“What can you do for me?”

I heard this phase far too often in Kenya. I first noticed it as part of the “cons” on the streets of Nairobi. But I continued to see it in rural villages, on chance meetings, and in most social situations. One student in the Teret Secondary School asked this explicit question in front of two hundred of his peers. I struggled to determine if this was just a cultural norm, or if it was the result of too many years of aid – or too much desperation. Hence I was both surprised and relieved to hear the immediate and emphatic reply to this question by our Kenyan intern Isaac. Isaac immediately pointed out that help only comes to those who work hard – and then they don’t need to ask for it. He told his own story of being raised by a single mom and helping to support his siblings – all while paying his own way through college. His was an inspirational presentation to a group of students hungry to listen. I hope that they were inspired by his closing message – “No student who earns straight A grades is still living in their village.” Effort, determination, and initiative find a way.

School Matters...

The RWI team spent an exciting day installing 3 bio-sand filters at the Teret Secondary School. In front of an attentive audience of 200 high school students, the RWI team talked about the value of education and the impact it had in their own lives. Each RWI student told her personal story and talked about the impact of education on her life. With stories from Iraq, India, and the USA, the Kenyan Students were each able to find something to relate to. The questions, while courteous and respectful, dug deep into the financial and personal issues that all students faced in pursuing education. Most exciting was the mob scene (pictured) after the formal presentation. For over an hour the Kenyan students swarmed the CSU students asking questions about school, health, politics, geography, etc. And at least 1000 different pictures with all possible combinations of groups! It was so exciting to see the open and frank questions asked, and the insightful responses given. I don't think either group of students will forget this day for a long time to come.

It's all Business...

The RWI team conducted a half-day meeting with all of the technicians who had be trained by SUMAWA to build bio-sand filters. The intent of the meeting was to determine if the technicians were interested in moving forward with some enterprise to continue building the filters (they are!) The surprise from the meeting, for me at least, was the incredible business savvy demonstrated by these people. When asked for input, they provided key insights into the market for these products. In particular they told us:

• Product Features depend on the customer. (We were trying to determine if a filter made out of plastic would be acceptable - the response was "it depends on the customer.)
• Unique Technology sells over commonly available parts.
• The value of Diversity in a business team. With 42 ethnic tribes in Kenya, they felt their strength was that they came from so many different tribes and could related to their customers.
• The value of Benefits over Features. These technicians saw the need to emphasize the positive health benefits of the filter - and even considered a "clean water inside" sort of marketing campaign.
• Portfolio Pricing options. They saw the opportunity to charge a higher rate for the filters to NGOs in order to subsidize the pricing for poor users.

Somehow these Kenyan technicians demonstrated the same insights we hope to develop in our graduate students in Business. I don't know how they learned it, but I was very impressed.

Hyenas and Lions on the Hunt

The Hyenas wait for the Lions to do all the work!

See the Maasai Mara Safari Slideshow on the sidebar for more pictures from the trip.

Big Game in Maasai Mara Reserve...

The elegance and poise of these large animals is truly amazing!

Sights of the Rift Valley

Today's destination is the Rift River Valley. This valley is flanked by mountain ranges formed by volcano's - some extinct and some not. The ash formed a fertile farmland stretching from Nakuru almost all the way to Nairobi. This first view of the valley sets the stage for the next 8 days in Kenya for it is here that the students in the Running Water International team are conducting their market research and building their business enterprise. The stark contrasts are instructive. The landscape could easily be western Colorado with rolling hills covered in green grasses and evergreen trees over rich red soil. The large lakes and abundant wildlife show an area rich in potential. But the roadside shacks which dot the road and form "photographic overlooks" indicate a life not quite as rich. The "restrooms" consist of home brew outhouses set on an overhanging deck with only the ground 10's of feet below to catch the waste. Local merchants subsist on the willingness of visitors to pay too much for a cheaply produced trinket. I am not entirely sure what I will see as I travel to villages, homes, and schools to see what the local people need in the way of clean drinking water. But I believe that I am beginning to get a clue as I see this stark contrast between natural beauty and human struggles.

Nigerian Scams move to Nirobi?

We've all heard the one about the Nigerian royalty who needs help getting his funds out of the country. It seems that his brothers all live in Nairobi. During my first hour in touring Nairobi, I had no less than 4 offers to help out some very deserving people. It probably didn't help that I was white, dressed oddly (for Kenya at least,) and didn't know where I was going. The guy who caught up with me on the first block of my walk was astounded to hear that I was from Colorado. It seems he had just been admitted to CSU's Vet School and would attend there starting in the fall. Since I was a professor, couldn't I just share a coffee with him and tell him a bit about the school. In my dazed state, and with his persistence, the coffee started to sound pretty good. It only took him about 5 minutes to share his plight with me. It seems that poor guy was from somewhere else (Nigeria maybe?) and needed to leave Kenya today before his visa expired. All he and his two buddies needed was $350 each for passage on a ship to the US - anything I could spare would be a big help. Feeling generous (this would change later...) I paid for the coffee for both of us and left. I managed to make it about 2 blocks before the next young man joined me on my walk. We chatted a bit - seems he had a Colorado connection too as there were students from my home state at university with him in Nairobi. He was very excited because he was working today with a number of students suffering from polio. He wondered how prevalent polio was in Colorado. He offered to walk with me to the next turn I would need to take to the National Museum - my destination. As he was saying goodbye, he told me about a great opportunity he had for me to help buy wheel chairs for polio victims. He showed me the list of amounts and homes of the other contributors he had canvased today. Since he had given me such a great tour of the University of Nairobi, I donated $5 to his cause - with him pushing for $10. Not sure just where the money went, but it was entertaining. Less than half a block later another pedestrian joined my side. He was just heading out to meet up with a friend, but he had lots of time and could walk with me wherever I wanted to go. I apologized, turned around, and went back the direction from which I came - no National Museum today! About 4 blocks later another man joined my walk and began telling me the sad story of his life and his woes. This time I just took off. I continued my walking tour of the city taking in the convention center and Parliament buildings. I ambled across the street to a nice city park with a lake. There I was approached by a well dressed man who also wanted to chat. He told me that he had seen me talking over coffee with a man earlier that morning. He said that this was a "very bad" man and that he had been arrested. He wondered if I could just go with him to talk for a bit. Hmmmm.... I politely declined and walked away. While I have been hit up for scams many times, I have never seen it done so consistently, persistently, and over the extended period I saw here. I was especially struck by the "two part" scam - being approached later in the day after fending off a "first attack." My frustration had little to with being the object of such schemes. My frustration instead stemmed from my need to become cynical and removed from contact with others in a new country. These experiences had robbed me of a vital and important part of my travel experience. Later that evening I was approached in my hotel by a staff member who enquired about my trip. My immediate reaction was to hold back and look for the "angle." I'm happy to say that I quickly recognized the change in context - from the wild, unwashed masses on the streets of Nairobi to the refined and comfortable surrounding of the United Kenya Club - and had a pleasant and rewarding conversation. I guess context does matter.

Passing through...

OK, so this is a gratuitious post just to show off the fact that my daughter Kim is working as an intern at NIST in Gaithersburg, MD. But it also allows me to comment on the phenomenon of "passing through." I am currently enroute to Nairobi, Kenya to join my student team. I've been trying to prepare myself for the mental shock of experiencing a new culture. But in order to get to Nairobi, I've been "passing through" other cultures as well. I've had the chance to visit Kim for about 24 hours and re-learn "east coast culture." This has not been too tough since I grew up in New Jersey. But, there are still differences. In Maryland, microbrew means Sam Adams - and I only saw about one mile of bike lanes in 100's of miles of driving. I'm now killing time in Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport. (It's yet another story about how my expected 2-hour layover is turning into a 12-hour layover!) I know the beer here is Heiniken, and the bike lanes are more plentiful than in Fort Collins. But the culture is markedly different. The direct, matter-of-fact interactions (Yes, you have missed your flight. Have a nice day.) feel more abrupt and uncaring than I am used to at home. And yet, these are only "passing through" cultures. They offer no insight into what I will see, hear, and feel in Kenya. In fact, it is only by chance that I even traveled through Washington DC and Amsterdam on my way to Kenya - I could have taken many paths, and none of these paths prepare me for what I am about to experience. I'm just passing through.

The Adventure Begins Anew...

I see that I have been extremely remiss in blogging about my GSSE experiences. Here it is almost a year after my last entry. I am still active in teaching and working with my "social entrepreneur" students. In fact, I am just now departing for Kenya to work with the Running Water International student team pictured here. This team consists of four women - one from Iraq, one from India, and two from the USA - who are building a business to sell biosand water filters to rural residents of the Rift Valley near Njoro, Kenya. I continue to be awed by the enthusiasm and capabilities of the student teams from GSSE. I will try to highlight some of the significant events of this trip as the month progresses.