Invest in Two Remarkable Women!

Support catering by Afghan refugees in the US and composting in Kenya

The Advocacy Project (AP) is seeking donations of $50 to support two women who are responding to adversity with boldness and imagination. Both featured in our recent publications.

The occasion is a new Little by Little fundraising campaign on GlobalGiving which starts today (Monday). All donations up to $50 will be matched 50% throughout this week.

Our first appeal will help Lala, 72, seen in the photo above, to launch a catering start-up from her new home in Maryland.

Lala is the matriarch of a large extended family of Afghans that was airlifted to the US last year after the fall of Kabul. As we wrote recently, many of the refugees have struggled to adapt. But they also include excellent cooks like Lala whose talents are going to waste.

The family will start by cooking Afghan meals for local events. As business expands they hope to rent a food truck and expand to the larger Washington area. They will be guided throughout by a dedicated team of skilled American volunteers.

Your help will give this family a chance to build a life in their new country – on their own terms. Click here to make a donation.

We are also seeking donations to help Stella Makena (photo) use composting and vermiculture in the densely-crowded settlement of Kibera, Nairobi.

Many of you read how Stella overcame her distaste of worms to launch this start-up last year. Together with 9 other women she has formed an association, Shield of Faith, to confront pollution and malnutrition in what has been called the largest slum in Africa.

Their model begins by composting food waste which is turned into leachate (liquid fertilizer) by worms. Between now and the end of the year they plan to compost 500 kilos of waste; produce and sell 50 liters of leachate, which they have named Lishe-Grow (“Grow Nutrition”); and use the leachate to grow organic vegetables in their kitchen gardens.

They will showcase their model later this month at a prestigious agricultural fair in Nairobi. Stella is confident that if they can meet their targets, other families in Kibera will follow their example. Click here to donate.

We hope you are as inspired by Lala and Stella as we are!

Thank you in advance.

The AP team

* Click here to support Lala’s catering start-up

* Click here to support Stella’s composting in Nairobi

* Read about our 2022 projects and partnerships

* Check out our 2022 news bulletins

Some Afghan names have been changed in this and related bulletins