News, Volunteer Network

By the time I arrived, the purported road had dwindled to something less than a goat trail. To say I was off the beaten track in rural Rwanda, some 90 kilometers outside of Kigali, would merely state the obvious. I was going where no sane person would go on four wheels instead of two feet.

Yet it was here, at the end of the road, where I encountered an extraordinary creature: a real live piggy bank that in all its porcine glory captured the essence of grassroots entrepreneurship and development at the base of the socioeconomic pyramid. Here was an animal that represented financial security for a family, which could have made roast suckling pig out of him long before the initial investment paid off. In order to maximize the return, however, this family would have to be patient; in other words, buy and hold.

Riding Giant from Jacob SB on Vimeo.

“This is the land of second chances,” the coach of Team Rwanda says. The riders—Hutus and Tutsis—find that cycling gives suffering a purpose. Above, team members compete in the Tour of Rwanda, in November, 2010.

A team of young cyclists tries to outrun the past.

Well today marks six weeks that I have spent here in Rwanda as a volunteer for the Project. It certainly does not seem like it has been that long with the whirlwind of activity we have been experiencing here. I arrived just a week before the African Continental Championships commenced in Kigali, the nation’s capital. Here in Musanze at Project/Team Rwanda’s headquarters, race preparations were in full swing. Jock, Scott, and Clark were busy helping the team out with their last few days of training before the races, Max was busy seeing that all of the bikes were in tip-top shape, Jen was making sure that everyone was well fed and taken care of. I was definitely a bit overwhelmed the first few days, partly due to the frenetic pace of activity and partly due the jet lag.I eventually found a rhythm, helping out where ever I could, be it helping Max out with the bikes or going out on a moto with the team on training rides with water and tools, or helping with chores around the house.

5 years in the making, Rising from Ashes is the redemption story of Rwandan's first ever national cycling team.

Rising from the ashes of an unthinkable genocide, 5 riders have become ambassadors of hope for a country destined to rise from their past to a promising future.

Website: http://risingfromashesthemovie.com/

Facebook: Spread the love. Post BELIEVEinHOPE and links to the movie site in your profiles! We can't do it without you guys.

Jacob Seigel-Boettner, a UC Berkeley student, has volunteered for Project Rwanda both in Rwanda and the U.S. for the past four years!

In 2006, Jacob stumbled across an article about Project Rwanda in VeloNews. With his background of civic engagement and passion for bicycling, the grassroots organization immediately captured his attention. Jacob organized a Ride 4 Rwanda event with his alma mater, Santa Barbara Middle School, to raise money for Project Rwanda. Since then the event has become an annual tradition, the 4th Goleta Beach Ride 4 Rwanda event was held last March and in the past 4 years the ride has collected over $11,000 for Project Rwanda.

In 2007 Jacob led a team of teachers and students from SBMS to train bike mechanics in Rwanda. They took 200lbs of gear and tools to supply the coffee co-ops using the Coffee Bike. "I have seen first hand the impact that a properly designed bicycle can have on those who need them the most."

Dr. Sam Joseph visited the Project Rwanda operations this past February. He was in Kigali, the capital city to work with doctors from Northwest Medical in Seattle, Washington, performing much needed heart surgeries on Rwandans whose lives would be shortened without these surgeries.

Sam is also an avid cyclist and did not want to pass up on the opportunity to ride with Jock Boyer. When Dr. Sam spotted the PR Cargo Bike on the front porch of the house, he was so impressed he immediately thought of using the bike for two of his recent heart patients who needed monthly follow up care and had to travel over three hours on foot to get to the clinic.

He wrote about his experience with Project Rwanda and the help the cargo bike will give his patients in a recent blog:

http://healingheartsnorthwest.blogspot.com/2010/02/project-rwandahearts-and-bikes.html

In early January, four students from the Harvard IXP program visited Rwanda after choosing to study the economic impact of the Project Rwanda Cargo Bike. They visited two coffee cooperatives, Bukonya in the Northern Province and Maraba in the Southern Province. They spent two days meeting with farmers who currently own Project Rwanda bikes. They questioned the farmers about their daily activities and how those activities changed when they received a Project Rwanda bike. In the course of their work and evaluation they determined that there was in fact an increase in income for these farmers and a decrease in the amount of time they spent hauling coffee cherries to the washing stations. They also determined that farmers used their bikes to transport family and friends to medical appointments and the hospital when necessary. The farmers valued their bikes and were very strict with who they allowed to ride their bikes.

Project Rwanda was introduced to more than 500 cyclists at the Callville Bay Classic in southern Nevada from February 25 – 28th. As part of its in-kind sponsorship, racers received a Project Rwanda calendar. Bags of Wooden Bike Coffee were also given as preems during the queen’s stage, the criterium.

TRABUCO CANYON – The story of the bike begins in Rwanda.

For centuries, farmers walked their goods and produce through Rwanda, known as the "Land of a Thousand Hills." The more fortunate ones had a primitive bike – a wooden chassis, wooden wheels, poor steering, no brakes, no seat, and no gears.