Kenya

Project Background

The RAW funded Rain Water Harvest Tank (RWHT) Kenya project is now completed. The project built 2 RWHTs & taught dozens of representatives from local villages how to create their own RWHT.

Kenya has a very diverse climate that has been heavily impacted by climate change. In many parts, it will rain heavily for part of the year and then have an extreme drought for several months. The people who live there have to cope with this “feast or famine” situation. In order to help equalize the water drought / flood situation we funded a special program with Connect Africa and our very good friends and partners at Wine to Water.

This taught a large group of community leaders the benefits of Rainwater Harvest Tanks (RWHT) and how to make their own for their communities. Each participant who completed the training received a certificate which allows them to train additional community leaders. The goal is for the simple RWHT system to spread throughout the region. In the field we have seen RWHTs completely transform the lives of those in their communities. They’ve gone from suffering long periods of drought to having water year round.

What I find very interesting is that educational programs like these are often the hardest to get funding for. I fund them joyously, but some others won’t join me. I think people like to quantify what they “paid” for and when it comes to teaching groups how to sustain themselves, it’s not something you can easily quantify (unless you truly open your mind). There is no water well that we can count and take pictures of – instead it’s knowledge that is planted in the minds of those who need it most. That seed of knowledge grows like a plant to feed the entire community.

I’m glad we can fund unorthodox programs like this. I’ve seen firsthand the huge positive impact they have. It all comes down to this; if we don’t fund them who will? My hope is that you will become a huge success in your life and join us in standing up for what’s right 🙂

These RWHTs are a true game changing lifesaver for people affected by shifting climate change.