Imagined by 17-year-old Glory, this mobile library in the Kilimanjaro region of Tanzania holds a variety of books, which we partnered with Book Aid International to access, and is transported to different schools in the area of Moshi, Tanzania. This cart has created a space for independent learning, allowing students to explore their interests through literature. We hope this project will empower the youth to take ownership of their education, and stimulate their desire to learn about the world.

MAJENGO SCHOOL

HANDWASHING STATION

Almost half the Tanzanian population lacks clean water. So, it's no wonder that, during our Youth Innovation Lab workshops, with all participants under the age of 18, one participant, 14-year-old Asha, decided to choose the issue of a lack of sanitation and water treatment facilities as their focus. Bringing students' ideas to life means improving the lives of the community members while also changing stereotypes, particularly maintained in developing countries, of youth as helpless to create change. Disney and YSA provided a grant funded this project through Tanzania Rural Empowerment Organization, supporting the principles of WASH (water, sanitation, and hygiene) in the Majengo School.

EQUAL ACCESS

Ramps were created at multiple access points to the school building at Shaurimoy Primary School in Moshi, allowing students to access the buildings and classes by the next school term. Two sets of ramps were built in the standard one classrooms, and one set of stairs were built in each of the standard five, six, and seven classrooms. In her project pitch, Consolta (a 14 year old girl in Standard 6 at the school) said, "My project is to change the classrooms to accommodate disabled student and children. The mission of my project is to allow accommodation of all students especially the disabled. ... Through changing the accommodation like stairs all students will be able to participate fairly in studying."

SDG SUPERHEROES

Starting in late 2019, in partnership with Rwanda Youth Solutions, we launched the SDG superheroes program. Following the YIL conducted in Muhanga late last year, this program is a model of our Youth Innovation Lab led by young people in their local communities. Past Youth Innovation Lab participants utilized the content learned during the YIL and AYANA teaching materials to go out into their community as student leaders and diffuse learnings about how to create sustainable, human-centered change to their own peers. 

Project concepts that we funded through micro-grants included reproductive health talks with books and skits in schools and a water purification project. After COVID began, we funded a small-scale initiative to provide radios and batteries to help students access the radio education program developed by the Rwanda Education Board (right).

GIRA ISUKU

In partnership with Rwanda Youth Solution (RYSO), we held a workshop for two dozen young people in August 2018. One of the ideas that emerged, presented by 15-year-old Bon Pasteur Alain Celse, was this community cleanliness campaign, where dustbins were installed across the Nyamabuye Sector. A photograph of one of the dustbins that was set up in the campaign we funded can be found to the left.

The students' project received local news coverage.

OBUNGA SETTLEMENT

Partnering with MILSCO, an organization that supports vulnerable young people in the Obunga Settlement, we funded a Youth Innovation Lab for 20 young women and their own project ideas. These ideas included a four-hour-long community clean-up and reusable menstrual pad distribution. Sixty young people in the community were mobilized and involved in the community clean-up. Over 100 girls were provided with reusable sanitary towels.

The project started at Katwekera, Kenya. The students plan to sustain it by distributing a dustbin at every plot and collecting the trash thrice a week, cooperating with the local waste management company to collect our trash. As part of the project, they will also be visiting schools to educate students and pupils on how to maintain cleanliness. 

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The first clean-up (pictured left) launched in April 2018.

GIRLS' EMPOWERMENT: 

COUNSELING + COMPUTER SCIENCE

This project entailed educating young girls from poor backgrounds who have dropped out of school. The project offered trauma healing counseling and a computer science and entrepreneurship training program with the intention of helping the young women to acquire skills to better their lives.

This project was designed to implement a quality community pop-up library called Peace of Mind Pop-Up Library with a mission to impact students from the slum of Kibera in Kenya. The students’ aim is to create a conducive learning environment to all learners.

Students of all ages benefitted from the inaugural pop-up library in April (pictured right).