Akili Dada

Akili Dada Happy Hour: Art, Education & the Future of Creativity in Kenya, May 16 2013 @ Kuona Trust

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Akili Dada
Akili Dada, a leadership incubator for young Kenyan women, is thrilled to be partnering with Kuona Trust, a centre for the visual arts in Kenya, for a Happy Hour event on Thursday, 16th May from 5:30-8pm at Kuona Trust’s beautiful garden space in Kilimani.

In addition to mingling and enjoying the creative atmosphere of Kuona and the studios of its talented artists, a panel of speakers will engage attendees in a conversation on the theme “Arts, education, and the future of creativity in Kenya.”

Panelists include
– Boniface Mwangi, photographer and founder of Picha Mtaani and Pawa254
– Sylvia Gichia, Director of Kuona Trust
– June Gachui, Lawyer and Performing Artiste
– Judy Ogana, General Manager of The GoDown Arts Centre
– Wanjiru Kamau-Rutenberg, Founder of Akili Dada

Beverages and bitings will be available to purchase.

Cost of entry is 500 ksh at the door, which includes one free drink from the bar. The event is open to the public

Proceeds will support the work of Akili Dada.

occupy parliament kenya

Occupy Parliament: An Uprising Against Collective Greed of Kenyan MPs, May 14 2013 @ Uhuru Park – Freedom Corner

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occupy parliament kenya
On Tuesday, May 14, 2013, peaceful demonstrators will occupy Parliament buildings in Nairobi to protest against an attempt by Members of Parliament to arm-twist the Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) into yielding to the MPs’ demands for indefinitely higher pay.

The act of occupying Parliament by members of the general public shall symbolize the power and pre-eminence of the public over persons who hold elective office.

In the recent past, local MPs have made concerted attempts to usurp SRC’s mandate of regulating salaries and apportioning the national wage budget across the public sector. Indeed, caving in to MPs’ pressure to disband SRC, the Sarah Serem-led commission surprisingly decided to award MPs a tax-free grant of Sh5 million each for the purchase of vehicles. Negotiations to have MPs salaries increased are ongoing.

Objectives of Operation Occupy Parliament
1. Using the power of numbers, we seek to give Kenyans the courage to defend their Constitution, which Parliament has endeavoured to overthrow by threatening to disband a constitutionally established body;

2. We want to make Members of Parliament aware that the days of parliamentary dictatorship are over. MPs cannot—and must not!—be self-regulating; they must be answerable to the people;

3. We want to send home the message that no one is above the law, and to instill a sense of accountability to persons who hold public office. At the end of the day, it must be borne in mind that even public officers who make the law are subject to that law.

Leaders pay compared to GDP per Person for the year 2010

The ratio of a political leader’s pay to their country’s GDP per Person
The ratio of a political leader’s pay to their country’s GDP per Person
Source: the economist

For more info visit this Facebook event page

Naipolitans: Conversations touching on Urbane Space, May 10 2013 @ Alliance

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An Olympian’s Solution: From the Unwalkable Walking City and other Paradoxes, to a Healthier and Safer Nairobi

Date & Time: Friday May 10, 2013, 6.00-8.00pm (event starts 6.30pm sharp)
Venue: 3rd Floor, Alliance Française

This month’s conversation will be throwing a spotlight on the potential contribution of Nairobi residents to create healthier and safer urban spaces.

Healthier Cities
Douglas Wakiihuri will share his experiences as an Olympian, retired competitive runner and current road runner. He will speak to the challenges that the ever evolving urban environment impose on his running activities and the lifestyles of urban residents. Douglas runs the Sotokoto Marathon, mentors a group of young runners (children) in Kibera and encourages city dwellers to lead active lives. Herein lies the challenge, he’s discovered; it’s neither “healthy” nor safe to lead an active life in the city.

Paradoxes exist from the lack of appropriate urban infrastructure (e.g. encouraging walking in an unwalkable city) and facilities (Kenya produces elite runners in spite of the lack of locally accessible training facilities as Wakiihuri points out) to the lack of green spaces. Nairobi’s setup tends to encourage a sedentary or vehicle dependent lifestyle.

Safer Cities
Safety, as tragically revealed during the recent events at the Boston Marathon, is also key. In addition to personal safety which is hits closer to home, pedestrian safety, air quality and easily accessible paths are all legitimate concerns for the would be walker, jogger or runner. To that end, Juma Assiago from UN Habitat’s Safer Cities program will engage participants in an exchange about the development of safety measures at city level.

For more info visit: http://naipolitans.tumblr.com/

Bogof poster

Poetry: BOGOF – Mine to Move, May 11 2013 @ Hilton Hotel

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Bogof poster
Being Only Great Of Finesse presents, “Mine to Move”

An afternoon of moving, sincere lyricism and art

On Saturday 11th May 2013, the Being Only Great Of Finesse events presents, “Mine to Move” a live and active anthology of poetry, music and visual art at the Hilton Hotel Nairobi.
The event runs from 3 to 7 pm and entry is Kshs 500

The event attracts Kenyans both young and young at heart who want to keep their pulse on the newest trends in music, poetry and visual arts. It attracts creative energetic minds ripe for deep conversations and exhilarating intellectual socializing. It attracts young people curious to explore their world on their own terms and unafraid of brutally honest representations of the issues around us as well as sincere, heartfelt lyricism, and honest unpretentious poetry.

Artists expected to perform at May’s B.O.G.O.F event are poets: Kelvin Kaesa and A Lost Child Soul. Music from: Louise Madete with the Band Yellow Light Machine, the band SOCS and the multilingual hip hop emcee Kalimani alongside 2012 Nokia Don’t skip the beat freestyle battle champion, Shahidi Xcalibur. Sketch artists: Ramzzy, Denet, Siege, Nduta and Melpractice will Sketch away during the event drawing inspiration from the performers, the audience and of course the theme: mine to move.

The contemplation behind the events theme, ‘mine to move’, is the understanding that its within your power to grasp at opportunities and transform situations and within your power to lay still and just move with the flow.

The theme is in line with the vision that B.O.G.O.F. events holds for the society, “to Revolutionize the self through Music and Art”.

The event presents the art enthusiast a chance to experience refreshing talent in an intimate and engaging setting at a central place in the C.B.D. yet removed from the hustle and bustle of the streets.

Auma Obama Reading and Film Show

Book Presentation/Film & Panel Discussion: An Evening with Dr. Auma Obama, May 9 2013 @ Goethe Institut

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Auma Obama Reading and Film Show
Date: May 9, 2013
Venue: Goethe-Institut Auditorium
Time: 6 pm
Entrance free of charge

Dr. Auma Obama, the elder sister of the US president Barack Obama, launched the original version of her memoir in German in March 2011 at the Goethe-Institut. The memoir has since been translated into English.

Dr. Obama will participate in a discussion of her book “And Then Life Happens”, followed by the screening of a documentary film about her life “The Education of Auma Obama” (by Branwen Okpako, 2011).

Dr. Obama studied German at the University of Heidelberg, Film Production at the German Film and TV Academy in Berlin, and later obtained her PhD from the University of Bayreuth in 1996.