I was planning on staying here 2 weeks and do what I could for the Human Needs Project in Kibera , the biggest slum in Africa.  I had a good start!  Walked around Kibera with Margaret, one of the Community Center managers, along with Edward, a resident of Kibera who was basically our body guard.  And I was getting some ideas for how to help the Center get more engagement from the community.  Then…I got a call that one of my best friends, Don Horsley, was dying in Maine and didn’t have much time left.  So I did what I could, which wasn’t much.  Mostly showed the Community Center leadership how the IDEO Human Centered Design methodology could help them come up with products and services to serve Kibera, and showed them a few data gathering techniques to get insight from the community.  Really smart, engaged staff there. I’m sad I couldn’t stay longer.

For a 3 minute video flyover of Kibera, to see what it’s like, and what the Human Needs Project is up to, go here.