tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849590014026733477.post8445354960471280632..comments2023-10-22T13:55:40.542+04:00Comments on Coffee Bike/Utility Bike Program - Rwanda: Karaba Coffee Cooperative Meeting with the AnimatorsJay Ritcheyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08019211657249558798noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849590014026733477.post-15411175686142748802007-03-07T13:05:00.000+04:002007-03-07T13:05:00.000+04:00Hey Bradley, we are making them in China with some...Hey Bradley, we are making them in China with some good factories, and then we ship them through Dar El Salaam in Tanzania to Kigali, Rwanda. We cram about 300sih in a 40' container. Costs a load to have them shipped, like 20% of overall price. We just started producing them, there are 500 done and on their way, another 500 will be wrapped up soon and anotehr 1000 will will be done in June. People here in the coffee cooperatives are fighting over them so we are just going to keep cranking them out, maybe 5000 over the next year or so. Yea, we have to sell them, both b/c we want people to take ownership and secondly b/c we want this to be sustainable and smooth, not always choking up b/c of lack of donor money like many other NGO's. We have to run it like a business and an aid/economc development org. It is a work in progress. Thanks for reading, stay tuned.Jay Ritcheyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08019211657249558798noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849590014026733477.post-10435408905569203472007-03-05T08:17:00.000+04:002007-03-05T08:17:00.000+04:00This is amazing. I never had a doubt, but to read ...This is amazing. I never had a doubt, but to read how it is all playing out I am so excited for you! Mr. Ritchey, you are changing the world...Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12432114998750135191noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849590014026733477.post-56953458907616038792007-03-02T19:18:00.000+04:002007-03-02T19:18:00.000+04:00First time using your blog...It is a pity the bicy...First time using your blog...<BR/><BR/>It is a pity the bicycle industry has not kept up with other industries in Africa - growing the market by providing appropriate technology vehicles. I really applaud your efforts to not give the bicycle away. When one buys something it promotes ownership and upkeep. How do you bring the bicycles in? by container? How many do you have in stock and what are your distribution estimates in the near future?<BR/><BR/>Cheers,<BR/><BR/>Bradley SchroederAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17645751750162067327noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1849590014026733477.post-69581420600227069082007-02-02T07:26:00.000+04:002007-02-02T07:26:00.000+04:00Hey Jay, good post. 'Animators' is such a great t...Hey Jay, good post. 'Animators' is such a great term... would that all God's people were animators! Wasn't there a rock band by that name? Seriously, though, achieving a level of trust with such a group of salt of the earth farmers, cross-culturally, and in spite of Anglo history in Africa not to mention the local history, is quite an accomplishment, and reflects the quality of character you are bringing to the work. <br />So the non-coffee farmers are getting interested, too, eh?... no surprise there. I was struck by your comment about sensing that Celestin is a sincere man from the moment you began speaking with him, relative to some of the things you mentioned in the past about truthfulness and survival. Instinct is powerful, but it cuts both ways when there are instincts with competing interests. Fear versus appropriately informed caution and guarded self-preservation is in play on both sides of the cultural divide and it defines being human more than it defines 'us versus them'. Somewhere in the human spirit there is a place of being that can suffer being duped and/or mistrusted without being outraged, insulted, fear-reactive, or ego-duck-ruptured (just coined that concept) etc. as long as one goes in informed of real human nature and doesn't place other innocents in jeopardy along with one's own trust. I hope you are staking out some of that territory in an empowering way, because i suspect 1.) you can use that in your current situ, and 2) it can be transformative to others when they encounter it and allow themselves to be touched.<br />Blog on, bro.Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10245302282566974627noreply@blogger.com