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Dear Reader,

My interview with Kakenya Ntaiya on Monday reminded me once again of the transformative power of education to change people's lives and even to change a whole society entrenched in long-time traditions.  
 
During a break in the show, I asked Kakenya how she handled her feelings when she realized that the culture of her village, with its requirements of female circumcision and early marriage, were far from the norms of the world. Kakenya paused for a moment and then told me, "I used to go into the bathroom in college and just scream at times. But I realized that people didn't know better. They were not educated." She shared her belief that, when given health information and more knowledge, parents all over the world really want to choose what is best for their children.  With this belief, Kakenya committed to educating families and villages as well as the girls who attend her school in Kenya. As a result of her efforts, the lives of countless Kenyan girls and families have been transformed.  
 
Next week, I am so excited to talk with Daniel Raven-Ellison and learn more about the dynamic approach he is bringing to education. I find that the experiences and ideas of our Emerging Explorer guests are stimulating discussion and fresh thinking at Nebo. I hope you're enjoying this series, too.
 
Warm wishes,



 
 
Kate Ebner
CEO
Nebo Company
Visionary Leader, Extraordinary Life on VoiceAmerica Business  


Monday, April 29, 2013     

11 AM Eastern Time

On VoiceAmerica Business

  

    
 
Listen on Monday. 

Daniel Raven-Ellison 


Daniel Raven-Ellison

National Geographic Explorer Daniel Raven-Ellison is a geography teacher, but not in the traditional sense. Forget memorizing borders and rivers from maps- Daniel's approach, sometimes called "guerrilla geography," is all about getting out into the world, exploring anything and everything, and getting kids excited about non-textbook geography.  He devises creative explorations, such as walking across the largest cities on Earth, taking photographs every eight steps to reframe how we think of them.  Deeply committed to inspiring young people get off the computer and explore their surroundings, Daniel co-founded Mission:Explore to encourage children to embark on quirky and irreverent missions in their own neighborhoods. Daniel's approach to geography asks, "How can we expect kids to grow up and change the world without exploring and understanding it firsthand?" Join Daniel and Host Kate Ebner for a fascinating conversation that will change your ideas about the meaning of exploration. 

 

Guest Biography

 

Daniel Raven-Ellison is a guerrilla geographer, alternative explorer, radical educator and National Geographic Emerging Explorer. A former geography teacher, Daniel's innovative work inspires new kinds of exploration and challenges us to rethink what 'geography' is. He has walked across some of the largest cities on Earth, taking photographs every eight steps in an effort to represent how we think of them.  Daniel is currently planning 125 adventures to do with his son across the UK in 2013 and a bike ride to demonstrate the size of London's foodprint. He also works with InterContinental Hotels & Resorts and TED to explore the "future of local." Daniel is the Director of Creative Exploration for Mission:Explore, a project that he co-founded with the sole purpose of increasing the number of children benefiting from outdoor play, exploration and learning. As well as a series of children's books, Mission:Explore features a groundbreaking and innovative social gaming platform.

 
Be inspired. 
Become inspiring.  

 

Missed the Live Show?

Past Episodes are available on demand and podcast-ready via iTunes or RSS feed.

Kakenya Ntaiya: Using the Power of Education to Change Girls' Future in Kenya
by Rachel Wold

Kakenya NtaiyaWhen Kakenya Ntaiya learned that all children had the right to go to school, it was a total relevation. Growing up in a remote Maasai village, she was taught that a boy's education was a valuable investment for a family while a girl's was a luxury, a mere interlude on the path to an early marriage and motherhood. While at Randolph-Macon Women's College in Lynchburg, Virginia, Kakenya also learned that the painful genital cutting ceremony she underwent at age 12 (known as FGM for female genital mutilation) was not only not practiced worldwide as welcome into womanhood, it was actually illegal even in her home country of Kenya. 
 
Kakenya doesn't want any more girls growing up in her home town of Enoosaen to be at a disadvantage for not knowing these things. So, after earning a Masters in Education at the University of Pittsburgh, Kakenya returned to her village to start the Kakenya Center for Excellence, a primary school that not only educates 155 girls in traditional school subjects, leadership development and health, it also houses them during the week to prevent the risk of sexual assault many girls face while walking their daily commutes to school of up to 2 hours each way. Living at school also ensures that the students' time is 100% focused on learning, growing and playing instead of the exhausting cow herding, water fetching, cooking and sibling care that occupied much of Kakenya's childhood. 
 
Kakenya Ntaiya is an extraordinarily determined and inspirational woman with a vision for an equal opportunity to education and safe childhood for all, regardless of gender. To hear the amazing story of how she convinced her father and the village elders to support her long trip from the village to the US and back, click here or download the podcast. 
April 26, 2013   
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In This Issue
Daniel Raven-Ellison on Visionary Leader, Extraordinary Life
Kakenya Ntaiya and the Power of Education
Create Your Vision!
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Special Mother's Day Event
Kate Ebner speaks on sufficiency and sustainability
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Radio Show

Missed the last show?    

 
Kakenya NtaiyaDiscover how education can change not just one life but a whole community in  the April 22 episode  of Visionary Leader, Extraordinary Life.

   

Be inspired. 

Become inspiring.
A Nebo Company Mother's Day Special
 
Trying to do it all? 

 

Finally! You don't have to learn everything the hard way. On May 21, Nebo CEO and founder Kate Ebner is offering a webinar that will give you the advice you have been looking for, from divide-and-conquer strategies for covering the duties at home to how to minimize distractions when working remotely to how to organize your "second team" to support your family when you're at the office. This webinar is the ultimate "how to" session, drawing from our arsenal of tips and strategies to make your life work better. You'll leave with a can-do attitude and materials and resources that help you keep up the momentum.

 
This interactive webinar makes a great Mother's Day gift for yourself or the special working mom in your life. Register by May 10 with code "MOM2"  for a 10% discount off an already great deal!
 
NEBO NEWS

Nebo sapling Nebo founder Kate Ebner gave a warmly-received talk on the role of the sufficiency principle in sustainable leadership at Middlebury College on 4/25, co-hosted by the Middlebury Center for Social Entrepreneurship and the Woodin Environmental Studies Colloquium. The video of this talk will be available shortly.

For more Nebo news, click here.
Featured Links

Mission:Explore

Kakenya's Dream

National Geographic Explorers

Secrets of Working Moms