Timbuktu Chronicles

The William Okpo Fashion Line

2012-01-29T06:00:00.000-05:00

The concept behind the William Okpo line is inspired by the parents of the Okpo sisters. Daughters of Nigerian immigrants, Darlene and Lizzy were motivated by the interplay of their parent’s personal style with the American culture.

With William Okpo, the Okpo sisters wish to illustrate the unique aesthetic that results from the juxtaposition of the immigrant’s sense of style against American cultural sensibilities, offering the modern feminine designs with touches of masculine elements. William Okpo is for women who celebrate their cultivated sense of style.

Taking Farming to the Sea

2012-01-28T06:00:00.000-05:00

In Worldwatch:

Nourishing the Planet discusses farming seaweed, an environmentally friendly crop that holds promise of mitigating greenhouse gases while supplementing incomes, providing dietary protein, and offering a sustainable source of biofuel.

Birritu Express - Online Money Exchange Service

2012-01-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

Tadias reports:

“Birritu Express was created by Ethiopians to meet the specific needs of the global Ethiopian community “It is designed to be the most inexpensive, convenient and secure way to transfer funds to Ethiopia from abroad.”

The Ethiopian Diaspora’s annual income is estimated to be tens of billions of dollars , about equal to Ethiopia’s gross domestic product, according to Precise Consult International, organizers of The World Bank and USAID backed annual Ethiopian Diaspora business conference. Crude calculations using remittance figures ($1.1 billion in the first 9 months of 2006 & 2007 alone) show that the gross income of Ethiopians in the Diaspora is in the range of 10-20 billion dollars per year, roughly equal to the home country’s GDP of $13 billion in 2006.

More here

'Mediated Matter'

2012-01-26T06:00:00.000-05:00

From the MIT Media Lab:

Mediated Matter research integrates computational form-finding strategies with biologically inspired fabrication in order to enhance the relation between natural and man-made environments. The group seeks to establish new forms of design, and novel processes of material practice at the intersection of computer science, material engineering, design and ecology.

Caranda Ginger January

2012-01-25T07:00:00.000-05:00

From Caranda Fine Foods,the bracing delights of Ginger Tea:

Image courtesy of Caranda

Ginger is a very special herb or spice with significant healing powers and soothing magic. This amazing herb enhances the teas that we have selected for you with a bright, clean taste of a mild yet spicy ginger note. The flavor is an upper note of an earthy spice in our Ginger Nectar Rooibos Herb Tea. The Rooibos introduces an even honey note. If you enjoy the kick of ginger then also travel to the world of our green teas. We are pleased to offer our Sencha Ginger Green Tea. The lemon verbena and lavender flower makes this green tea a true star. The rich taste of the sencha blended with dry ginger adds a very lovely taste and aroma when sipping our Ginger Green sencha tea. The black tea for this month has a bold tea character. The selection is our Ginger Lemon Black Tea from our flavored black tea collection. An energy lifting morning boost is how our founder’s grandmother referred to this tea.

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Caranda Foods

Activespaces | An Incubator

2012-01-25T06:00:00.000-05:00

The VOA reports on Activspaces:

Image courtesy of Africa News

Zinger Systems began as a business idea in the minds of a few Cameroonian entrepreneurs. After they spent one year developing their academic software and business model at Activspaces, a technology hub in southwest of the country, they eventually launched their business and now employ eight people.

Activspaces is a shared office space where designers, software developers, artists and more can gather.

“We’ve realized that many enterprising techies work in isolation in Cameroon," said the space's community manager, Al Banda. "They’re struggling to solve problems that have been tackled before. But they’re trying to do this by themselves in these tiny silos. We think that by bringing people together, we’re building a community centered around technology and pushing ideas together with a strong group spirit.”...[continue reading]

Mifuko

2012-01-24T06:00:00.000-05:00

Along the Helsinki-Nairobi-axis

Mifuko Oy is a Finnish design company, which co-operates with several small artisan workshops in Kenya...While the designs are done by Finnish artists they are inspired by the colours, textures and vibrancy of Africa. Every product is designed in such a way as to utilize traditional craftsmanship and available materials.

'Africa Adorned'

2012-01-23T06:00:00.000-05:00

An Design Indaba report on the recently concluded Africa Adorned exhibition:

Design Afrika in collaboration with Cowhide Concepts, Mantis Prints, Sue Clark, Seringa Living, Guidemore Chigama and Gather present a platform for showcasing South African and African creative products of the highest quality.

From leather accessories to beaded jewellery, home interior products and textiles, Africa Adorned caters to all creative tastes.

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Support Women Palm Oil Processors at the Unreasonable Marketplace

2012-01-22T07:00:00.000-05:00

Unreasonable Institute finalist Nne Abraham on her Palm Oil processing enterprise:

What is your solution to this need? Describe your business strategy.
The program "From To Market" means that we takeover the processing ( with modern Palm Oil processing mills from Bank of Industry), Packaging of the product to avoid adulteration) and Marketing both locally and internationally, with 100% profit, 50% to the rural women, 20% to stakeholders, Coordinators and facilitators, while the organization takes 30%. Profit margin in the export market will be over 200%, both the organization and its members also have additional 100% profit each from storage of this product. The organization is planning to build a Palm Oil Refinery with a storage facility of 30 million liters, with this we will be making $30 million annually, and positively impacting on the lives of ten (10) million rural women and youths throughout Nigeria.

More here

Orhuee Couture

2012-01-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Orhue Guobadia's Orhuee Couture is

...made from 100% cotton, 100% linen and top quality Bazin riche. Orhuee Designs are a mix of Africa and Arabia infused with detailed embroidery in all style. All clothes are embroidered, NOT printed.

The design is driven by artistic, modern and luxurious style. The modernism is expressed in the dresses that flow freely, the elegance in the detailed embroidery and the richness in the African material used. The woman wearing Orhuee is embracing her culture and curve in a unique way only she can.

Making DIY Biology

2012-01-21T06:00:00.000-05:00

DIY Biologist Charlie Schick, Molecularist & Founder of Practical Microbes at Ignite:

Apply to African Diaspora Marketplace II

2012-01-20T14:32:00.000-05:00

The 2nd African Diaspora Marketplace business plan competition is now open:

The ADM encourages sustainable economic growth and employment by supporting U.S.-based African Diaspora entrepreneurs with innovative and high-impact ideas for start-up and established businesses in Africa. The new Marketplace will incorporate key learning from the first African Diaspora Marketplace, by focusing grants toward priority, high-impact sectors in Africa, including agribusiness, renewable energy, and information and communication technology (ICT). To expand upon their previous success, Western Union and USAID will invite small business investment funds and technical assistance mentors to participate in the effort to engage Diaspora entrepreneurs.

Previous winners include:

AMAD Metal Manufacturing (Ethiopia) is establishing a Metal fabrication plant to manufacture a variety of metal products and components from raw materials. The components include trailers, mobile cranes, enclosures, furniture, and bins. Ethiopia provides an exceptional market opportunity due to its expanding economy, and the market opportunities for quality products are exponential.

and

EarthWise Ferries (Uganda) will reestablish, manage, and operate a fast-ferry transportation system on Lake Victoria, with destinations in Uganda, Kenya, and Tanzania. Presently many people travel between these destinations each day via poorly-maintained roads, on trips often taking between 1 to 3 days. EWF ferries will travel the 300 km from Port Bell, Uganda to Mwanza, Tanzania in about 7 hours.Watch related video after the jump

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Do-It-Yourself Neuroscience

2012-01-20T06:00:00.000-05:00

The Dana Foundation reports:

Traditionally, scientific research was the preserve of the wealthy and today the situation is not much different—while researchers need not be rich, almost all of them work in institutional laboratories using equipment that can be very expensive.

Recently, however, a do-it-yourself biology movement has emerged, and a symposium held at the 41st annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in Washington, DC, earlier this month described several innovative projects aimed at minimizing the cost of brain research and making it accessible to everyone.

“If astronomy were like neuroscience, you’d need a Ph.D. to look through a telescope,” says Tim Marzullo, who chaired the symposium. “It’s ridiculous—the technology for recording nervous impulses is 90 years old and there’s no reason why it can’t be brought into schools.”

2 channel 'Spiker box' from Backyard Brains

Marzullo and his colleague Greg Gage are doing just that. Three years ago, they founded Backyard Brains, a small company that manufactures neuroscience kits out of cheap off-the-shelf electronics purchased from outlets such as Radio Shack and distributes them to high schools and colleges, with the help of grant funding from the National Institutes of Health.

“I come from a family of teachers,” says Marzullo. “Backyard Brains came out of my love of neuroscience, education and building things. We see ourselves as part of a broader movement of DIY hackers who are trying to build just-good-enough versions of gear to reduce the barrier to entry.”...[continue reading]

Ethiopian Mustard

2012-01-19T06:00:00.000-05:00

In WorldWatch:

Photo credit: UPenn.edu

Ethiopian mustard (also known as Abyssinian mustard) lacks the bitterness of its better known cousin, kale. It’s rich in vitamins C and K, and beta carotene and calcium, as well as cancer-fighting anti-oxidants. Ethiopian mustard also produces more leaves per plant than kale and a few leaves can be removed at a time for home consumption, allowing the rest of the plant to continues to grow.

Despite its nutritional qualities, Ethiopian mustard has largely been overlooked in favor of calorie-rich staple grains. Despite its nutritional qualities, Ethiopian mustard—like many of Africa’s indigenous leafy greens—has largely been overlooked in favor of calorie-rich staple grains by researchers and farmers. As a result, the genetic diversity of the plant has dwindled. But through breeding programs, researchers are working to develop the strain’s genetic diversity for disease resistance, its applicability as a cooking oil, and as a material for industrial production.

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B’Exotio Fashion

2012-01-18T06:00:00.000-05:00

Belina Otas speaks with the founder of B’Exotio,Beatrice Arthur:

Image courtesy of cut from a different cloth

On the styles she creates:

My concept was mixing linen and cotton fabrics with hand-woven clothes like kente, mudcloth and aso-oke. I focused a lot on the embroidery of multi-ethnic symbolism, and it was great fun to reflect my Russian and Akan heritage by mixing Cyrillic letters with Adinkra Symbols on my garments.

And her favorite fabrics

I used predominantly plain cottons and linens. They better suit the African climate. I also worked with silk and wool. Occasionally, I used a bit of polyester. In recent times, I work with tule and lace and organza and fabrics with lurex. I have experimented with plastics and zippers. I love recycling old clothing. I enjoy patchworks. Painting, adding sequins, shell, recycled glass beads.

More here

Yaw Anokwa | Computer Scientist

2012-01-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

GeekWire interviews Yaw Anokwa:

Yaw Anokwa (Photo: Annie Laurie Malarkey)

Coolest thing about what you do:
My current project is Open Data Kit (ODK), a free and open-source set of tools which helps organizations create mobile data collection solutions with smartphones and cloud infrastructure. In addition to socio-economic and health surveys with GPS locations and images, ODK is being used to create decision support for clinicians and for building multimedia-rich nature mapping tools. All this is possible because the cellphone has become the ubiquitous computing device. In places where there is no running water or reliable power, you’ll often find a cellphone and Internet connectivity. ODK started as a research project to use that ubiquity to make data collection and information delivery more efficient. For example, AMPATH in Kenya has been using ODK for their HIV home-based counseling and testing program. Their counselors go house to house with phones running ODK. The software walks them through a standardized counseling and testing protocol and the geo-tagged results are sent to their OpenMRS medical record system using WiFi or GPRS. AMPATH has reached some 65,000 individuals and has been able to rapidly and cost-effectively identify individuals at significant risk from HIV, saving lives.

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Peter Miano | Innovator

2012-01-16T06:00:00.000-05:00

Zeynab Wandati of NTV (Kenya) reports on the work of tinkerer, Peter Miano:

The Rise of the Citizen Engineer contd.

2012-01-15T06:00:00.000-05:00

The 2011 Creative Sydney conference highlights a theme covered earlier:

Open source culture provides blueprints to create almost anything. Forums, hackerspaces and networks offer expertise and opportunities for collaboration. Rapid prototyping and 3D printing automate the building process and make it instantaneous. So what does the great tech leap forward mean for creativity. Designers, artists and technologists explain how they are transforming the production process, democratizing technology and empowering people to become citizen engineers. Watch parts 1,2 & 3 after the jump

via Shapeways

One Fabrication Lab per School: the FabLab@School

2012-01-14T06:00:00.000-05:00

Image courtesy of Fablearn

Paulo Blikstein creator of the Gogo board on the need to tinker and fabricate using a Fablab@School model:

Online Music at Iroking

2012-01-13T06:00:00.000-05:00

CP-Africa reports:

Iroking, pronounced [I Rocking], a new media addition to Nigerian media company, Iroko Partners is set to be Nigeria’s new music home with endorsements from top Nigerian artistes. The company also recently launched IrokoTV, its dedicated online destination for Nollywood movies.

When products are printed, they often look like nature intended

2012-01-12T06:00:00.000-05:00

In the Economist:

Image courtesy of Iris Van Herpen

Additive manufacturing,is changing not only how things are made, but what is made. In particular, many of the objects on display had an organic look to them. That is no accident. In some cases, designers have deliberately copied nature. In others, they have started from first principles, drawn conclusions (usually aided by clever software), and found that nature got there first. And in some, the decisions have been aesthetic—presumably reflecting an evolved preference in the human psyche for objects that look natural.

...The hole is greater than the parts

That ability to create light, strong structures which have complex internal shapes may well turn out to be additive manufacturing’s killer app. The layering of powders or droplets that are then sintered into solidity, or cured with heat or ultraviolet light, allows spaces to be left inside the product. And if such a space would otherwise collapse, it can be filled with a powder that remains intact during curing and is then washed out or blown away. Even moving parts, like clock mechanisms, have thus been made in one go in a 3D printer.

More here

Technology Cannot Disrupt Education From The Top Down

2012-01-11T06:00:00.000-05:00

More education disruptors are needed in Africa.Initiatives like Next Einstein, Ashesi, ALA, Songhai Centre,Teachamantofish and hackerspaces etc are leading the charge. There are however additional lessons to be learned from the American experience.Patrick Gibbons writes in Techcrunch:

For the disruptive education startups, forget about selling to the public school districts. Take your products to the entrepreneurial schools—private schools, virtual schools, charter schools, home school networks or even directly to the students. These schools and organizations only exist by convincing parents to enroll their children—they are hungry for ways to improve.

Processing Centre Songhai Centre

There are dozens, if not hundreds, of education startups trying to attack the problem from the bottom up. Several tutoring services like WizIQ, Udemy and BlueTeach (to name a few) connect teachers with students. At the other end you have peer-to-peer education networks like Student of Fortune and OpenStudy. There are also startups mixing tutoring with adaptive-learning (the program adapts to provide lessons covering the subjects where the student is most deficient) like Grockit and Sophia Pathways. There are even specialization services like CodeAcademy which provide students a platform to develop computer programming skills.

Finally there is, Khan Academy, a free service offering more than 3,000 lessons on YouTube. Khan also integrates quizes to assess student ability and redirects students to the relevant lesson when they struggle.

Not all of these programs will succeed, but they’re all bypassing the flawed school system to offer education services whenever, wherever to whoever. This is the only way to have a chance at disrupting education.

More here

Banana Planting Tech - Burundi

2012-01-10T06:00:00.000-05:00

Worldwatch reports on new banana planting techniques introduced by the IITA in Burundi:

Tharcisse and his banana plantlets image courtesy of WorldWatch

Kagimbi Tharcisse, a farmer in eastern Burundi, lifts up the transparent polythene sheet and delicately pulls back some soil to proudly show the tiny banana plantlets growing underneath. Small and delicate, they will be gently taken care of for two months. Each will then be replanted in polythene bags, to grow bigger and stronger and in three months, it will be ready for the farmers’ fields.
one starts by selecting a vigorous healthy-looking sucker—the type that only has very thin pointed leaves—and using a large knife peels off the dirt and roots. Next, it is immersed in hot boiling water for 30 seconds to kill any pests. The outer leaf sheaths are then carefully peeled off to expose the meristem—the growing part at the center of the plant.

The meristem is cut into pieces which are then placed in special sterilized chambers lined with transparent polythene sheets for extra warmth, humidity, and light for 15 days during which they will sprout many little plantlets. These plantlets are carefully detached once they grow 2 to 3 leaves and planted in pots with sterilized soils to acclimatize. They are ready for field planting after 2 to 3 months.Using this method, a sucker can produce up to 20 plantlets instead of just one.

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MTV's 'Touching Base'

2012-01-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

"...Forget what you thought you knew about African urban culture , Touching Base , MTV's new mini-documentary series - will present you to a whole new generation of Afro-cool, and introduce you to the street savvy, super-creative characters whose talent is taking on the world! Touching Base is a new documentary series that will highlight talented young individuals from across Africa. Taking the form of inspiring and beautifully-crafted two-minute documentaries, Touching Base shines a light on Africa's new wave of creative entrepreneurs, spotlighting impressive game-changers from across the continent who are trailblazing in the fields of photography, fashion, illustration, art, filmmaking, music and more..."-website
via African Style Daily

'New African Fashion'

2012-01-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

The Stylelist reports:

New African Fashion," by Arise magazine editor, Helen Jennings, which shows the achievements of popular African lines such as Duro Olowu, Suno, Black Coffee, Eric Raisina and more. In her discussion of the current state of fashion in Africa, Jennings looks back at the history of African influence in European design. Born in Algeria in 1936, Yves Saint Laurent's North African-inspired designs have continued to be influential for over half a century. Today, Moroccan-born Alber Elbaz holds the helm at Lanvin and Tunisian designer Azzedine Alaia continues to provoke. These designers all worked out of Paris, bringing inspiration from their native countries to the French fashion scene. Jennings not only looks at historic designers from Africa who are present on the world's stage of design, but also looks to the new wave of young designers, showing images of each of their collections and discussing them with the designer. "The woman's condition in Africa has made major advances but there are still so many barriers to break," Xuly Bet designer Lamine Badian Kouyate tells Jennings, "I want to bring light to the history of Africa and project a united future."

More here
Read related coverage in CNN,NYTimes and Huffington Post