A Proven Track Record

The primary goals of the T2T expedition are to 1) expose people to information that will make them #SeeAfricaDifferently 2) make a sustainable difference by planting 45 school food gardens along the way and 3) explore and offer alternative measure of poverty.                               

Food security was what we chose to focus on in terms of making a difference because we believe that all other efforts relating to education, health care, economic development and even democracy are futile without this. Inadequate nutrition is linked to delayed brain development, an impaired ability to learn and a lack of academic achievement. Attaching a means of addressing this issue in a long-term and sustainable way to institutions of education thus seemed a logical link. Achieving a successful and sustainable garden is not as easy as simply arriving one day, planting some seeds and leaving...we know because we've done it before.

In 2005 the T2T team became involved with the Nkanyezi Stimulation Centre for children with multiple disabilities in Soweto (South Africa). The centre's major issue was a lack of funding and this affected everything from the crafts that could be done, state of the buildings, adaptive equipment available and even quality and quantity of  food served. We started where we could with what we had available which was land, a few seedling donors and some willing hands. After consultation with the staff, parents & volunteers we established which space would be best to use (so as not to impact on any of the centre's other activities  as well as what sorts of fruit and vegetables would be most desirable. We then spent some time doing a bit of research and speaking to a few experts to establish which of these would grow in the environment we were in. Once this list was created we took a Saturday to clear the ground, a Saturday to prepare the ground and another Saturday to plant the seedlings. These pics are from the seedling planting day in 2005:

Once the garden was planted the easy bit was done! Now that seedlings were in the ground we needed to set up a network of volunteers, a task list and then match the volunteers to the task list. We then had to add timelines so everyone knew when they had to do what and here's where the secret ingredient was added: love. The group of dedicated volunteers - young, old and from all walks of life -  tend to the garden daily, water it and carefully watch for any changes before then educating themselves on what these could mean and how to best deal with them.

Fast-forward to 2013 and the garden has flourished! It is now 4 times the size of the one first created in 2005, has a Green House (kindly donated by the City of Johannesburg) and creates enough produce to provide food to the centre on a daily basis . The garden yields peas, onions, cabbage, tomatoes, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, pumpkins, lettuce, beetroot, spinach, potatoes to name a few!

So why am I telling you this? In October this year we will be heading off from the southernmost to northernmost points of the African continent and as we pass through the 24 countries en route, create 45 more gardens like this. To this end we are currently crowdfunding for seedlings, hosepipes and organic fertilizer on Africa's very first crowdfunding platform Thundafund (www.thundafund.com/t2tafrica). Since we're asking strangers to back our venture we thought it only fair to provide a little more background to prove our credentials. If you would like anymore information or even to visit the first garden featured give us a shout! We'd love to hear from you

By Tracy Angus-Hammond (@T2T_Trace)

Crowdfunding

Let’s start with a definition: the practice of funding a project or venture by raising many small amounts of money from a large number of people, typically via the Internet.

What started out as a 17^th century Subscription business model has now taken the fund-raising world by storm. In the current economic climate the more traditional funding sources are tightening up and potential investors drying out. This age-old model combined with the internet has revolutionized the way in which people attempt to realise their dreams. Crowdfunding creates a platform where the public has the power to decide which ideas will come to life without the fiery hoops of traditional funding models. People can help fund ideas and projects that they believe in whether it be it to make a movie, start a business, save an endangered sturgeon, or in our case drive across 24 countries in Africa planting school food gardens along the way (45 gardens in total).

 

Crowdfunding success stories are countless for example Matthew Inman's $1.4m people-powered crowdfunding campaign to build a Tesla museum convinced the New York state government of public interest in the project to the tune of $850,000 in matching government funds. As we speak James Franco is using crowdfunding to raise money for his next movie. Hopefully the Tsitsikamma to Tatouine Expedition will be one of these success stories.

  

Their now exists over 450 different crowdfunding platforms. With choice aplenty, it was important for us to find a platform that speaks to our philosophy and shares our beliefs. We then heard about the launch of Africa’s very first crowd-funding platform and knew we’d found our people! As such our Tsitsikamma to Tataouine Campaign has chosen the Thundafund (www. thundafund.com) platform as our crowdfunding home. It is an online crowdfunding cafe for creative and innovative projects that will have a strong, positive social and economic impact – “Together; we can make great things happen”. 

Through their support we aim to raise R225 000 to plant 45 school food gardens, across 24 countries in 165 days. Each milestone that we reach will allow us to better equip each school with the range of seeds, tools and fertilizer that they will need to make this venture truly sustainable.

Check out our campaign where for as little as R50 (or as much as R5000), you can be apart of this incredible journey: 

www.thundafund.com/t2tafrica

By Ishtar Lakhani (T2T_Ishtar)

(Images courtesy of http://thechrisvossshow.com/how-crowdfunding-works-infographic/)

Our new route – out of the CAR, into the Congo!

Those of you who have been following our expedition for a while might have noticed that the planned route has been taking us from South Sudan, through the Central African Republic (CAR) to Cameroon.  But in recent months there has been a coup d’etat in the CAR, and a detachment of South African soldiers was involved in a fierce gun battle with rebels as the former president fled the country.  As South Africans, the team members have now found it very difficult to get visas for the CAR, which when added to the lawlessness and instability the country is now experiencing would make it almost impossible to pass through.

So where does that leave us?  In the old days of African overland expeditions there were not many options for getting across central Africa.  One route went northwards and through Chad, northern Cameroon and northeastern Nigeria, but that route is also not advisable for us for security reasons.  So the only real option remaining to us is to go through the Democratic Republic of Congo.

From Juba we’ll head southwest to Yei (Yay!) before crossing over into the DRC, where the first stop is Garamba National Park, now running again after many years of war.  Then we head south to the Ituri forest and the Okapi Wildlife Reserve, which is back up to full strength after a rebel attack last year.  The chance to see one of these incredible animals in their natural habitat is a fantastic fringe benefit of what is going to be a very tough route.

(Photo courtesy Chicago Zoological Society)

From Ituri we make haste for Kisangani, the great inland port on the mighty Congo river.  Our plan is to put the vehicle on a barge heading downriver, before spending at least two weeks on what is essentially a floating town drifting slowly down a river that is a mile deep in places.  The trip has been described as life changing, rather than pleasant, but we can’t wait!  Our destination is Brazzaville, where we rest briefly before heading towards the Congo Republic’s second city, Dolisie.  Running parallel to the coast we head up through Gabon and into Cameroon, where we rejoin our original route.

This route is about 7,000km longer than the other one, and it will take us a bit longer, but most of that extra distance will be spent on the river.  It adds two extra countries to our total, as you might have noticed on our social media profiles and website.  The chance to see the Congo river in so much of its raw glory is something that makes us feel privileged, if slightly nervous!  There is so much to see and experience in the Congos and Gabon, look out for Tracy’s Travelers’ Tuesday infographic tomorrow!

By Matthew Angus-Hammond (@T2T_Matt)