Educate and Empower Street Children in Kenya

Greetings!

Once again, Penn State students and faculty spent nearly three weeks in Nyeri, collaborating with staff and youth on several projects identified by staff at the Children and Youth Empowerment Centre. Our four students (a small but mighty team!) worked on two primary projects -- creating a healthy porridge that can be a source of income for the Centre while providing a nutritious meal for kids, and supporting the regenerative agriculture program at the polytechnic. 

The students met with community health promotors to learn about common nutritional needs in the area and learned that calcium and vitamin A are the most common deficiencies among young children. The porridge incorporates moringa, an excellent source of vitamins A and C, iron and protein -- a real supper food, along with finger millet, an indigenous grain high in calcium and iron. Maize (corn) is also incorporated to keep the porridge affordable for local families. We sampled several formulations (all tasty) and the kids at the Centre love it! By the time we left, the Centre was preparing packages for sampling and sales. 

The regenerative ag team had several projects. They worked with a staff member at the Centre to produce biochar and incorporated it with compost at the polytechnic. Biochar serves to retain water and nutrients in the soil, improving soil health over time. They also helped establish a compost site at the Centre, using food waste and manure, and all the students planted moringa seeds to support the porridge production. The ag team also identified two leguminous trees that can be planted in the shamba to fix nitrogen and provide ground cover. It wasn't easy to get seeds, but we found some just before leaving, and they'll be planting them now! 

As always, it was a delight to work with staff and youth at the Centre and polytechnic. The students learned about agriculture and food security in a different environment, while developing meaningful cross-cultural connections. Our partnership is so valuable for all of us involved!