Project Kibuku Maji

Posted by Daraja Academy on Thursday, February 25th, 2010 , Posted in Blog , Comments Off

“Water, water everywhere and not a drop to drink.”

Growing up in California, I have always valued water and thought I conserved it… thought.

On the Laikipia Plateau, the home location of Daraja Academy, water is a life or death issue. There are several rivers and creeks that run through the area which originate high on Mt. Kenya and the Aberdare mountain range. However, the area around the school, though bountiful, would never have been mistaken for a rainforest because it is located on the dry-side of Mt. Kenya.

Daraja Academy relies on the Uwaso Nanyuki River to provide water to maintain the campus, shower, water the milk cows, flush toilets, use in the kitchen, mop floors etc. However, due to numerous factors, including global warming, deforestation, and nearby commercial farming, today the amount of water in the rivers and falling from the clouds has dropped to dangerous levels.

Until last year, the Uwaso Nanyuki River had never run dry… on February 2^nd, 2009 that changed. The academy went into conservation mode and was ok… for about two weeks. We began to conserve harder and were ok for another two weeks. Finally, we paid a fire truck to bring us 30,000 liters from town.

When the emergency water was close to running out, it rained on Mt. Kenya. The flow from the mountain gave us only a foot of water in the river basin, and we narrowly made it until the rainfall came.

With 26 more students arriving tomorrow and 26 more over the next two years, investing in the water project is vital right now.

Although the water situation is a daunting one, we have long-term sustainable solutions:

1.            Supplement the existing water tank: When the river is full it is VERY FULL. We want to dig a 20 foot by 20 foot, 5 foot deep hole at the highest point of campus, next to an existing tank which water is already pumped up to every night. This way, we would have enough river water to see us through the driest drought – without major expense or alteration of existing systems.

2.            Digging several reservoirs: When it rains in Kenya, it rains HARD. Topographically, the campus has two hills, one of which is shaped like a bowl. During heavy rains, water pours down these hills and runs away. Literally it rains so hard that only a fraction of the rainwater absorbs into the ground. By digging several reservoirs in strategic places we could collect more water than the school could possibly use in a year. In fact, we would have enough left over to create a trough outside of our fence, so the local herders could water their stock during severe drought.

With your help, Daraja wants to implement sustainable solutions to the water situation as soon as next month. After crunching the numbers and asking local business’ and NGO’s help, we believe that we can create a sustainable water system which would benefit our students, campus and local community for  $55,000.

The exciting news is that we have a head start: The Do a Little Foundation has generously offered to lead with a gift of $20,000.

With your help, we can make this happen. It will be a gift for all forthcoming Daraja girls, starting with the ones that arrive tomorrow.

Ways to donate to the water project:

• Go to the Daraja homepage and click on Paypal Link. Make a note that the donation is specifically for water project through paypal or send a note, upon donating, to info@daraja-academy.org
• Send checks to the Daraja office at:

228 Margarita Drive

San Rafael, CA 94901

Memo line: Water Project

• If you live in the Bay Area, we will have a fundraiser March 26^th (See postcard in the blog entry below) about the project at:

March 26^th 6:00pm- 8:00pm

Portola Valley Town Center

765 Portola Rd Portola Valley, CA 94028

Thank you Daraja family!

Fund-A-Need Benefit on March 26th

Posted by Mark on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 , Posted in Blog , 1 Comment »

Click on the image to see a larger version.

To RSVP for the event, send an email to info@daraja-academy.org – Please include your name, number of attendees, and contact information. We look forward to seeing you there as we work together to fund a new water project at the Daraja campus!

Good advice from our students

Posted by Daraja Academy on Monday, February 22nd, 2010 , Posted in Blog , Comments Off

The selection of  26 new Daraja girls is done! The new students will arrive on campus on February 26th. We are all extremely excited about this new step and we have asked the current students to give a piece of advice for their future classmates. Here are three letters that could be useful for you too, in case you pay us a visit soon!

“Once at Daraja, you will like the encouraging weather due to the trees. You can walk around the campus but be aware of the snakes in the bushes. If you don’t bother them, I assure you that they won’t bother you. You will feel cool walking under the green shady trees.

You should work hard in order to achieve your goals and prosper in future keeping in mind that educating a woman is educating a nation. Help those who need help and cooperate with everyone to promote unity. Observe all the pillars of Daraja and do your best not to abuse them or neglect them. Finally, I want to tell you that you should be a role model to your colleagues, do as instructed and respect everyone. Remember: Daraja means bridge and we are Daraja.”

“When you come to Daraja, you will meet beautiful, hardworking and very respectful ladies and brothers. Join them cheerfully and take them as your older sisters. Love them, respect them, and follow any instructions or requests from them.

At time, we choose prefects in several parts they act on. One is for games and sport, another is for dorms while another is for dinning hall. Finally, the head girl is in charge of all prefects, making sure that they act as expected by the authority. So you should appreciate their work and follow what they say. Never be found at wrong place at wrong time doing wrong thing.

On campus are the MS buildings where you should not be found during the day or night unless it is organised for workshops or socialization. Also, respect and take responsibility of the MS volunteers, as they will do to you. Last but not least, you should always remember to follow the Daraja pillars, which will help you in everything you do. Work extra hard for your studies, believing that you will achieve your goals and fulfill your dreams in life. Thank you.”

“When you come to Daraja, you will meet wonderful, loving parents, caring sisters and brothers. You should follow teachers’ instruction. As you obey them, all things that you do will go positively. If you don’t follow what a teacher says, you will notice that not everything will run smoothly. Last but not least, you should be punctual in whatever you do. If you are, you will be a wonderful girl and everything will run smoothly.”

The Daraja pillars that the girls refer to in their letters are taught during WISH class. WISH stands for Women of integrity, strength and hope. The pillars are considered the foundation to success at Daraja:

The Four Pillars:

- Be accountable for the role you play at Daraja, neither neglecting it, nor abusing it.

- Maintain open communication, speak honestly and listen respectfully.

- Embrace differences and treat all with dignity and respect.

- Every day, leave it better than you found it.

Link to this post!