Who We Are

What is KULE?

KULE (Kumbuka Universal Learning Experiences) is a non-profit organization that brings together volunteers from around the world to make a difference in the rural communities of Kenya and Uganda.

We are an international and non-profit organization registered both in Kenya and Canada. KULE is registered in Nairobi as KULE Foundation International as a non-profit organization, C128008, and in Canada as KULE Foundation Canada as S-56519 under the British Columbia Societies Act.

Our mission

We aim to promote international and cultural understanding through partnerships that address key global issues such as health, education, the environment, and poverty eradication.
My time with KULE was packed with so many big, unique, experiences. One can never forget watching a herd of elephants wander through the Masai Mara, dancing and singing in the school yard with hundreds of other kids, running through the hills of rural Kenya, visiting an orphanage, or navigating the chaotic streets of Nairobi. However, it was the little moments too, that left such powerful impressions.
Jerram Gawley

University of Victoria Student

I am Kenyan. I grew up in Western Kenya, in the countryside. Before I moved to Canada to attend Pearson College, where I met the founder of KULE, I had never thought of volunteering or community service. I actually had a negative image of NGOs because I associated them with patronising organisations that come from abroad to “save” us…Then I found out how KULE comes up with its projects. Geoffrey, the founder, director, literal backbone of this organisation, works with the village chief who in turn collaborates with the residents of Mukangu to figure out what would be best for the community. So it is not us going in and deciding what is best for these people, it’s them telling us what they want and us working alongside them to accomplish those goals. This is the best aspect of this organisation for me.
Shamim Mohamed

University of Richmond Student

(At KULE) we created a project plan focused on tackling taboos around feminine hygiene as well as providing reusable feminine hygiene products to girls in school. Our project plan stood out and we were awarded the GoMAD scholarship. This project ran within KULE and served to advance the aims of education and sustainability in the local community. Not only did we impact the community of Muranga, Kenya but we also partnered with Afri-pads, a non-profit that operates in Uganda and employs local women in the making of the sanitary pads.
Hannah Brendell

Student from Namibia

What do we seek?

  • Make a difference in the lives of others.
  • Provide a wide range of activities for the participant’s educational experience.
  • Promote a sense of awareness of that which separates and yet binds us together as members of the human race.
  • Promote good stewardship of the environment.
  • Promote a strong sense of empathy and compassion for the underprivileged.
  • Provide meaningful and long-term examples of service.
  • Provide the individual with a chance to reflect on their own strengths.
  • Facilitate the participant’s opportunities to grow as individuals.
  • Provide participants with basic opportunities to become volunteers now and in the future.
  • Teach, develop, and boost strong leadership skills
  • Offer a unique and experience-based perspective on a “world” often radically unfamiliar
  • Give the participants a chance for adventure, fun and making friends in a safe environment 

What does KULE stand for?

KUMBUKA: Swahili for remember, we offer unforgettable learning experiences that promote international and cultural understanding through each of our programs, projects, and partnerships.
UNIVERSAL: We believe that it is through the understanding of the similarities and rich diversities that exist between cultures, nations, and peoples that true global change can begin to occur. We therefore invite change-makers from all corners of the world to join us.

LEARNING EXPERIENCES: We provide transformational and life-changing experiences in Kenya and Uganda to our volunteers, partners and Summer Program participants by working together to make vital differences in the lives of others. We work with villagers on projects of their choosing so we can learn about what is important to their communities.

The word KULE: Our acronym KULE is at the same time a word in Swahili, which means there. Metaphorically, KULE connotes the cultural distance the volunteers, partners and Summer Program participants have to cover so as to experience and understand key issues in the African continent such as poor health, lack of education, sustainability, and poverty. We believe that only after doing so will they become more enlightened citizens of the world.