Instead of focusing his energy on making a full recovery from dysentery, Mwale Joel was thinking of a master plan. At the age of 16, Mwale contracted dysentery from contaminated water that had been provided to his community during the dry season. The thought of having such a serious health risk in his community sparked an ingenious idea. With the help of some volunteers in his community, Mwale invested all of his savings, a total of $95, and began digging a borehole until he eventually found water. He installed a pump that would allow extraction of the water, subsequently providing clean water to over 500 households in his village.
Name: Richard Turere Age: 13 Country of Origin: Kenya
What is a young Maasai boy to do when the task of caring for his father’s livestock is made nearly impossible by one of the most feared predators in the world? At the time, Richard Turere was not the only one facing this problem. With his community located just south of the unfenced portion of the Nairobi National Park in Kenya, it was common for wildlife like zebra to roam into the village. And as nature demands, when the prey moves, the predators follow; so with the zebras came lions. The lions ravaged livestock that serve as both a source of livelihood and a symbol of Maasai cultural beliefs. To combat this nuisance the warriors responsible for protecting the community and livestock began killing the lions.
Richard on the other hand adopted more inventive ways of solving the lion issue…
This month in Rise Africa we’ve explored the Africa of the future and shared our vision as well as our concerns on the growth of our continent. Rise Africa Wednesday has displayed the work of those that have contributed to the future of Africa with innovative thinking and fearless ambition. We continue this trend with this week’s feature, Funfere Koroye. Most people know Funfere Koroye as the fashion wonder who took social media by storm with his personal style. What most people don’t know is that there is much more to Koroye than an impeccable fashion sense. He is the quintessence of the new designer emerging in Africa.
A product engineer with an eye for futuristic innovation, Koroye is fast on his way to remodeling the Africa of the future. His work on projects like the M6 Wind Powered Car and Kidetic Playground (which would allow children to explore the idea of energy consumption) illustrate Koroye’s dedication to creating green solutions for Africa through his vast knowledge of product design and marketing. Koroye is currently working on a shoe line that will cater to needs of Africans by incorporating the elements of functionality and aesthetics of various types of shoes. Rise Africa had the privilege of catching up with Funfere. Here’s what he had to say…
Our Rise Africa Wednesday tweet chat focusing on South Africa's Ludwick Marishane and his invention, Dry Bath, just wrapped up but you can catch all of the discussion here: @RiseAfrica. We will have another chat focusing on a new feature and topic next Wednesday at the same time 6:00 pm CT | 7:00 pm ET | 11:00 GMT. Be sure to join us.
Name: Esther Mbabzi Age: 24 Country of Origin: Rwanda
By becoming the first female pilot in Rwanda earlier this year, Esther Mbabazi has become the face of change in a country that is in the midst of revival and renewal. The most remarkable aspect of Esther’s story is the fact that at the age of 8 her father was killed in a plane crash. One would assume that such a tragic occurrence would have dissuaded her from pursuing aviation; on the contrary, Esther used it to fuel her aspirations of becoming a pilot.
Her desire to be a pilot began as a child when she would travel with her family. The concept of such a large vessel moving effortlessly in the air intrigued and prompted her to follow through with her dream. Esther was trained in the Soroti flight school in Uganda before being sponsored by Rwandair to continue her training in Florida. She now flies Rwandair’s CRJ-900 regional jets in Africa.
Stemming from today’s feature on Hadiza Blell, a young Nigerian and Sierra Leon woman who encourages young artists to use art as a form of self-expression, join us on Twitter as we discuss how to support young, African artists in our own communities! @RiseAfrica
Name: Nelsa and Nelly Guambe Age: 26 Country of Origin: Mozambique Current City/Town: Maputo
Nelsa and Nelly Guambe, based in Maputo, Mozambique, are the founders of the First Mozambican up-cycling clothing brand “Mima-te.” The twins launched their brand in 2012, incorporating vintage styling brand with an eco-concept.
The Mozambique born twins like many other Mozambicans have worn second hand clothes from outside the country since they can remember. Second hand clothes are for many Mozambicans the only clothes they can afford. They are sold in huge quantities in informal street markets all over the capital of Maputo. Second, third and sometimes fourth hand textiles, once unsold or not worn anymore are taken to Mozambique, imported mainly from the USA, Europe, and Australia. However, given their low price and the enormous quantity of textiles that go to Mozambique, even those clothes often end up as waste. By then the clothes have already reached their last drop off in yet another poor country, so there is nowhere else left where they could be sold off to. Without any infrastructure in place that would allow for recycling the clothes, they are mostly just thrown away. This type of waste is bad for the environment but a definite opportunity for a new kind of a development project like Mima-te.
Name: Gregory Rockson Age: 22 Country of Origin: Ghana
As a first year international student during the 2008 presidential election, Gregory Rockson caught the patriotic bug that was buzzing all across the USA. It pacified his fear of being in a new country and made him a part of a generation of young people who had grown an interest in public service because of President Obama’s election. He quickly became aware of the gilded nature of his newfound passion when the debate on healthcare in America hit its peak. With a national healthcare law being passed in Ghana shortly before his relocation to the states, Rockson found it inconceivable that one of the world’s most powerful countries did not offer universal health overage for its citizens.
Name: Jessica Chibueze Age: 20 Country: Nigeria Current City/Town: Woodbridge, VA
Jessica Chibueze first visited Uganda with the intention of exploring an African country other than her native home Nigeria. She figured it’d be an exciting experience as an 18 year old to spend the summer before her freshman year in an East African country. 2 years and 2 trips later, the purpose behind Jessica’s trips to Uganda has evolved to include a deeper and much more rewarding meaning.
Name: Senya Donkor Age: 21 Country: Ghana Current City/Town: Woodbridge, Va
From the runway to print work, to working with her organization; the Bright Foundation, and most importantly, to being a college student, Senya strives to do it all! Her continued perseverance towards success may be innate or it may simply be rooted in her strong ambition to follow her dreams.
Media is a language we’ve developed to communicate on a wide scale. From hieroglyphics to books to television to this sentence you’re reading right now, it’s all a process based on combining our linguistic resources -patterns of movement, symbols, and sounds- to connect to each other. Sometimes this communication is direct, like a live viewing or a VoIP (voice-over internet protocol - think Facetime) conversation. Sometimes it’s passive, like reading an ancient text, swimming in the knowledge of our ancestors. We’re going to use this understanding of media as a language to explore how its misuse can maintain ideological divisions. We’re gonna get down with messaging techniques using the first season of Avatar: The Last Airbender. It gave me life. Maybe I can give it back.
Racism exists as an ideological system of power in Western society. We classify individuals and their communities based on impressions of a global minority - in our reality, it’s various groups of Europeans insisting on an imperial legacy based on their claim to the fabricated concept of “whiteness.” If this system is negative, then it must have a counter, a positive system in which these individuals are exempt from these racial classifications. Unfortunately, no such system exists. If you don’t fit the social perception ascribed to your visual appearance, you’re considered an anomaly. Many of us have lived this, and it doesn’t feel good. This ‘racism, or lack thereof’ approach that we in creative media embrace is a result of exceptionalism (also called Chauvinism for hilarious French reasons). Exceptionalism is the social agreement that the ideology of the dominant group is exceptional, and therefore anything that does not coincide with this ideology is an unwelcome departure. The first season of Avatar: The Last Airbender uses exceptionalism in a reverse binary as a code to both enable and challenge the dominant social ideology. Flameo, hotman!
