Reach for Change is an initiative that assembles creative people from around the world and gives them the task of finding new digital solutions with the goal of making the world a better place for children.
This past week KRULL attended the Reach for Change Hack, sponsored by Spotify, in Stockholm. The hack brought together problem-solvers and social entrepreneurs from – among other places – Tanzania, Ghana, Rwanda and Sweden. During 48 hours they put their heads together to develop digital innovations in the fields of health, nutrition and education.
It’s a powerful thing to be able to help others and make an impact on their lives
The Ghana Hackers Club, a collective of social entrepreneurs prominent within the tech world, spearheaded the project in Stockholm. We sat down with engineer Josephine Marie Godwyll, Mandela Washington Fellow of the flagship program of President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative, and founder of the organization Young at Heart which has revolutionized schooling for children who live in the rural areas of Ghana. The organization’s goal is to empower and educate children in computer science and IT through the use of digital solutions.
Josephine started Young At Heart with money saved up from the national service. Now only a few years later, the organization has flourished and is led by student volunteers from universities who take their computers to villages on the weekends to teach locals.
“Most of our volunteers thought they would help once but they soon came back. It’s a powerful thing to be able to help others and make an impact on their lives. We cherish our volunteers.” Says Josephine.
Now Young At Heart has impacted over 2,500 children with the help of about 200 volunteers across the country.
The results? Improved test scores all around because of learning through new interactive activities.
Josephine Godwyll also created an app called “Africa is driven by our stories”. The app teaches English, Math, and Science using folk tales.
We tell Josephine how amazed and inspired we are by her accomplishments. She explains that hacking is just about being able to solve problems. “You identify a problem and you have the passion to solve it.” That’s why she calls herself a hacker.
As for the future, she answers:
“Many people have this picture of Africa and Ghana as places where people are never content, that we are bitter about having been enslaved. We always seem to have negative publicity surrounding Africa. But the fact is, it’s the fastest rising continent when it comes to mobile and digital technology. And my passion is about making use of this fact which is in our favour and to create solutions to our problems. Most things in Ghana are now done manually. There was a ministry that got burnt down with birth and death certificates that are now completely lost. If we start looking at digital solutions, these things don’t have to occur in the future. “
She is looking forward to a Ghana that makes use of digital technology to improve, secure and empower the Ghanaian people.
-Betiel Haile & Andrea Davis Kronlund
photos Andrea Davis Kronlund
http://africa.reachforchange.org/en/
https://yali.state.gov/washington-fellowship/
