#ushaverse

Eight weeks ago I touched down at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport. I was doe-eyed and ready to tackle Kenya head-on. Today I will return to Kenyatta, en-route for London Heathrow after a tremendous summer in Nairobi. I have experienced so much and I am very grateful to Erik Hersman and Nat Manning of Ushahidi for taking a chance on a red-bearded MALD student from The Fletcher School.

Since it is difficult to sum up my summer at Ushahidi and the iHub in one blog post, I’ll reference three of my top experiences between June and August:

First, I’d like to call out my initial impressions of the iHub and the tech ecosystem here in Kilimani. My Hola de Kilimani post underscores my unabashed excitement for the summer to come.

Next, I’d like to highlight Kenya’s growing cohort of hipsters—and beyond hipsters, the country’s emerging knowledge workers. My Hipsters Not Hippos post lightly pokes fun at outsiders’ perceptions of Kenya and emphasizes the spirit of creativity that runs deep throughout this country.

Finally, I’m quite proud of my entry On BRCKs and Banana Bread. The post discusses Ushahidi’s budding romance with the Internet of Things (IoT). I foresee devices like the BRCK that marry the physical world and virtual world—as well as entrepreneurs who focus on tech-enabled businesses—to be the next new thing. Keep a keen eye at this space.

In closing, I’ll leave you with a few raw numbers. To date, I have written over 11,000 words for my blog, taught over 150 young African entrepreneurs negotiations skills, traveled to 5 separate countries on the continent, transacted over 20,000 shillings on my M-PESA account, ran over 125 kilometers, and had far too many Tuskers to count. More importantly, I befriended the next generation of leaders who will take Kenya further and farther than ever before.

Having worked at a think tank and a consulting firm, I have participated in far too many report releases and project kickoff meetings—but yesterday was my first product launch. Wednesday marked the debut of the BRCK: the go anywhere, do anything, self-powered, mobile WiFi device. Designed in Africa, built in Austin, and deployable anywhere in the world, the BRCK has big aspirations. Today, over 60 percent of the globe lacks access to the Internet. BRCK stands to change this. Erik Hersman and his engineering team aptly note: “Most routers and modems are built for New York and London, whereas most of the people connected to the internet today live in places like Nairobi or New Delhi.” The BRCK aims to help close the gap between those living with and without connectivity.

So, how does this funky little black box work? The BRCK acts as a bridge, allowing up to 20 users to share an Internet signal. This connection can come from a standard Ethernet port, a WiFi base station, or most relevant to the developing world, a 3G signal. With dirt-cheap data rates in places like Kenya, one BRCK can distribute the World Wide Web economically and efficiently. The team is already pioneering some impressive use cases including using a BRCK to bring the Internet to students in rural Isiolo or nurses operating along the last mile in Narok.

Beyond Internet access, the BRCK is versatile. At first glance it seems to be a rugged MiFi with a bit of African charm. But upon further inspection, the brick-shaped BRCK appears capable of more than just broadcasting an Internet signal. Clearly it was designed with flexibility front of mind. For me, it’s easy to recall incredibly fond memories of playing with Legos as a kid. I would build towering cities and otherworldly space stations—all from the same multipurpose blocks. The BRCK embraces a similar emphasis on adaptability. Both hardware and software hackers will squeal with delight when encountering the BRCK’s customizability. At the launch we offered a few examples of the BRCK’s capabilities in action—including hooking up a remote weather station to the BRCK. Imagine sitting at your desk at the World Bank in Washington, gathering real-time data on weather in Waziristan. The BRCK is set to make this scenario a reality.

Versatility, hackability, and a general open-source mindset remain at the root of “Hersman Enterprises” and the entire Ushaverse. Being open and allowing adaptation fuel creativity—and in turn, better, more tailor-made solutions. The BRCK represents a departure from traditional proprietary approaches to problem solving. This should be applauded.

“How’s your summer going?” I have been asked this question countless times from friends, family, and former colleagues since landing in Nairobi four weeks ago. This open-ended inquiry is usually followed up with, “What’s Ushahidi like and how are the people?” While I cannot claim to be an expert, the last month working in the Ushaverse (the collection of enterprises and initiatives launched by Erik Hersman, Juliana Rotich, David Kobia, and others) has provided me with a healthy taste of life in Kenya’s magnetic tech scene. And I am happy to report the experience has been incredibly positive.

Over the last six years since graduating from Georgetown, I’ve worked for a number of different organizations. Each one maintains a unique feel. Some are massive, with thousands of employees seamlessly operating around-the-clock. Others are smaller in shape and more defined in purpose. A few are global with networks that stretch from Boston to Bangalore. Ushahidi manages to straddle the line between a local outfit and an international enterprise. It is global while remaining lean and agile. This is a beautiful thing. Despite having less than 30 full-time employees, Ushahidi manages to operate worldwide. There have been over 60,000 Ushahidi deployments in 159 countries since Ushahidi launched in 2007. Enabled by a combination of open-source platforms and whip-smart staff members, Ushahidi has unquestionably created an international impact and recognized brand.

So what is the secret sauce that brings this small yet potent cohort of bloggers, coders, policy wonks, and ultimately leaders, together? Passion and good humor. Consider this: Every Monday the Ushahidi team logs onto Hipchat and connects to a global conference call. The weekly touchpoint provides an opportunity for Ushaverse employees to inform their colleagues about product breakthroughs, solicit advice on thorny deliverables, and advertise upcoming events. But besides these professional updates, the weekly call offers a chance for our remote team to connect. This week’s call included way too many bad puns, a bounty of baby pictures, and epic travel stories from the field. At first glance, these virtual updates seem silly (and some may say unnecessary); but I believe they help bind together a remote team spread across time zones. They represent Ushahidi’s dedication to fostering a positive and productive culture that’s not afraid to have fun.