The anticipation is mounting, as is the stress, as reality sets in that the trip is actually going to happen. Sauder students have been working on so many tasks including revamping the web site, rebranding our program, analyzing the data we collected last year, and preparing for the research we will be doing this summer in our communities. They have also taken a course on the joys and challenges of working in developing nations and are looking forward to using these newly acquired skills.
The Sauderites are also keen to meet the Strathmore students as I have talked a great deal about how they will enjoy their Kenyan counterparts.
My absolute favourite picture from last year is the one shown below. These school children in Kibera endeared themselves to ups and our new group is already talking about how much they are looking forward to engaging with the children. They are especially excited about the impending birth of Fred and Kate Mouti’s baby and so am I!
My entrepreneurial experience:
Through my internship this summer at genomics entrepreneurship at UBC, I have watched two cohorts challenge the Lean LaunchPad program and work with the business model canvas. It is a challenging and rigorous process where it is plain to see who has what it takes and who does not.
After seeing each team go through the process it was easy to see the importance of passion and solving a problem they truly cared about. I also learned that a community of support is needed in order to have successful entrepreneurs. This is not a process to go at alone.
Entrepreneurship in Kenya:
Now, after saying that I can only begin to imagine how different the entrepreneurial community in Kenya will be. I am excited to test out my own hypotheses about entrepreneurship, and meet more incredible people who will once again, change the way I see things.
Travelling with My Dad:
If there is one thing I am truly nervous about it is getting along with my roommate for the month, my dad, Iain, who will be helping us teach the curriculum. I’m just kidding, I’m actually really excited to work together on this project. As my family likes to joke at home, the only place my dad makes sense is when he is teaching. I can’t think of anything we have done in the past together that is remotely similar. Our travel experience together consists mostly of the numerous minor hockey tournaments I took part in growing up. I am hoping we will be talking game strategy again just like we used to.
Now I’m just counting down the days until I need to start packing!
The more I learn about Kenyan culture, the more interested I get and want to learn even more. I want to fully prepare myself to teach over there and create long-term relationships with the people we work with. Personally, I want to get a blueprint of entrepreneurship throughout this journey, more specifically, knowing what the requirements are for starting a business and what kind of knowledge I should be prepared with in order to teach effectively and help me in my future career. I think this will be a valuable experience for me and I hope I can help our students put their business ideas into a business plan and make them come to life.
2014 SSE participants presenting the program details to a small group
In the past few months, we have started preparing our curriculum by giving presentations to each other during our team meetings. Our program’s faculty director, Frances Chandler, and teammates gave me valuable advice on my presentation in regards to what I did well and how I can improve. It has been a great opportunity to improve my confidence in doing presentations, and will allow me to more successfully deliver a business lesson in Kenya
I've been preparing for my trip to Nairobi this August. I'm going with UBC's Sauder Social Entrepreneurship (SSE) group and local Nairobi partner Strathmore University. This group has been teaching Business Planning, Accounting, Marketing, and Development on the ground in Nairobi for over 5 years. I got involved with the program a few years ago to support them with developing brand new businesses and entrepreneurship. This will be my first trip with them.
Where in Nairobi?
Here is my Nairobi Map in Google.
Unprepared For Slum Experience
I've been told by past participants that this is a great adventure. They've also told me that there is no way that I can prepare for the "experience" of walking in the slum for the first time. The sights, sounds and especially the smells all trigger strong emotions and feelings. Most participants don't really "aclimatize" in the month. It's that strong a feeling. This does create a bit of anxiety.
Slum Density
On the topic of Slum density. There is an estimated 250K people in the Kibera slum and it is roughly the size of four golf courses. ( when compared to adjacent Royal Nairobi Golf course). It is ironic that the poorest and richest are adjacent.
Culture, Weather, & More
We'll also be having two trips during our stay. One will be to the Maasai Mara reserve ( i.e. the Serengeti) and the other will be to Mombasa. I'm pretty keen to experience the music of Kenya. I don't know what to expect. I've loved African music for a long time. I'm expecting to be amazed at how the youth mashup traditional drumming with synthesizers and group vocals. The weather is supposed to be cool during our stay. This is kind of strange given that Nairobi is on the equator (1 deg South). The cool temperature comes from the 5,450 foot elevation.
Class Rooms
The classroom environment in the past has been a bit extreme. I've been told that this year we will be adjacent to the slums and not in them. Here is the Kibera classroom from August 2013.
School Room Door
School Neighbourhood
Inside Classroom. We will have to pack in and pack out our materials daily. Anything left behind will be gone.
Links to UBC Sauder Social Entrepreneurship (UBC SSE)
SSE on Facebook — lots of pictures and videos
SSE on Twitter — frequent updates from our team
SSE Blog — lots of personal stories of the trip.
UBC SSE webpage — the donations page and "official" notes
