This might be of interest to you, Irena:
“A selection of useful trees and shrubs for Kenya / Notes on their identification, propagation and managament for use by agricultural and pastoral communities”, International Centre for Research in Agroforestry (ICRAF), Nairobi, 1992;
ISBN 92 9059 096 3
=> sabuni…. (~ think of FightClub :-D)
While googling for the keyword “Eldoret” (a fast inet connection and random keywords make up for perfect time-wasters which of course are always prefered to work which would actually put some food on the table..), I once again realized how many different ngo projects are done in Kenya.
I am SURE many of you can instantly name a few initiatives and NGOs that are dealing with water, energy, health, general environmental issues, IT, social work, etc etc and there sure are many we have never even heard of.
On the other hand, there are many qualified, jobless young Kenyans dying to get a decent job if only they knew where to apply.
To make it short: is there any website or office in Kenya that tries to a) lobby the NGO’s work and b) tries to get all NGOs to round table talks (as a problem seems to be that many NGOs differ in political orientations, funding and other strange variables).
As a start, I am thinking of using a free Wiki software to at least document all NGOs willing to publish their work on a single website. The idea of such an informative website is to get an overview of what has been implemented so far, what kind of policy the GoK has on certain matters, the people’s view and the typical approach strategy NGOs use to get their messages conveyed.
A website that sums up ALL different opinions and gives the public an overview (at least) of how they can be involved. You know, there are active forums like Mashada & Co, or even the vivid kenyan blogosphere, where ppl communicate on a daily basis. Why shouldn’t this be possible on a matter of national interest?
Natujenge taifa letu
Ee ndio wajibu wetu
Kenya istahili heshima
Tuungane mikono pamoja kazini
Kila siku tuwe nashukrani.
Only words?
I found this website that tries to do cover the above mentioned idea – however, did YOU know it?
The sun eventually decided to start (the) spring season (in May!) and blessed us with this kind of weather today:
Which reminded me of a solar panel my mzee bought for me way back in 1989. Back in those days, there was a shop on solar and other alternative energies next to his place of work – so whenever I visited him @work, I spent hours in this shop admiring all these “new” technologies.
My father, knowing that I would one day end up doing something fundi-styled, put his hands deep into his pocket and coughed up this really high-tech (=> 1989!) monocrystaline solar panel for me which delivers 8V and a current of 165mA.
And yes, children LOVE “solar models” :-)
While surfing the net and distracting myself from work that urgently needs to be finished, I stumbled upon this useful information [via Gizmodo] [via lifehacker] on “how to get an upgrade to First Class“.
You know, a few more centimeters of leg-room are a whole world to someone who is 192 cm (6,3 ft) tall. Especially, since I realized that the assigned seats fall under the “be aware” category.
Here’s their advice:
Ask the ticket counter agent nicely.
Earlier in Januar 2006, the ecoblog Treehugger covered an interesting story on Arvind Gupta who is well known for developing toys out of trash / waste material and publishing books on various subjects. The “tinkerer and toy-maker”, as he is quoted in this article by India Together, “has dedicated his life to demystifying the abstruse world of science for the comprehension of children”.
Looking at his toys, one understands his interesting approach on combining toys & with science and it also reminds me of this little scientific book I had as a child that featured similar ideas. No wonder I’ve become a geek :-)
“The best thing a child can do with a toy is break it !”
(quote on Arvind Gupta‘s website)
This morning I received a challenging short message by my dear friend Mbuzimoja, who asked me about creative toys that could be built with 4 to 9 years old children in an orphanage. Since I’d forwarded the above mentioned article to her earlier in January, she told me to have a closer look at do-able ideas – toys that could be produced in Kenya. Oh yeah – I DO like this idea!
Here’s what I had in mind (all links open in a new window):
clap in the air (oh, i love this! :-)
Or for the older kids a simple generator (motor) that powers an LED (these parts are available on 2nd hand electronic markets or even from other old electronical gadgets).
…the list goes on and on and it becomes obvious that creativity knows no boundaries while at the same time the children learn something about building their own toys (like those wire cars we already know) and getting an understanding for technology. In case this triggered your interest, make sure to check out Arvind Guptas publications as well. A man who clearly enjoys the joy of sharing. Thank you!
P.S.: and here’s a special solar link for you, afroM :-)
“There is no doubt that the market has spoken in a big way.
This leaves no doubt in the capacity of our economy to finance well-structured viable ventures”
… Esther Koimett, Investment Secretary, as quoted in today’s DN on KenGen’s IPO.
I am not such an expert on private investment like Bankelele and his commentators, who are btw doing a great job in reporting stories from the monetary world in Kenya. What triggered my attention on the KenGen IPO, though, was that Kenyans apparently come out in great masses when it comes to investing money in (hopefully) profitable markets.
I was also going through an interesting advertisment (published in April 11th edition of the DN) on the launch of the Kisumu Water and Sanitation Project which is partly funded by the French Government through AFD – an investment to the tune of 20 million Euro.
Now, bearing in mind that people are willing to spend their savings on shares – an investment that promises a healthy divident in future, what if we take this kind of investment spirit onto different levels? So far, it seems, ppl are willing to invest their money into anything profitable – so why does the Governemnt have to look for funding if Kenyans actually do have the money needed to …repair Kisumu’s water supply and sanitation services?
All four speeches on the launch of the above mentioned project agreement held by the Minister of Water and Irrigation, his P.S., the chairman of Kisumu Water and Sewerage Company Ltd. and the Mayor of Kisumu contained a phrase in which they encouraged all involved parties to “embrace good corporate governance” or even a straight-forward challenge to the Water Services Board & – Provider “to live up to the expectations”. And, according to the P.S., “the support has attracted the Global Partnership on Output Based Aid (GPOBA) funding which if used properly should solve the problem of water and sanitation in low income areas”.
It is great to see this kind of progress since the implementation of the Water Act 2000, and a Ministry that is actively encouraging the people to greater achievements.
And as much as these new funding approaches (like GPOBA, Infraco or Guarantco) are interesting, what I would like to ask instead is: Are ppl ready to accept a completely different approach on the way we see water and sanitary needs under a financial context? What (for instance) if we can find ways to succesfully implement even more EcoSan projects in Kenya where human excreta and waste water become nutrients that could then be sold for agricultural use (~fertilizers)?
Or in other words: our waste => money.
The technology is already available, the understading for closing environmental loops is currently being thaught to future generations and the monetary incentive is given. So, what do you think? Would it be possible to attract ppl in investing their money into such unorthodox businesses that do not only fill the pocket but also help closing some much needed environmental loops?
Lady Kiboko, who diligently supervises all human activities on the balcony, had an unpleasant encounter with wood worms (anobium punctatum) right after her birth.
Since all attempts to persuade these uninvited visitors to go away and look for another host failed, Mr Kamau wa Gitau suggested that I should bath her in kerosene for about a month. Which of course didn’t change anything except for Kamau, who ended up with 5ltrs. of free Kerosene.
One day she was asked to join me on my trip to Germany, where she would guard the balcony. Being exposed to an extreme climate over here, which ranges from a temperature of -20°C during winter time up to a maximum of +40°C in direct sunshine, the people from Woodwormistan eventually decided to come out of their hiding – covering Lady Kiboko’s warm belly with a fine layer of wood flour. Well…as an external incentive, I used some chemicals on her that would kill all remaining dudus, so in the end it was only her and her perforated belly – which I painted with some brown varnish (hence the dark colour).
And today, while cleaning up the balcony and preparing it for tomorrows Nyama Choma BBQ, I discovered this:
A little plant growing out of the belly…
Dear Diary,
today I’ve come across a nice bedroom set from Kenya’s leading discounter Nakumatt:
While I can well imagine a lot of customers falling for this kind of interior design for the simple lack of an own taste (or mabye because the’ve seen this kind of style in USamerican TV shows), there’s only one thing I can think of when I look at it: KITSCH.
Are Aren’t there any Kenyan carpenters? who could produce such furnitures as well?
