Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Paper making with the Kenyans in Yorkshire

Sunday 21 June, Fathers Day in the UK, welcomed the 3 Head Teachers from the Mida, Mbarackachembe & Mzizima Primary Schools in Kenya, East Africa for a 10 day visit. Today I had the pleasure of being hosted by Nidderdale High School with Nicholas, Kanunda and Sirus. We were there to learn some of the fantastic art of paper-making, coached by the fantastic Joan Newall and Sue Harrison.


Kanunda, Joan, Nicholas & Sirus here stood in front of the amazing mural that the schoolkids made 3 years ago, using waxed paper techniques they'd just learnt. Each envelope was created and treated with wax, coloured, sequined, stitched by hand .. each unit represents a shop or house on Pateley Bridge's High Street just down the road.


Sue on right showed off her amazing creations using natural products like the 14 year old treated oakleaf basket and mat below. She then allowed us all to make nettle paper collages and also silk paper. Nicholas, of course made his in the form of Africa!


All this knowledge will be put together with the Arabuko area schools own knowledge of making paper gifts from elephant dung, an abundant resource around the Shimba Hills area too.



Nidderdale teachers will visit Kenya in October to trade experiences and knowledge, the ultimate goal being curriculum developments to include conservation, cross-cultural experiences and global dimension aspects.

2 of AVIF's volunteers this Summer will visit the A Rocha Mwamba Centre in Malindi District, "home to some of the richest and most diverse habitats in the whole of Kenya..... Arabuko-Sokoke Forest is the largest remnant of dry coastal forest in East Africa and considered to be one of the most important forests for bird conservation in mainland Africa. It also includes Mida Creek, considered one of the most productive mangrove ecosystems on earth ..."

If you'd like to get involved, contact us.





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