From Livingstone to Mikuyu: Power Shift in Action

We hear from Mikuyu Tanzania, as their Managing Director, Julian Page, shares the who, what, and why behind their recent name change.

---

Our charity changed its name recently. It took us three years from starting the conversation to execution. Once we agreed that Livingstone did not reflect the ethos we wanted, we had to find a name that did.

We invited our network of supporters and friends to suggest names which, when joined together in a word cloud, resembled the root system of a potato! That root system made us think of trees; rooted in the community, strong, and interconnected with the wider environment. The strong symbolism was approved, and that led us to the Mkuyu tree - a tree under which communities traditionally held their meetings. As it’s slightly challenging to pronounce, Mkuyu became the plural Mikuyu, and also because we want to be in more than one community, under more than one tree.

The “Tanzania” bit was just about telling people where we worked. If we expand, we could be Mikuyu Malawi, and so on.

The process was everything, because trustees, staff and supporters were part of the journey and collectively we agreed on the name.

From Fear to Collaboration

The process of how we work is as important as the work we do.

We have always engaged with the community and sat under their tree. Now we also sit with the town leaders. We used to be fearful of them, but when we asked for a seat at their table that fear started to dissipate. In fact, we now sit and wonder at them, as they try to bring about changes with both hands tied behind their backs.

We have come to see that their goals are a mirror of ours, only on a greater scale, and that by working together we can achieve things that we cannot do alone. For example, we want to do soil testing but don’t have the resources. They have the equipment but not the funds to run it. Together, we can get the soil tested and see what needs to be done to improve it. We are now developing a joint project to regenerate farming lands. Their engagement gives us the potential to scale our projects like never before, assuming the work is successful!

Power Shift in Action

Is this shifting power? Absolutely.

We still hold the purse because we have a responsibility to our donors, and because it helps our partners on the ground to say “no” when asked to fund 101 other projects. However, the RACI charts clearly show a shift: the Town Council are no longer merely informed; they're consulted, responsible and accountable. By sitting under the tree and around the board table we are shifting ownership outward and upward, and with ownership comes control.

---

Thank you to Julian and Mikuyu Tanzania. To find out more about them, head to their website or find them on LinkedIn.

Got your own story to share? Send an email to amplifyteam@sidcn.org, or fill in the form at the bottom of this page.