Square One announces nonprofit connection

Square One has announced their nonprofit connection for 2024-25: Alfajiri Street Kids Art.

Square One is a student run nonprofit at CSB+SJU. Each year they implement a sustainable venture locally and globally. Once their nonprofit connection is chosen, a team of students travels to a developing country with the goal of empowering local communities through sustainable practices.

Annie Pugh, a co-director of Square One and junior at CSB+SJU, explained the background of Square One a little more.

“Since 2010, Square One has empowered communities across the globe by connecting student innovation with sustainable solutions. Since Square One started, there have been various ventures throughout the world, attending countries such as Kenya, Uganda and Haiti. Square One is an on-campus organization committed to empowering local and global communities through sustainable practices,” Pugh said via email.

Square One has a three-step process to these implementations.

The first step is the discovery phase, where students are sent to the designated destination to look for issues and injustices that exist in that area. They communicate with local people and assess the needs of the community. The second step is the implementation phase, when the students work to implement a project tailored to the community’s needs. The project is established, and local residents are equipped with the necessary resources to run the project. Lastly is the reevaluation phase. A year later, students are sent back to the site to check up on how the project is going, specifically seeing the sustainable effect. If things are not going well, the students provide assistance and suggest improvements.

“We work to partner with communities and select an existing nonprofit that values sustainability, community and leadership. We work alongside them to support them financially, as well as by sending our students to be hands-on support and immerse themselves in the cultural setting to understand and learn the way of life in East Africa. We reevaluate the partnership as the year progresses and support them in every way we can,” Pugh said.

In January 2023, Pugh had the opportunity to travel to Kenya with Square One. While in Kenya, the Square One team implemented a chicken hatchery system in Nunguni, a remote village that is south of Nairobi. For that project, Square One partnered with Decent Living Institute of Organic Farming (DLIOF), a nonprofit founded by Peter Kimeu in Kenya.

“With extensive experience in sustainable development, organic farming techniques and peacebuilding, Peter has set out to build model organic farms that could be used to share his knowledge with community members. 61% of Kenya’s population live in poverty, meaning that they live off $2 or less per day,” Pugh said.

Square One purchased two incubators and set up a space alongside DLIOF where they could be monitored and taken care of.

A year after the implementation, Square One continued to work with Peter’s team to check in and reevaluate the project. A problem they found was that the incubators need 21 days of consistent power to be successful and hatch the eggs fully. Across Kenya, the power grids are fragile and easily effected by rainfall, causing the systems to fail. After that problem was identified, Square One raised money for solar panels to be installed for the incubators to have a consistent power source. In January 2024, a year after Pugh and the Square One team traveled to Nunguni, they were able to send the funds to DLIOF for the solar panels. From there, the team saw a successful and reliable source of power for the hatchery systems in that region. Now, the incubators hold up to 300 eggs, with about 240 of the eggs hatching into healthy chicks after three weeks.

This year, Square One is continuing that partnership with DLIOF as they shift to supporting Alfajiri Street Kids Art, a registered community-based organization in Nairobi, Kenya.

While on the trip in 2023, the Square One team was also working partially on the discovery phase for this year’s project.

“My team and I felt a heaviness surrounding the issues faced by the street children in Nairobi, where an estimated 60,000 children live on the streets, often fending for themselves without access to food, shelter, or education. Many of these children are concentrated in the Mathare slums, one of the poorest and most densely populated areas of Nairobi,” Pugh said.

The Square One team connected with the founder of Alfajiri Street Kids Art, Lenore Boyd, and visited the Alfajiri center, located in the heart of the Mathare Slum. Alfajiri offers a space for children to learn, heal and express themselves through art. The organization hopes it is a chance for these children to have a better future.

“As an entrepreneur, it was both exciting and educational for our team to learn about how Lenore founded Alfajiri, what it takes to run a nonprofit in such challenging circumstances, and how businesses can partner with organizations to help support her mission, vision and values,” Pugh said.

The team has been learning about the challenges that nonprofits face in that region as they work with Alfajiri. Government public policies and harsh weather conditions impact nonprofits greatly.

“Working alongside Alfajiri in Mathare has not only deepened our understanding of the power of community-based initiatives but also strengthened our resolve to make a lasting difference in the lives of Nairobi’s street children,” Pugh said.

The partnership comes at a vital time, as Alfajiri is facing closure; international sponsors are withdrawing, and they are facing the impact of recent floods and political turmoil that has led to economic hardships for all.

In January, members of Square One will be traveling to help in aiding Alfajiri with financial support, as well as assistance on-site. The travelers will help facilitate art programs and work alongside the Alfajiri team to provide resources and support for the children.

Square One recognizes the risk that not all ventures can be fully successful.

“We shifted our view and recognized that we do not have so much to ‘teach’ communities around the world, but rather, we have so much to learn. Over the years, we realized the importance of working collaboratively with established organizations rather than starting projects from scratch. This shift allows us to maximize our impact by learning from their expertise and ensuring our efforts align with community needs,” Pugh said.

As Square One fundraises, they are cautious in making sure the money they donate makes it directly to the organization they are partnering with.

“We recognize that Square One fundraises money and we want to make sure we are using that money to make an impact. We do not want to risk losing out on partnership opportunities by pouring money into venture ideas or business relationships that we are not able to sustain over the course of students’ years at CSB+SJU. Partnering with existing organizations, nonprofits and businesses allows us to learn from their successes and be inspired by their entrepreneurial spirit,” Pugh said.

Square One meets every Wednesday at 7:30 p.m., alternating weeks at SJU and CSB. Their meetings are open to all students from all majors.

Lucy Farley, a co-director of Square one and junior at CSB+SJU, is a political science major and shares how educational her experience has been as a political science major and member of Square One.

“Political science teaches us to critically evaluate systems and advocate for sustainable change, and this partnership has provided firsthand insight into how nonprofits like Alfajiri navigate these systems to create meaningful impact. For me, as a political science student, this experience has reaffirmed the importance of policies that empower organizations like Alfajiri to thrive while inspiring future leaders to prioritize collaboration and sustainable impact in their initiatives,” Farley said.

Deven Lane, a member of Square one and sophomore at CSB+SJU, is studying environmental studies. “Being an environmental studies major has opened my eyes to the importance of supporting organizations like Alfajiri that are in areas disproportionately affected by climate change. Areas like Kenya that are in the global south face problems with sustainable structures that will weather the storms that are increasing in severity due to climate change,” Lane said.

Square One hosts a variety of events as well, partnering with other organizations often, including The Schu, The Perk and Walking Club. Pugh expresses the importance of support from the CSB+SJU community as a student-run nonprofit. Asking questions, engaging in critical thinking conversations and brainstorming ideas with and for the Square One team are a few important factors Pugh stresses when it comes to supporting Square One.

Square One is also looking to support local nonprofits and communities.

“We see the needs of our local communities and want to come alongside them to support them in any way we can! Square One has been focused on global ventures for almost 15 years now, and we see the importance of this, but throughout the year, we want to begin working locally as well,” Pugh said.

Outside of those, Square One also hosts an annual silent auction. This year, the auction is being held at Jax Café in Minneapolis on Dec. 8 at 4 p.m. The silent auction serves as their primary fundraiser. This year, the money raised will support their nonprofit connection to Alfajiri, as well as their travels to Kenya in January. Current students can attend the event free of charge.

“Square One provides students the opportunity to gain hands on experience in researching and building a relationship with a nonprofit connection. We also recognize the importance of connecting our campus to our projects and we host events throughout the academic year to raise awareness, educate our campus community about the communities we serve and build support for our mission,” Pugh said.