Education was not a guarantee for many. I watched brilliant students forced to give up their dreams of becoming future engineers, doctors, and innovators because of systemic cycles of poverty that were as old as the soil itself. Talent, I realized, is universal, but opportunity is not. As I returned each summer, this systemic cycle became more clear to me. Increasing impacts of climate change on farming meant volatility in employment and wages. Such volatility meant lack of access to education. Lack of education meant little social mobility and a persisting climate crisis.

I spent so much time thinking about a solution that was external to this vicious cycle. It was only after consulting community members that I realized the answer wasn’t beyond the community - it was within it.

That is where the passion for The Igitoki Way comes from. The word Igitoki, Kinyarwandan for banana, is the name of our organization not only because it is the source of our biodegradable pads and clothes, but it represents our emphasis on community-led action to solve global problems. By returning to our roots, we are able to transform a cultural staple into a catalyst for social change in a small Rwandan village. Together with community leaders and local organizations, each one of us at The Igitoki Way is rooted in the commitment to restoring the bridge towards opportunity for children in Africa, and most importantly, granting them the freedom to dream.

Because when a child can dream uninterrupted, they do more than change their own life. They change the future.”

- Daryn Tarasewicz, Founder