Author: JMO

Kongit Girma: Spotlight on Board Members!

Whether they are contributing to fundraising/donor engagement, translation/cultural knowledge, organizational development, or financial expertise, the Roots Ethiopia Board is a critical part of providing the financial resources and fiscal oversight needed to enable the work we all do for rural Ethiopian communities.

We’d like to introduce Kongit Girma, one of two Ethiopian-born members who serve Roots Ethiopia from the USA. (Read to the end if you would like to know more about service on Roots Ethiopia’s incredible Board of Directors!)

Kongit helps the Board to view decisions through a truly Ethiopian-centered “lens”, as well as sharing her wealth of knowledge about elementary education, languages, issues concerning Ethiopian women and children, and cultural nuance. Her enthusiasm for pitching in and helping out…whether she is reviewing a program idea or translating a document…is contagious and inspired. She is also not afraid to ask the tough questions that keep conversations centered on our most important stakeholders, Ethiopian communities, and beneficiaries.

  • Kongit, what inspired you to serve as a Board Member for Roots Ethiopia?

“Before I joined Roots Ethiopia, I wanted to give back to my native country and Roots Ethiopia’s mission answered my calling. My background is in education and I was inspired by the work that Roots Ethiopia has done before I joined the Board. I like their direct support to families, students, and schools as well as Roots Ethiopia’s approach in asking what is needed in the communities instead of imposing services the way we—living in the USA—see fit.”

Continue reading “Kongit Girma: Spotlight on Board Members!”

Corporate Social Responsibility and the Magic of Partnership

Each day, we are blown away by the impact one individual can make when they support a cause. That impact grows exponentially when a whole team of individuals work together to make change.

We were recently introduced to Royal Robbins, an eco-friendly outdoor and travel apparel company. The folks at Royal Robbins have made gear that can travel the world because that’s what their customers do. They #goeverywhere and they believe in the power of the global community.

Our amazing field staff go everywhere too. They travel across multiple microclimates and encounter rain, heat, and cold in a single day. And yet, they had no access to gear that could withstand all of those conditions.

We realized that we had a problem, and that Royal Robbins was the solution.

Royal Robbins’ customers rave about their Convertible Jacket. It’s breathable. It’s durable. It can adapt to just about any climate – including the remote SNNPR region of Ethiopia where our team spends most of their time.

Royal Robbins generously offered to outfit our entire team with their Convertible Jackets. Our field staff in Ethiopia are thrilled to have reliable gear that will allow them to focus on what matters most – their work.

 

So, what is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and how does it relate?  

CSR is a business approach that focuses on not only delivering profits, but on delivering economic, social, and environmental value by supporting charity and non-profit work. And the business community is quickly finding that non-profits aren’t the only ones to gain.

 

When companies support causes they believe in, they can put meaning and action behind brand values. They can engage new audiences and create customer loyalty. Double the Donations reported that 55% of consumers are willing to pay more for products from socially responsible companies and that 93% of the world’s largest 250 companies now publish annual Corporate Social Responsibility reports.

Our partnership with Royal Robbins is proof positive. Their support has made a world of difference to our staff, and, in the process, they’ve earned a new following of Royal Robbins believers that will stand boldly behind their brand and products.

There’s an Ethiopian proverb that we live by, “When spider webs unite, they can tie up a lion.”

We’re truly grateful for Royal Robbins’ support as we work together to make lasting change.

Enjoy Weezer & Improve Schools!

In May of 2018, legendary rock and roll band, Weezer, released a cover of Toto’s famous song, “Africa.” Shortly after, they created and sold “Bless the Rains” t-shirts and donated all of their profits to Roots Ethiopia!

We LOVE Weezer and we think the feeling is mutual. And we want to SHARE THAT LOVE in 2019!

Weezer and Roots Ethiopia have teamed up again to create a better, brighter future for families and children in Ethiopia. With help from Weezer, we’ve gotten our hands on a few RARE items you can’t find anywhere else…

  • 4 VIP Tickets to the Weezer & Pixies Concert! Sunday, March 31 at 7 p.m. at the Alliant Energy Center Coliseum in Madison, Wis.
  • 1 Fender Squier Bullet Strat Guitar Autographed by Rivers Cuomo, Pat Wilson, Scott Shriner and Brian Bell of Weezer.
  • 4 Africa/Rosanna Green Vinyl 7” Limited Edition Records. 
  • 4 “Bless the Rains” T-Shirts (which are currently sold out on Weezer’s website!)

Starting March 4 and before 11:59 p.m. on Monday, March 11, 2019, place your silent auction bid so that you and three of your friends can enjoy this legendary Weezer experience. 100% of the proceeds will go to Roots Ethiopia’s programming.

The winning bid will be notified by March 12, 2019!

So go on and BLESS THE RAINS WITH WEEZER!!!

RE-Weeezer-guitar_1

School Sponsorship Scholar: Meet Mihret

The Project Officers for Roots Ethiopia are local to the regions where they serve. This has many advantages for both Roots Ethiopia and communities, as it enables us to understand the sometimes unique needs of a community. It also allows our staff to be frequently in different villages (“kebeles”) on a regular basis, developing relationships. Here is a story sent to us by staff who were alerted to a potential School Sponsorship Scholar in Wolayta by a Project Officer…eleven year old Mihret.

When the Project Officer first brought to us meet with Mihret, she was carrying one of her little sisters on her back.  When we get closer to the house, she came to ask us who we were. She looked pale and tired; the look in her eyes clearly touched each of our hearts.

RE team Interviewing Mihret Wondson in Sodo trying to control emotions March 2018

Mihret is eleven years old. She has a twin sister and also has younger twin sisters. Her Mother is a widow who struggles to raise all four girls. Her mother used to work as a laborer. However, now with the younger twins to care for, she couldn’t leave them to go out and find labor work. The family could not afford to rent a house and are living in a small house provided by the local Women and Children’s Aid Society. Mihret was living with her aunt who lives far from her family’s village, and used to attend classes in the local school. Now it has been five days since she left school to return back home to her mother. We asked her why she had to leave school. She explained that “my twin sister got sick and went to Hawassa for medication. My mother wants to find a daily labor work and I am here to help care for the smaller children.”

As we spoke to her, she continued to carry one child on her back while other little ones played. We would have like to find her playing or studying with her friends. Instead, she has left her dream behind to make things better for her family.

Mihret deserves to be supported. She is now included in the Roots Ethiopia School Sponsorship Program. She was happy with tears in her eyes when she received school materials from the team.  She will attend school and there will be help for her mother’s task to care for her sick sister. We know this: we will work together to create a better future for more children who are in need of our help.

 

 

200 School Sponsorship Students… FUNDED!

Thank you, thank you, dedicated donors, for helping our School Sponsorship program to expand, sending more kids to school in 2018 than ever before.  Continue reading “200 School Sponsorship Students… FUNDED!”

Setting Students Up for Success in Ethiopia

Exams are often a stressful time for many students around the world, and even more so in countries where getting a quality education is the key to bridging the ever-widening divide of income inequality. Roots Ethiopia is making a difference by hosting and funding after-school tutoring for 8th-grade students preparing for their 8th-grade national exams. Continue reading “Setting Students Up for Success in Ethiopia”

Solar Power in Schools: Let There Be Light!

A teacher at a rural school tries to angle the mirror of a sunlight-illuminated microscope towards the window to light a biology slide. A student strains his eyes in the cool darkness of a classroom to read his textbook.

solarlibrary

Often we take for granted the role that power generation plays in everyday education. But not in rural Ethiopia. In 2014, only 12.2% of the rural Ethiopian population had access to electricity (World Bank, OECD/IEA, 2014).

Reliable access to power can be a game changer in rural schools:

  • Lights to read by can allow students to use indoor spaces for studying and use them into the early evening.
  • Microscopes can be illuminated by power instead of relying on the proximity of windows and brightness of the day.
  • Teachers can access the programs provided via Ethiopia’s educational radio and television network (EMA) to supplement their teaching.
  • Teachers and students can use technology devices, such as laptops, tablets, and smartphones.
  • Alternative power sources, such as solar power, can reduce the reliance on expensive non-rechargeable lithium batteries, as well as reduce the health risks of lighting a space by kerosene lamps.

Roots Ethiopia has piloted solar panel installations in one of our newer schools, Lai Bedene Primary School in the Halaba Zone. With the money saved from using solar power for their educational radio, they are now planning to purchase a television for classroom use!

The installation was so successful that we have implemented it in two more rural schools…Legama Primary School in Wolayta, and Gomora Gewada Primary School in Kembata.

LegamaSolar

Reducing barriers that hold back rural schools from delivering a quality education is just one more way that Roots Ethiopia focuses its efforts on improving schools and educational quality.

Help us to light the way to academic success for more students in every Roots Ethiopia School! DonateButton

 

School Sponsorship Supplies the School Supplies! (Try to say that 5 times really fast)

Today our field team is working together to deliver school supplies to students who need a ‘refresh’ of materials for the 2nd semester, which starts on Monday.

We are also excited to share that we are now including some additional books for our youngest students in their yearly supplies! We also added tools for math, hygiene materials like soap and lotion, and more everyday notebooks.

Do you want to be part of this goodness?

Join our School Sponsorship program – $21 a month supports one of our 200 students!

 

Breaking Down Barriers to Education!

One of the things we are most passionate about here at Roots Ethiopia is identifying and removing the barriers between all rural kids and a good education.

Some of those barriers involve financial means or distance from a school or adequate seating in a classroom or the availability of books.

And sometimes the barrier is a pair of eyeglasses.

Yesterday a volunteer team of Ethiopian vision professionals visited the school children we work with in Halaba.

This is especially important for the 30+ children in our special needs program in Halaba. Children with Down Syndrome have a higher rate of vision impairment, and our plan is to serve their vision needs as fully as we can.

We love that over 80 students and their families were included in vision testing. We planned to evaluate 40 special needs students, but word got out and our team of volunteers worked as long as daylight allowed.

We love knowing that so many kids saw themselves in the men and women who tested their eyes — representation matters! Maybe there is an ophthalmologist in the crew of kids tested!

We are especially grateful for the kindness and generosity of the volunteers! The children benefited from their time, their skills, and their compassionate care. What a difference this will make!

Next step: providing proper eyeglasses for these students. Stay tuned for more details!