Sensitization & Clean-Up
The hall at Canaan Estate filled early. Chiefs and administrators do not always share a stage with youth groups and plastic collectors, but dirty rivers make strange neighbours of everyone. This was not a lecture; it was a community claiming its own corridor of responsibility.
Local leaders joined us—among them local administration, the area chief, the Assistant County Commissioner, and estate management led by Hon. Hannah Wanjiru (Shiro). Partners stood with us too: Wilson Miugo (Whispers), Stephen Oduor (Kibera Plastic Initiative), Samwel Odhiambo (Kenya Forest Club), Bernard Otieno (Lang’ata Local Water Forum), Joyce Wambui (KFC Kasarani), Michael Wanjohi (Youth Better Days), and representatives from other groups who care what happens to water after it leaves their own plot.
What we measured at the river
After the talking came the doing. Two hundred and ten community members took part in the clean-up and sensitisation. Along 150 metres of river, teams pulled out what should never have been in the water in the first place—3.2 tonnes of wet waste and 0.12 tonnes of dry waste.
Someone joked that the river had been treated like a dustbin for so long it had forgotten it was a river. The joke landed because everyone knew the truth: cleaning is not punishment; it is repair. Hands got dirty so the water could run clearer for even a few metres—and those few metres matter when rain comes hard.
Numbers do not tell you the smell, or the sound of githeri being shared after work, or the relief of seeing water move again. But they do tell you this: when rivers clog, neighbourhoods flood; when people clean together, rivers breathe. If you live upstream, remember someone downstream is walking through what you refused to bin. #LetTheRiversFlow
Engaging Children through Feeding Program
Thanks to Chris and Jayne, ETCO had a warm feeding program for children at our new office—bringing joy, a good meal, and community together in Kibera.
Project Site Visit by Rotary Club of IPSWICH (USA) and Kikuyu (Kenya)
It was a great and engaging day of partnership and learning as we hosted the International Rotary Club of IPSWICH team, led by Environmental Lawyer Chris and his wife, Jane, Former President of Rotary Club of Kikuyu Hon. George Ngotho and Rotarian Yumbya for a visit to our project implementation sites. The visit provided an opportunity to review the project areas on the ground, discuss implementation priorities, and strengthen our shared commitment to sustainable environmental and community development. We also had the opportunity to visit the Nairobi Rivers Commission (NRC), where we were hosted by Commissioner Dr. Loice Kipkorir, a member of the Ngong River Committee. We explored opportunities to strengthen collaboration and align our work with the Nairobi Rivers Commission's Restoration Framework.
Community Capacity Building Training
We are currently participating in the ongoing PROVE (Public Space Governance Research, Observation, Validation and Experimentation) Pilot Programme, a four-month initiative by Public Space Networks (PSN) bringing together 11 community groups from Kamukunji and Korogocho. The programme focuses on strengthening community organizations’ capacity to manage, protect and improve public spaces as well as restoring rivers and it's ecosystems. The ongoing capacity-building training is helping CBOs and community organizations better understand the connection between public spaces, river restoration and ecosystem conservation, while exploring practical approaches and stronger collaboration among communities, government agencies, development partners and other stakeholders.