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Can a dedicated and dexterous team of Rwandan researchers, armed with $20,000 and the support of an international network of problem solvers, tackle the ill effects of a single insect? Every year the “antestia bug” destroys up to 38% of coffee crops in Rwanda and is thought to be the source of a potato taste…

The Government of Rwanda has taken a bold step by inaugurating a National Commission of Science and Technology (NCST) to advise on, monitor and evaluate, and coordinate science, technology, and innovation (STI) related activities across Rwanda’s economy. The Global Knowledge Initiative (GKI) believes that robust, well-planned STI investments and coordination can drive sustained economic development,…

There are many reasons to be optimistic about the dairy sector in East Africa; at the May 8, 2014 Dairy Value Chain Collaboration Colloquium, participants counted over 150 of them.  To be exact, participants at the Dairy Value Chain Collaboration Colloquium in Kampala, Uganda identified 167 opportunities for partnership to take on challenges in the dairy…

The premier challenges of today—mitigating climate change, ensuring energy security, reducing food loss—are complex and multi-sectoral.  They confound the efforts of individuals working alone.  Creating lasting solutions to these and other global problems requires the collective work of many problem solvers who pursue common goals and bring to bear their varied perspectives, resources, and areas…

“Your presence here is a vote of confidence in Rwandan coffee,” George Kayonga, head of Rwanda’s National Agricultural Export Development Board (NAEB), told Coffee Research Symposium attendees on March 17. A vote of confidence, in this case, as over 150 representatives from academia, private sector, government, and international organizations assembled in Kigali to discuss a…

2013 saw tremendous growth in the scope of GKI’s training program. We use experiential training, simulations, and interactives to demystify the how-to of working together to solve a common challenge. Mining best-inclass models of collaborative innovation worldwide, we formulate relevant and valuable curricula for use with some of the most inspiring and fearless innovators globally. For…

GKI wrapped up the Coffee Collaboration Colloquium on March 18, 2014 in Kigali, Rwanda and we’re proud to announce it was a great success.  More details to come, but for now we’d like to thank our sponsors–WeatherSafe and Counter Culture Coffee–once more, and share some photos from the event.

After an intensive review by an international Technical Committee of experts, the Global Knowledge Initiative (GKI) proudly announces the winner of the fourth round of our partnership-forging LINK (Learning and Innovation Network for Knowledge and Solutions) program: Dr. Geofrey Arinaitwe, of BioCrops Uganda Limited.  We would like to congratulate Dr. Arinaitwe, a seasoned entrepreneur and…

Fact: one third of food harvested globally never reaches the plates of consumers. Food loss occurring between harvest and consumption caused by waste and spoilage threatens farmers’ livelihoods; consumers’ access to nutritious food; and vital, limited resources like land and water.  To combat the challenge of food loss, The Rockefeller Foundation’s Global Food Waste and…

The Global Knowledge Initiative (GKI) is pleased to announce the formalization of a relationship we have long enjoyed with Uganda’s National Council for Science and Technology (UNCST).  On 6 November 2013, GKI Program Officer Andrew Gerard (on behalf of Chief Operating Officer Sara Farley) and UNCST Executive Secretary Dr. Peter Ndemere signed a Memorandum of…