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7 May 2024
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Description
Welcome to our learning centre. We invite you to join us in a unique Workaway experience that combines community engagement,
sustainable school construction, and immersion in permaculture the permanent local way of life.
Project Overview: We are embarking on an exciting journey to construct a
sustainable school on the captivating Mfangano Island. Our mission is not just to
build school houses but to create a learning centre for young people that embodies eco-friendliness, community involvement and cultural richness. We need your help to make this vision a reality!
WE NEED HELP WITH CONSTRUCTION.
Our construction project encompasses various tasks that volunteers
with a wide range of skills can contribute to. Here's how you can get involved:
1. Debris Clearance:
● Help us clear debris from the building site, bringing it back to the foundation
level for a fresh start.
2. Sustainable Building:
● Utilize locally sourced materials like sand, stone, plastic botle and water to build stady walls that blend with the island's natural beauty.
● Assist in obtaining other materials through donations, such as cement, metal
sheeting, and new tools.
3. Carpentry Skills:
● Showcase your carpentry skills by crafting doors, ceiling boards and steel windows that
reflect the island's unique charm.
● Contribute to the creation of furniture, including school beds, school uniform and school learning materials
4. Glass Artistry:
● Work on creating windows that not only let in the island's radiant sunshine but
also add a touch of artistry to our project.
5. Eco-conscious Construction:
● Participate in the construction of a veranda/porch using eco-bricks, which are
recycled bricks made from plastic bottles. Our children will be learning alot from this to make our environment cleaner.This initiative aligns with our
commitment to sustainability.
6. Flooring :
● Get involved in the flooring process and assist with tasks necessarily needed to bring the building to life.
WE NEED HELP WITH PERMACULTURE
The system is environmentally friendly, produces healthier organic foods, is self-sustaining, can rehabilitate land and develops systems that make humans and nature work together.
It reduces energy and resource consumption and focuses on solutions rather than problems.
this is a school for the physically challenged in Mfangano and will be a rescue Centre in Suba community. Primary in Mfangano will be among more than 300 learning institutions in Homabay county that have demonstrated how eco-friendly farming in schools can easily support sustainable food systems in the face of climate change.
On the outskirts of Mfangano in Suba district, students and teachers at this place will have transformed any visible land, including spaces in front of classrooms and the primary school farm, into vegetable gardens and food forests. As a result within one year, the schools will not spent a coin to buy vegetables for all the boarding pupils. Sometimes they even have surplus for the market.
"This project will be a true transformation for us because apart from supporting the school feeding programme throughout the year, it will be part of our students' practical lessons.
The schools will be using a permaculture farming system to produce food ecologically, with knowledge and technical support from Regional Schools and Colleges Permaculture (ReSCOPE). The Permaculture Research Institute defines permaculture (permanent agriculture) as the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems that have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. It is the harmonious integration of landscape and people, providing their food, energy, shelter and other material and non-material needs in a sustainable way.
The system is environmentally friendly, produces healthier organic foods, is self-sustaining, can rehabilitate land and develops systems that make humans and nature work together. It reduces energy and resource consumption and focuses on solutions rather than problems.
During the 28th round of climate negotiations at the UN Conference of Parties (COP 28) in Dubai last December, a declaration was made to embed sustainable agriculture, resilient food systems and climate action to pave the way for enhanced access to finance and scale up resilience efforts, thereby promoting global food security.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change report also underscores that effective solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change in climate-resilient development and holistic measures, including in the food and agriculture sectors.
Studies have also found that hands-on training prepares students for their future careers in agriculture by giving them a glimpse of what to expect in the field.
At this place , the school will invest in water harvesting whenever it rains. Several trenches be dug on the school farm for harvesting rainfall runoff water. Cover crops be planted all over and simple techniques such as mulching and composting ensure that crops have an eco-friendly environment for flourishing all year.
On the gardens, there be diverse crops, not limited to primarily indigenous vegetables, pulses, vine crops, fruit trees, bananas, tuber crops such as cassava, sweet potatoes and arrowroots, among other crops such as herbal plants like the lemon grass and hibiscus.
Gabriel, Vero and Florence the people in charge observes that with sustainable and ecological farming systems, school-owned land in many parts of the county can be used to supplement healthy school feeding programmes by 50 per cent, thereby conserving the environment as envisioned by the climate change negotiators at COP 28.
It is a fact that public schools in this county, including those found in urban areas, have substantial land, most of which is underutilised. If well utilised, the land can be used for sustainable food production to the advantage of the learners.
WE NEED HELP WITH GRANT WRITING
We need volunteers who can help in proposal writing (grants). Our organisation need help with funding. We also welcome volunteers who want to collaborate with our organisation.
WE NEED HELP WITH SUBA COMMUNITY DIGITAL STORY AND FESTIVAL
Here is place you will meet the elders of Mfangano Island. Our work start in February 2024
Here is our plan for the year.
• Oral History Interviews and Recordings: 3 months
• Digital Content Creation: 4 months
• Online Platform Development: 2 months
• 3D Experience Creation 1 month
• Promotion and Outreach 1 month
• Mfangano Suba festival December.
WHAT WE OFFER
● An immersive cultural experience on Mfangano Island, where you can engage
with the local community, learn about their traditions, and make lasting
friendships.
● Accommodation in a communal setting, allowing you to live, eat, and share
experiences with fellow volunteers.
● Delicious, locally sourced meals that introduce you to the island's culinary
delights.
● An opportunity to be part of a meaningful, sustainable project that will
positively impact the community and environment.
● A chance to explore the natural beauty of Mfangano Island, from its pristine
beaches to its lush landscapes.
Join Us: If you're passionate about sustainability, eager to learn, and excited to
contribute to a transformative construction project, we invite you to join us on
Mfangano Island. Together, we'll build not just a house, but a brighter future for this
incredible community.
Contact us today to embark on this unforgettable journey!Types of help and learning opportunities
Charity WorkArt ProjectsLanguage practiceHelp with Eco ProjectsElderly CompanionshipTeachingGardeningDIY and building projectsAnimal CareFarmstay helpBabysitting and creative playCreating/ Cooking family mealsHospitality/TourismHelp with Computers/ InternetUN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
While on exchange volunteers can benefit from a multitude of unique life experiences. They can also have a tour exposer around Mfangano Island at their own expense. To put it simply, the exchange is eternally awesome! Here are our top five reasons why going on exchange with us is a worthwhile life experience:
1) Experience a new culture and learn a new language
2) Being part of a sustainable project to save Mfangano Island natural resources
3) Make new friends
4) Get a ‘second family’
5) Get Personal development.Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
At the moment we would want to join hands and focus on finishing our house and permaculture work. This involves finishing building the walls, the roof and the floor. Building poultry house, doing garden work on permaculture farm.
Also we ask help with proposal (grants)
We kindly ask volunteers to participate and help us fulfilling this mission.Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Luo: Fluent
Swahili (Kiswahili): FluentThis host offers a language exchange
This host has indicated that they are interested in sharing their own language or learning a new language.
You can contact them directly for more information.Accommodation
Volunteers will stay in a separate house.
Apart from the bedrooms there is a living room, a shower and a latrine.
Solar panels provide electricity and Wi-Fi is available.
The house is surrounded by trees, which give shadow. The component has direct access to the lake and a great view.
We can acommondate more than 5 volunteers. Volunteers will take three meals a day. Saturday is resting day or free days Volunteers can tour or go round the Island. On Sunday volunteers cook for the family as food exchange. Food exchange program is one of best program we do. Hope you Will enjoy our food and will also enjoy your food.What else ...
Mfangano Island is a nature-lovers paradise with plenty of birdlife, hikes and peaks with stunning panoramic views. We are on the east south side of the island and exposed to sun rise, but there is much to see and experience on the other parts of the island as well as the other nearby islands on your days off.
We either walk or take boat and motorcycles around (no more cars on the island !) and there are motor boats to transport people to different points on the island. It is possible to walk the whole ring road around the island in one day (if you start very early in the morning !).A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
We have good conection. Our WI-FI is steady.
Space for parking camper vans
We have a big space and flat for more cars to pack.
Can possibly accept pets
We have dogs and cats
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
Maximum 5 hours a day, 5 days a week
Feedback (19)
Love you Florence and… read more
Florence and girls cooked so great food every day so our bellies were happily full.
Gabriel organised a tour around the island by boat and a trip to the top of the mountains and the UNESCO heritage… read more
Feedback
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Accuracy of profile:
(4.4)
Cultural exchange:
(4.9)
Communication:
(4.2)
Love you Florence and… read more
Florence and girls cooked so great food every day so our bellies were happily full.
Gabriel organised a tour around the island by boat and a trip to the top of the mountains and the UNESCO heritage… read more
They had a number of projects they were working on, including their permaculture projects, grant writing and application, house building as well as working with the local school.
We mainly focused on the house building,… read more
Thank you for everything, we will not forget this experience.
Florence and Gabriel… read more
We visited a school one of the days and the main focus when I was there were to spread the word of the project and to make the fundraising going for building the fence… read more
My main task was to open the nursery space at the side of garden
They have many interesting project.like involving the community especially some of neighbor schools. And expanding the farm is also one of nice work.
They… read more
At that time nothing had been started… read more
I travelled solo and it was my first time on Mfangano island so there was plenty to see and discover on the island, especially on days off with the other volunteer I joined, Morgane. The work was simple enough - I arrived at the very beginning of… read more
The oven is doing great. The kids House is also good and prevented from rain . The are very hard work. Sandra your fundraising is good still online. Thank you guys for your help.
We helped to create an oven in the separate kitchen and… read more
See you my dear
Be blessed you my daughter.