Help Build Innovation Eco-Village in Rural Kenya

Introduction

The Social Innovation Eco Village Enduata (SIEVE) project has made significant progress in implementing its master plan and establishing key project structures. This quarter, SIEVE collaborated with Arizona State University Master of Sustainability students to undertake their capstone projects and the Earth Allies Restoration Network (EARN), for support to establish a regional permaculture center in East Africa. On-site accomplishments include setting up 20 beehives, developing a demonstration farm and livestock area, creating pathways, and hosting several volunteer events.

Demo Farm Set Up

Communities in Kajiado County have increasingly faced severe climate change impacts. During our community engagement activities with the Enduata community, residents reported that the 2022–2023 drought led to the loss of a significant portion of their livestock. As a result, many turned to unsustainable coping mechanisms such as charcoal burning, excessive sand harvesting, and selling land.

To promote sustainable adaptation strategies, the SIEVE Project is establishing a community demonstration farm. This farm will serve as a practical learning site where community members can explore and adopt alternative, climate-resilient livelihoods.

On-site Developments

The SIEVE project continued to make progress on key on-site projects in building the Eco Village as follows: 

• Construction of farm house structure for our Eco Village Caretaker and storage room for tools, equipment and construction materials. 
• Solar lighting- installed two street solar lights for security and lighting the Eco Village at night.
• Making of pathways- mapped out and made pathways and access road designated for use by people and vehicles entering the Eco Village

Arizona State University Sustainability Challenge

We collaborated with Arizona State University hosting three of their students through their capstone projects tackling sustainability challenges in the built environment. The sustainability questions focused on: maximizing sustainability and benefits of the built environment, design elements to consider for sustainable construction and energy systems applicable for the Eco Village. After 8 weeks of collaboration with the students, they came up with a report which has provided invaluable insights for the project including identifying gaps and opportunities for resource mobilization.

Partnership with The Earth Allies Restoration Network- EARN

The SIEVE project secured a key partner the Earth Allies Restoration Network(EARN)- https://earnglobal.earth/sections/who-we-are/ for a five year collaboration to set up a regional permaculture training center at SIEVE. Through this collaboration two of our staff have attained a global permaculture accreditation through taking a Permaculture Design Certification Course at EARN’s Permaculture Training Campus in MainSprings Kitongo Tanzania- https://mainsprings.org/. EARN will provide technical assistance during design implementation as well as funding the project’s implementation for the next five years.

SIEVE Project Next Steps

Beginning September 2025, the SIEVE  project intends to achieve the following: 

•  Begin the construction of two important structures: one is the training center at our cultural heritage center which will host agricultural training, training of women on modern beadwork and act as their gathering place for beadwork creations and host SIEVE events, the second structure will be the digital resource room that will be digitally furnished. The digital resource room will serve as a center for equipping youths both at Enduata Community and the larger Kajiado County with digital skills training and employability skills to bridge the big gap in access to digital opportunities for rural youths
• Implementation of the permaculture site design developed by our permaculture designers to set up the demonstration farm 
• Implementation of solar power and inverters to support the digital resource room and power our upcoming heritage center. 
• Project documentation of key milestones achieved 

Call for Support 

We are grateful for the ongoing support from our donors, partners, and stakeholders. To further advance the goals of the SIEVE Project and create lasting impact in our communities, we welcome your support—both financially and in-kind. Your contribution will play a vital role in thriving communities. Support our project through the GlobalGiving Platform here: https://www.globalgiving.org/projects/help-build-innovation-eco-village-in-rural-kenya/donate/#mpesa

Links:

• SIEVE website link
• SIEVE Global Giving donations link