Monday, January 16, 2012

Giselle Bundchen tastes rural life in Kenya



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Brazilian supermodel Giselle Bundchen who is worth over Sh6.2 billion spent a week in rural Kenya experiencing first-hand the reality of energy poverty, as part of the Energy for All 2030 project.
Giselle, who jetted in on Sunday last week for a five-day visit, spent time with women in Kisumu where she “walked for miles to collect firewood” which was tied into a bundle and balanced on her head. “They told me that they carry a much bigger bundle (on their heads) with their babies on their backs,” Giselle said at a press briefing on Friday at the UN headquarters in Gigiri.
The Unep Goodwill Ambassador added: “I went to a house where there is one door, one window, one bed, everyone sleeps on it and a fire place inside the house,” she said. “I was inside the house when they started cooking, I couldn’t keep my eyes open.” She said the trip has helped her understand the reality on the ground. “It would have been difficult to understand the realities without experiencing them. To realise solutions that are practical and make a change, I needed to be aware of these realities.”
Gisele’s tour was in partnership with UK charity Practical Action, which is providing fuel-efficient stoves that cook food more quickly and use less firewood. She also visited Kibera to look at biogas centres, which turn human waste into power, and to the Mount Kenya region where micro-hydro power is bringing electricity to over 2,000 households. This is Giselle’s first visit to Kenya and her video diary of the visit will be posted on her website this week.

Photos/Unep

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