FOUNDER NYENDO NGO
Nyendo was founded in 2012 as a non-profit organisation registered in Germany and Kenya. We offer educational programs for social entrepreneurship, sustainable development in poor communities and intercultural relations. Currently, our five German nyendo schools each work in partnership with one parent/teacher founded and funded community school in the slums of Nairobi. Nine more slum schools recently joined the network and are awaiting a German partner school. The schools are organised in regional networks cooperating, inspiring and encouraging each other, which creates a liberating momentum for new potential. We share the joy of learning, taking initiative and interacting across the globe.
German students support their partner slum school by donating profits of a social business, paying for daily needs like a meal for the kids, or financing sustainable self-help projects, such as introducing complementary currencies or urban farming to create new economic structures. The Nyendo students visit their partner schools and live with the communities in the slum while the headmasters of the slum schools visit the German partner schools.Thus the students learn about global economic contexts, gain skills in social entrepreneurship and intensive intercultural experience. So far, through Nyendo three community currencies with 600 members in total were introduced in the slums and three permaculture school gardens were implemented, both attracting a lot of public attention. Beside this, intercultural activities and art projects with local and international friends and artists are continuously being carried out.
Nyendo‘s vision is a holistic and healthy social community that can evolve based on self confidence and self governance. We want to achieve this through self governed, community oriented financial tools, small businesses arising from agricultural productivity, or a variety of additional educational programs such as politechnical trainings for graduates.
In the context of maker spaces, Susanne was warmly welcomed to join with The Love School Project, connecting 10 German design students with 20 children of one of our partner schools. Thanks to our talented and committed project lead Antony, a lively and highly efficient cooperation brought both parties in a close working relationship with stunning results. Nobody would have expected the children to participate with such passion and dedication, learning such a variety of skills, having fun and growing daily in their self-esteem. Knowing my friends in the slum for more than 12 years, I consider these interactive relationships on eye-level as the key to empowerment and human and social development. The visit of seven German students with Susanne and Anna, living and working in the slum for two weeks in February 2017, laid the foundation for a promising longterm partnership. On behalf of my team I wish to thank Susanne for her outstanding dedication and commitment.
www.nyendo-lernen.de