans and the development of their social relationships. What makes this country so fascinating to you?

Brian Stewart:
Its ecological context is undeniably intriguing. Once again, it’s a high-altitude environment. It’s nestled between a subtropical coastline, positioned just beyond a steep escarpment known as the Drakensberg escarpment or the uKhahlamba Drakensberg. “uKhahlamba,” in Zulu, translates to “barrier of spears” due to its towering cliffs and jagged peaks.
To the east, there lies KwaZulu-Natal, predominantly a subtropical coastal region. Just over the escarpment, the highlands of Lesotho present a temperate, relatively cold, and extremely rugged terrain. Heading west from that, one transitions into an inland plateau that becomes increasingly arid as it extends into the Karoo-Kalahari zones.
These pronounced altitudinal and rainfall contrasts stretch east-west across Lesotho, ranging from heavy precipitation along the coast and mountains to significantly less moisture as one travels westward. Notably, the largest river in Southern Africa, the Orange River, originates in Lesotho, with its headwaters found there. Instead of flowing east towards the coast, it traverses westward from Lesotho, traveling over 2,000 kilometers through progressively arid desert before reaching the Atlantic Ocean.
This creates fascinating ecological gradients, and we know that this ecological framework significantly shaped hunter-gatherer migrations, allowing people to navigate in and out of the region via river corridors and mountain passes. It also influenced social networks, determining how individuals were interconnected and why those connections were established.
From ethnographic studies, we know that hunter-gatherers often forge social ties not just with those nearby in similar environments but also with individuals situated further away in deliberately different settings. This enables them to depend on networks built through exchanging valued artifacts like beads and jewelry, providing a form of insurance to access alternative regions in times of need. Long-distance acquaintances can assist friends established through these relationships. The crux of this strategy lies in maintaining connections with people in various environments that remain unaffected by similar challenges. Consequently, the juxtaposition of coastal, highland, and desert ecosystems offers an intriguing perspective on adaptive strategies and the social interactions between these diverse environments.

Morgan Sherburne:
Is there any other aspect of your research on social relationships that you wish to emphasize?

Brian Stewart:
Yes, one aspect I haven’t addressed is that Lesotho and the Drakensberg region are renowned for their rock art, notably its rock paintings. These artworks are among the most plentiful and elaborate globally, making the area a key center for worldwide rock art studies. Importantly, the insights gained from exploring the rock art corpus in this region have significantly shaped global interpretations of rock art.
Once researchers began to delve into the records in Lesotho and adjoining parts of South Africa, perceptions of rock art transformed. However, the challenge with rock art, not only in Lesotho but in many regions, lies in the difficulty of obtaining accurate dates. It presents a captivating yet elusive record that touches on worldview, cosmology, and religious beliefs.
We now understand that spiritual beliefs were the primary reason behind the actions of those painting and engraving in the past. It would be ideal to link these insights to the more mundane aspects of daily life and the tangible components of archaeology, like diet and paleoclimate, but we often hit roadblocks due to our inability to chronologically anchor that rock art record. Without dating capabilities, those connections remain elusive.
One of the most thrilling developments has been obtaining high-quality radiocarbon dates for these rock paintings, a challenging endeavor due to contamination risks and ensuring that we’re dating the actual pigments created at the time of the artwork, rather than later intrusions like lichen.
My colleagues and I have established rigorous techniques to ensure accurate dating of the pigments. This advancement allows us to date various painting styles and integrate that information with the background context of technological, dietary, and archaeological changes within the area. We are also beginning to explore the effects of climate change and demographic transitions on the religious beliefs and worldviews of these communities.
This is particularly exciting because it provides a rare opportunity to gain insight into the religious and worldview aspects, along with theoretical advancements in our understanding of the anthropology of religion, especially concerning hunter-gatherer societies. This understanding reveals that their distinction between what they perceive as natural versus cultural, or tangible versus otherworldly, is virtually absent.
They inhabited a realm rich with supernatural forces, which influenced nearly all their decisions. Much of their actions were not solely aimed at acquiring the next meal or moving to resource-rich areas, as we might typically assume in Western perspectives. Instead, it often revolved around who controlled particular areas, which supernatural forces were dominant, or how they needed to show respect to deities and other supernatural beings to access specific resources. Therefore, we are starting to comprehend that the social landscape involves much more than just human connections.
It also encompasses relationships between people and animals as well as between individuals and supernatural entities, leading to a more expansive and nuanced understanding of kinship and social bonds that extend beyond human interaction, incorporating humans within a larger spiritual cosmos. This presents a richer and more accurate depiction of human life in these environments. The exploration of rock art and its connection to archaeological findings is truly thrilling.

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truly allowing us to comprehend the situation in that context.

Morgan Sherburne:
I gather you collaborate with numerous academic professionals from the area. Could you elaborate on the present political consequences for Lesotho that you’ve encountered through your connections there?

Brian Stewart:
Primarily, the prevailing sentiment I’ve discerned is one of bewilderment and shock, awaiting some clarity before rendering any opinions on the current events. Lesotho and Southern Africa are accustomed to political instability. They are familiar with economic turmoil. Throughout their shared history, they’ve faced a prolonged, often arduous saga of coups and minor invasions, among other challenges. Thus, they are well-versed in drama.
The recent, markedly protectionist stance of the United States has genuinely unsettled them. Traditionally, the U.S. has a global reputation for stability, especially regarding its relationship with the developing world—demonstrated by its vast and unparalleled contributions, from food assistance to combating diseases.
Lesotho stands as one of the world’s most impoverished nations. Any minor economic disturbance there represents a significant challenge, as it lacks the reserves and resilience that more advanced nations possess. There’s considerable anxiety regarding the economic repercussions. Its economic fate is tied to South Africa; it lacks the independence that many other nations enjoy.
Moreover, on a practical level, the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which has been operational for several decades, has played a critical role in financially supporting the purchase or subsidization of antiretrovirals in regions severely affected by HIV, including Lesotho, which has one of the highest infection rates globally. This initiative has been instrumental for nations like Lesotho in grappling with the disease.
However, President Trump swiftly eliminated it within the first few weeks of his tenure, which is catastrophic for a nation like Lesotho. This also adversely affects South Africa, although it has greater financial resources as one of Africa’s wealthiest countries, allowing it to mitigate such losses. Lesotho simply lacks this capacity. So yes, I believe they’re reeling.
It’s heartbreaking. I want to emphasize that while archaeology is valuable and deserves attention, and Lesotho boasts an extraordinary archaeological heritage that illuminates human evolution and adaptability, the implications of archaeology pale in comparison to pressing issues like public health, livelihood, and economic stability.
These are far more critical concerns, in my view. I just wanted to clarify that I’m not implying archaeologists are the ones primarily affected—though those in Lesotho will certainly feel the impact as well—but the nation as a whole is bound to suffer due to these changes in U.S. policy.

Morgan Sherburne:
What makes this nation so fascinating to you?

Brian Stewart:
As an archaeologist, I’ve explained why this area is of significant importance not only in Southern Africa but also in the wider African context. Personally, my initial visit occurred around 2003-2004. Beyond its stunning natural beauty, I was profoundly impressed by the local culture. It hasn’t endured the same colonial experience as South Africa, which is quite notable given its complete geographical enclosure by it.
Lesotho avoided apartheid due to its status as a British protectorate. The colonial impact, though never positive, was relatively minimal in Lesotho compared to other British territories. While South Africa struggled under the National Party and apartheid, Lesotho remained independent, tethered to Britain, which was nearing decolonization, ultimately gaining its independence alongside other British colonies in the mid-60s.
Consequently, the social structure and cultural practices in Lesotho didn’t experience the same level of stressors as those in South African communities, particularly amongst communities of color under apartheid. Thus, it appears to be a healthier environment… I don’t mean to downplay the serious viral disease challenges they face, especially HIV, but it feels socially and emotionally healthier overall.
It is generally safe, though there is some crime in Maseru, the capital, which is the only notable urban area. However, even then, it is far less severe than crime in many South African cities. It truly is a wonderful nation. The populace is remarkably kind, exceedingly warm, and friendly. Especially in the countryside and highlands where I work, the communities are genuine.
They are incredibly resilient and exceptionally welcoming. They’ve been living traditionally for quite a long time. It’s a remarkable place, and you can genuinely sense that when you visit. It envelops you like a comforting embrace. I highly recommend it to anyone. Yes, visit Lesotho!

Morgan Sherburne:
Brian, I appreciate you sharing your insights about Lesotho. It’s been fascinating to learn more about this nation.

Brian Stewart:
It has been a pleasure.

Morgan Sherburne:
Thank you for tuning into this episode of Michigan Minds, brought to you by Michigan News, a branch of the University’s Office of the Vice President for Communications.