Students from UWC East Africa – one of Africa’s most diverse boarding schools – were awarded the 2019 Young Aurora prize and a $4000 grant for their Smokeless Kitchens project, which aims to reduce the overwhelming effects of smoke experienced in the kitchens of indigenous communities of the Chagga and Maasai tribes in Moshi, Kilimanjaro.
Presented at the Aurora Dialogues: Humanitarianism in Education Conference the Young Aurora prize encourages, supports, and showcases UWC student-driven projects which address humanitarian issues with innovative, sustainable, and concrete solutions. The judging panel comprised notable figures in the field of education and humanitarian work, including the CEO and Co-Founder of Teach for All, Wendy Kopp, celebrated social entrepreneur and co-founder of the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, Noubar Afeyan, member of the UK House of Lords and Co-Director of the Institute of Global Health Innovation, Lord Ara Darzi, and distinguished Finnish politician, Pär Stenbäck.
The Smokeless Kitchens team aims to address the very high rates of respiratory disease amongst children and women in the region by sustainably sourcing and installing low cost, high quality smokeless stoves operated using locally sourced and accessible materials.
The project was praised by the judging panel for addressing the root causes of a critical humanitarian issue in Tanzania. It helps reduce instances of chronic respiratory diseases and the time women spend collecting firewood, ensuring they can dedicate a greater proportion of their time to generating income for themselves.
Photo: Aurora. All Rights reserved.
Tanzanian
team member, Yahaya Ndutu, who was himself diagnosed with a respiratory
disease at a very young age due to smoke and dust, commented: “This
project has shown me that even teens, with the right motive and a
structured organization, have the power to enact life-changing
projects”.
“It
is wonderful to see these UWC students translate their drive and
commitment to positively impact their communities into well-structured
plans for action. It is exciting to see them today, not just as future
change-makers, but making a difference here and now.” said Jens
Waltermann, Executive Director of UWC International.
Two other UWC teams were selected as finalists to present at the Aurora Dialogues: Humanitarianism in Education Conference in Armenia. The teams from UWC Atlantic (Wales) and UWC Pearson College (Canada) were awarded $2000 each. UWC Atlantic’s Young Voices
project is a peer-led civic education program that aims to cultivate
civic awareness in the local community through increased engagement
among young people in Wales. UWC Pearson College’s Precious Plastic project
saw the team build a small plastic recycling factory on campus, with
the idea of selling the materials it produces to generate profit and
further fund the project.
It is a joint initiative between the Aurora Humanitarian Initiative, UWC, Scholae Mundi and Teach For All.
Photo: Aurora. All Rights reserved.
