The Nobelity Project is a sponsor of the St. Joseph Mahiga Primary School, a rural school in a low-income area near Nyeri, Kenya. In partnership with the local community, we have brought electricity to the school, built a rainwater system with UV purification, a computer lab and other facilities. The school has progressed to one of the top-rated schools (out of 600 in the district). Education in the area currently ends after grade 8, and The Nobelity Project is partnering with the Education District to build Mahiga Hope High School, a four-year high school with 4 blocks of classrooms and with an innovative, multipurpose structure that will fill many essential roles for the school and the local community. The Rainwater Court is a basketball court with an integrated rainwater collection and UV purification system. There are two potential configurations - a half-basketball court and a full court which doubles the playing and meeting surface, and also doubles the rainwater collection capacity. (Both configurations are designed to be replicable around the world, with solar panels for the water system and night lighting in areas without electricity.) The half-court configuration has a 2,500 sqft playing surface covered by metal roof and guttered to collect an estimated 90,000 liters of water per year. The building incorporates 30,000 liter of rainwater storage, with UV purification. The full-court configuration doubles collection capacity and increases storage capacity as needed according to the number of students in the school. Between the enclosed storage tank/equipment areas, a small stage faces the court, with a permanent, hard-wall backing designed as a movie projection screen. The structure is designed to serve multiple functions for the school, providing a sport facility, purified drinking water, a covered performance space for local music and theater, an outdoor/covered classroom and dining area. It will also provide the area's only community meeting space, a covered farmer's market and more. If possible, the sustainable and recycled building materials in the structure will include a basketball surface built of Nike Regrind, made by recycling used tennis shoe soles. The Rainwater Court can transform this community, and is a key component of the new Mahiga Hope High School. The local community has two primary schools with approximately 400 students each. With all boys and girls admitted to the schools without tuition charges, there is an even mix of boys and girls. Education in the area currently ends at 8th grade. Mahiga Hope High School - a partnership between The Nobelity Project, the Kenyan Regional Education District, and the people of Mahiga will provide a full 12-year High School education for every child.

Who is the sponsoring organization?

The Nobelity Project. The Nobelity Project is a 501C3 nonprofit working for a more peaceful and sustainable world. We work with Nobel laureates and other inspiring leaders on solutions to an array of global problems. This work is accomplished through feature films (Nobelity and One Peace at a Time), through the series Short Films/Big Changes, and through the Nobelity in Schools Program, which distributes all of our films and education materials to every middle school and high school teacher who requests them. We also engage in specific development projects in various countries where we work - an organic chocolate factory with the Kallari Collective in Ecuador, water wells in Ethiopia, model orphanages in India, and our partner schools in Kenya. Our latest feature film, One Peace at a Time, investigates the possibility of providing basic rights - water, nutrition, education, health care, opportunity and a peaceful and sustainable environment - to every child. Our goal is to inspire large numbers of students and adults to pick a specific issue and take action that will lead to a better world. Programs highlighted in the film include CARE, Kiva.org, A Glimmer of Hope, The Miracle Foundation, The World Food Program and many more, including our schools in Kenya. http://www.nobelity.org

Where will the project be located?

Mahiga, Kenya

Mahiga, Kenya, near Nyeri in Aberdare Mountains. Mahiga Hope High School is being built on a flat piece of hill-top land a few hundred yards from St. Joseph Mahiga Primary School. With utility service now functional at the primary school, we have a simple job to extend the service to the high school. There is no groundwater or water system in this very dry area. Groundwater is 700 feet deep through granite and though we have a permit to drill a borehole, the cost would exceed $60,000 U.S.D, with added cost to pump the water. Rainwater collection is the only practical solution, and the best source of clean water to prevent dire waterborne illnesses which trouble this community. The area is relatively flat, has strong prevailing winds which will be blocked and diverted over the Rainwater Court by the storage tank and stage structure.

Do facilities at the location need to be constructed or upgraded?

Yes. We will build four blocks of classrooms, 4 classes per block. One block will contain a computer lab (with cell-based wireless local wifi donated by Safaricom, a science lab, library and office. The other buildings will provide 11 additional classrooms and a lunchroom with a lockable, purified water tap from the rainwater system. A full soccer pitch will be on the leeward side of the classrooms. The Rainwater Court will be shifted slightly from the main cluster (though close enough for guttering from these roofs to increase inflow to the tanks).

Are any further architectural or design services required?

Yes. Initial design work for the Rainwater Court is being done pro bono by the award-winning Austin Architectural firm, Dick Clark Architecture. Ideally this design would be modified by a Kenyan architect/designer with further knowledge of available building materials and practical sustainable building practices for the area. Work to date on Mahiga Primary School has been done with the assistance of our partner-on-the-ground, Joseph Mutongu, a trained naturalist and hotel industry professional who has been an extremely reliable and knowledgeable partner. We will specifically need assistance in the incorporation of Nike Regrind for the court floor.

Would this project benefit from the assistance of construction professionals?

Yes. We are always looking for local (Kenyan) construction professionals, though this community is capable of doing a great deal of this construction work themselves.