Living Harambe Press Release

May 13, 2010

Sustainable Seattle and Walking with Africans presents: Living Harambe Building a Bright Future Together

Sustainable Seattle

Phone: +1.206.622.3522
Email: laura@sustainableseattle.org, marie@sustainableseattle.org, chimmy@walkingwithafricans.org

Seattle--Sustainable Seattle and Walking with Africans is pleased to announce a joint fundraiser venture called Living Harambe: Building a Bright Future Together. The fundraiser takes place at Hidmo, a local community restaurant and cultural center, and the event will feature world music, food, and opportunities to connect in this vibrant, culturally important locale. The event takes place on Thursday May 20th from 6:30 p.m. until well past sunset.

Local musicians will fill the evening with music from all over the world as we enjoy the ambiance of Hidmo throughout the night. El Cajon Project and a local graduate student named Kedmo will take us on a musical trip as one enjoys the Eritrean, East African cuisine. There will be a Raffle for various prizes and a chance to get to meet the people behind Sustainable Seattle and Walking with Africans.

Hidmo means home and there is no other way to describe the feeling one gets at this local hub of excitement and community. Harambe is a Swahili word that means "pulling together" and that is exactly what Sustainable Seattle and Walking with Africans is doing in this collaboration of like minded not for profit organizations.

As per usual there is a suggested donation, but do not let price be a barrier. We encourage people to pay what they feel is appropriate as we would rather have people there with us, then stay at home on this exciting night of togetherness. The work that is being done from these two organizations is changing lives and growing power. We cannot continue our work without support so please consider sharing in whatever fashion you can.

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Sustainable Seattle

Founded in 1991, Sustainable Seattle (S2) is a non-profit organization that promotes sustainability in the Central Puget Sound, nationally and internationally. S2 creates cutting edge products, processes and leadership that propel people and communities forward in reaching sustainability. S2 strives to create healthy communities, economies, and ecosystems by serving as an incubator for emerging people, projects, and ideas, as a convener of diverse citizens and practitioners, and as a catalyst for turning indicators into action

Sustainable Seattle’s mission is to advance an integrated vision of urban sustainability by measuring progress, building driving coalitions and undertaking key initiatives. We accomplish this mission by working with diverse individuals, communities, businesses and government agencies to build awareness, assess progress, and take action on collective sustainability goals.

Walking with Africans

WAF strongly believes that the poor have the capacity and will to transform their own lives. Our mission is to empower the rural poor to tap into their entrepreneurship and establish small business enterprises in order to raise living standards and cultivate a culture of saving and financial independence.

We will offer support through focused mentoring, training and financial backing.

Our core objectives:

• Reduce rural poverty by providing seed loans, especially to women and the most vulnerable groups in the community.
• Create income-generating opportunities by establishing an initial pool of resources for a microcredit and savings program.
• Help to diversify income-generating activities.
• Build trust and integrity by reinforcing personal accountability, transparency and a shared sense of ownership.