Solar Sister is an innovative social enterprise that empowers women in Africa with economic opportunity and clean energy. Solar Sister combines the breakthrough potential of innovations in affordable, portable and durable micro-solar technology with a deliberately woman-centered direct sales network.
Women use their “business in a bag” to become Solar Sister entrepreneurs, earning an income and bringing much needed clean energy. Access to clean energy technology enhances education, improves health and safety and provides economic opportunity. Through economic opportunity and the transforming benefits of solar technology, women are able to lift themselves, their families and their communities out of poverty.
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change has developed the concept of “Momentum for Change” as a way to demonstrate the multiple benefits of addressing climate change and to transform misperceptions surrounding taking action on climate change. Solar Sister has been recognized for their positive efforts to address climate change in Uganda.
Ugandan superstar Maurice Kirya has released the follow-up to his debut album “Misubbaawa“. “The Book of Kirya” features 14 fantastic new tracks written by the award-winning singer/songwriter from Uganda.
The new album takes listeners on a musical journey through Kirya’s growth as a person and musician. It shares the things he has learned throughout his life. The album also reveals the playful and wild side of the “king of mwooyo”.
Kirya wanted to create an album that anyone could find interesting. He combines serious subjects of philosophical introspection like “Mulembe Qwa Kirya” and “Don’t Wanna Fight” with the love stories shared in “The Blue Dress Song” and “Sent From Above”. He pays tribute to the women of Uganda with “Ugandan Girl”.
The songs on “The Book of Kirya” successfully reach into the listener’s soul to provoke an emotional response. Whether you smile from ear to ear or shed a tear will depend on which song connects with your own personal story. Do yourself a favor and treat your soul to the gospel of “The Book of Kirya“.
Maurice Kirya launches his new album “The Book of Kirya” at a press conference in Kampala, Uganda.
Stephen Kiprotich crosses the finish line to win the 2012 Men’s Olympic Marathon in London.
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August 12, 2012 will forever be a date remembered by Ugandans all over the world. It was the day that Stephen Kiprotich won the Olympic marathon in London. It was Uganda’s first gold medal in 40 years and only the second for the country in Olympic history.
Kirprotich’s victory couldn’t have come at a better time for Uganda. The last twelve months have seen Uganda in the news frequently, but not in a positive light. Western media tends to celebrate death, destruction, disease, and danger from Africa. The story of a humble athlete from Uganda annihilates that narrative.
Here’s what the world has heard about Uganda in the last twelve months:
There was a bill drafted in Uganda’s Parliament dubbed the “kill the gays” bill. This bill was sponsored by Member of Parliament David Bahati. The legislation was heavily influenced by evangelical communities in the United States. The bill has been a controversial lightning rod for human rights activists around the world.
President Yoweri Museveni, who has ruled Uganda for 26 years, violently cracked down on peaceful public protests by Ugandans participating in the “Walk to Work” campaigns. Ugandan citizens have been clamoring for the government to address issues that affect the majority of people in the country.
In October 2011, President Obama decided to send “advisory” troops to Uganda to combat the Lord’s Resistance Army. The pathetically small rebel group hasn’t been in Uganda for over six years.
In March 2012, Invisible Children launched the viral video “Kony 2012”. Western media loved promoting the misleading information in the video, especially to impressionable youth. Soon after the release of “Kony 2012”, Jason Russell, one of the founders of Invisible Children and the director of “Kony 2012”, suffered a highly public naked meltdown on the streets of San Diego.
For over a year, the mysterious nodding disease has ravaged the northern part of Uganda especially devastating children.
Kiprotich’s Olympic marathon gold medal is a personal victory as well as a symbolic victory for an entire country. This year is the golden anniversary of Uganda’s independence from the United Kingdom in 1962. It’s appropriate that he won a marathon in the city which is the seat of government for the nation that once ruled over Uganda.
The summer Olympics traditionally end with the marathon being the last athletic event. Kiprotich saved the best for last.
Kiprotich’s victory serves as an inspiration to the youthful population of Uganda. At 23 years of age, this was only his fourth marathon race. He received no assistance from the Ugandan government. There are no training facilities in Uganda. This didn’t deter the determined athlete.
The world needs to listen to more authentic Ugandan success stories. Uganda is not defined by foreign controlled narratives. Uganda is not defined by forces with devious agendas. Uganda is not defined by death, destruction, disease, and danger.
The greatest resource that Uganda has to offer is its people. It’s Uganda’s people who serve as athletic, musical, artistic, and professional ambassadors to the world.
Congratulations Stephen Kiprotich. Your victory in London was a golden achievement that will set the stage for Uganda’s next 50 years.
UPDATE: Stephen Kiprotich wins the men’s marathon gold medal at the 2013 World Championships in Moscow. .
Uganda Sings is a collaboration involving some of the most talented musicians in Uganda. Five musicians contributed two songs each to the album.
Uganda Sings commemorates the golden anniversary of Uganda’s independence (1962-2012).
Proceeds from the sales of the music will benefit Uganda Speaks. The initiative is an online social media project founded by Ugandans to take back the global narrative about Uganda. It will allow Ugandans to share stories with the world from their own perspective using their own words and images.
The collection of songs takes the listener on a musical journey through Uganda. The diversity of artistic styles cover subjects that are uniquely Ugandan. The album begins and ends with songs about cities. In between are songs about relationships, struggles, and the natural beauty of Uganda.
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Uganda Sings hopes to transcend national borders to help facilitate peacemaking and understanding throughout the world. The music is available for purchase on the following sites:
Jackson Kaguri has been recognized by CNN Heroes for his work helping orphans in Uganda. He is the founder of the Nyaka AIDS Orphans Project. The organization helps orphans in rural Uganda to end systemic deprivation, poverty and hunger through a holistic approach to community development, education, and healthcare.
He is also the author of “A School For My Village“. The book is an inspiring story of how one person can really make a difference in the world.
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Click the link below to read the CNN Heroes announcement.
Contemporary African art is an under-appreciated category in the art world, especially in the western hemisphere. Art museums and galleries often overlook the amazing artwork of contemporary African artists.
Three Ugandan artists have established themselves as internationally recognized artists who have exhibited their beautiful creations all over the world. Their works are in private homes and public spaces throughout the United States, Canada, and Uganda.
David Kibuuka creates beautiful modern batiks by using wax and dyes that are painted onto fabric. His revolutionary approach to creating batiks allows detailed and refined images with dramatically enhanced tonality, shading and depth. This technique adds increased background depth and broadness with a richer palette of colors that allows this novel fine art medium to yield detail and richness that is comparable to acrylic and watercolor painting. He conducts modern batik art workshops in schools and colleges to encourage a deeper understanding and appreciation for this distinctive African art medium.
Taga Nuwagaba specializes in using watercolors and oils to create his artwork. His favorite subjects have been wildlife and the human figure. He has a passion to represent the culture and the people of rural Uganda. His latest project has been to artfully represent the various totems of the Buganda Kingdom. A totem is a symbol that represents a group of people with a common ancestral origin known as a clan. A totem might be an animal, a bird, a fish, or a plant.
Fred Mutebi is a master woodcut printmaker. He creates multi-color woodcut prints using the progressive reduction method of printmaking. The image is meticulously carved into a wood plate, rolled with ink, and then registered onto a surface. The process is repeated five to six times on the same plate with different colors to complete the final image. This primitive form of printmaking limits each work to a small number of one-of-a-kind prints. His work primarily depicts stories about critical social events in Uganda or that portray images indigenous to the Ugandan environment.
Please visit The Ugandan Masters to learn more about contemporary African art created by Ugandan artists.
Uganda Speaks is an online social media project founded by a group of Ugandans to recapture the narrative about Uganda.
The first part of the project will be a film called #Uganda2012. The film will harness the creative energies of Ugandan filmmakers, photographers, activists, writers, poets and artists to tell the real story of the work of many amazing Ugandans who have worked tirelessly to rebuild the northern region of Uganda.
The second part of the project will be a website that will publish stories of Ugandans who are working for positive social change in their own country.
This video provides a glimpse into the vision of this Ugandan led initiative. Please utilize social media to share this innovative idea with the world. Help Ugandans bring their narrative back home where it belongs.
“The Thing That Happened” is a short documentary about turning tragedy into triumph. The film is the story about Hope North. The school is located in the northern part of Uganda.
Unfortunately the region suffered for two decades from a horrific conflict that traumatized innocent civilians. The displacement of people from their villages caused social degradation that threatened the survival of the Acholi people. The Acholi people are the ethnic group who are located in the region, commonly referred to as Acholiland.
Now that peace has returned to the area, people are rebuilding their lives. Hope North is a haven for the young victims of Uganda’s struggles. The school is dedicated to facilitating healing and peace building. The long-term vision of the school is to become a model education center for other cultures dealing with the aftermath of conflict. Hope North is an active experiment, implementing best practices, and aspires to be part of a global community with shared interest in contributing to peace dialogues.
Peace is created when you have the correct knowledge. If you don’t have knowledge then you are insecure and insecure people are the ones who cause trouble.
Hope North is a great example of Ugandans helping Ugandans for a better future. They deserve to be recognized for their incredible efforts and supported for pursuing sustainable development and self-determination.
Ugandan artist Fred Mutebi uses art as an educational tool to reach underprivileged and vulnerable children and communities in Uganda. His mission is to educate the diverse segments of society by using the principles of creativity to encourage mutual understanding and constructive change for a positive future.
We put together a collection of artwork and stories from a diverse group of students living in Uganda. The artwork is accompanied by the artist’s story that inspired each piece.
Many children were affected by the 20 year rebel insurgency in northern Uganda that targeted innocent civilians. Some lost parents and family members to the senseless killing. Some were sexually abused. Some were abducted by the rebels and turned into child soldiers. All have been traumatized by the war.
Many children have been affected by the scourge of the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Some have been orphaned by the disease. Some are living with the disease. All have been touched in one way or another by HIV/AIDS.
Many children have been living in extreme poverty. Some have not been able to attend school. Some have lacked access to adequate medical care. Some have been raising younger brothers and sisters. All have struggled with poverty.
The thoughts and talents of the youth of Uganda are exemplified in this collection of artwork. These incredibly resilient students have creatively documented their personal experiences.
The BBC World Service had a talent search called “The Next Big Thing” in which they named Tshila as one of the 20 best unsigned artists in the world. Her music was complimented by one of the judges as being “a perfect soundtrack to nice summer day” and “delightful”. A judge reviewed her song “Namboozo” and said “the mix of traditional African sounds with poetry and hip-hop works perfectly for Tshila” and “overall a conscious, upbeat vibe and the most original song in this competition”.
Tshila was born in Kampala, Uganda. She didn’t grow up around musicians. She never had music on the curriculum at any of the schools she attended as a young student. However, her passion for music resulted in her being one of the most noteworthy talents from east Africa.
She truly developed her musical talent after she finished her university education in the United States. She received a bachelor’s degree in software engineering in 2005. As a college student in America, she frequently spoke for African causes. Through the subtle and indirect influence of music, she wants to be a force of change in Africa.
Four months after graduating university in 2005, she returned to Uganda with the hope of developing her music and fusing it with rich traditions to create a sound that transcends cultural boundaries with enchanting rhythms and conscious lyrics. Her mother used to sing folk songs for her when she was young, which caused her to be keenly interested in her mother’s ethnic culture and music from the Gisu people of eastern Uganda. She picked up a guitar and began to sing and perform in different venues in Kampala, the capital of Uganda.
Tshila has collaborated with a diversity of artists, including Uganda’s groundbreaking hip-hop group, the Bataka Squad. She is included on Uganda Sings. a compilation of music from Ugandan musicians.
Tshila is featured in the mini-documentary “Raw Truth“, which highlights the inspiration and ideas behind her music.
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