Hummingbird Showcase

Name of Interviewee: William Mwai

Organization: Garbage Collection Enterprise

Their positive contribution

● Ensuring the cleanliness of the environment in his neighbourhood.
● Creating employment opportunities for his two friends.

What I have learnt from them

● You do not have to have a lot to be a voice of change/ to create impact.
● Learn to identify opportunities from the “challenges” around you.

An inspiration I have drawn from the interviewee

● To learn to stay positive despite the hiccups that occasionally occur especially in
one's journey to achieving their goals.
Hummingbird Challenge Interview
Hello, If it is alright with you, I’d like to take a few minutes of your time to ask a
couple of questions, as part of a training we are currently undertaking at Alx, in
identifying people changing lives in their areas of residence.
That's totally alright. I’ll be glad to share it with you

Kindly tell me your name and what you do for a living.

I am William Mwai. I reside in Kitengela, Kajiado County and I run a garbage collection
and waste disposal business in my neighbourhood.

How long have you stayed here? (in Kitengela)

I was born and raised here. I would say my whole life (27 years)

What has it been like running a garbage collection business? What drew you into
it? This is because I see how passionate you are about what you do.
Right after high school, weighing my options, I didn't see myself going to college as my
parents were not in a position to raise the school fees despite having performed well. I
have always dreamed of being a chemical engineer, which is a dream I want to fulfil.

I identified an opportunity that I hopped onto. I teamed up with two friends and started
collecting garbage from the residential apartments and disposing it in landfills for
collection by the municipal council on a weekly basis. We collect the garbage, clean the
apartments, and dispose of the waste at a central point where the local administration
comes to collect them.

How would you say you have changed the livelihoods of the residents in
Kitengela with this noble initiative?

Venturing into this business has seen my friends and I stay off bad company, we are
able to earn a living from the levies we charge the residents who we collect the garbage
from. Besides, we are proud to be associated with keeping our environment clean.

There must be challenges you encounter while undertaking your collections

right? What are some of them, and how do you overcome them?
Absolutely, we have tenants who do not pay up the fees, always giving excuses.
Sometimes, the trucks that come to pick up the wastes delay, making the dump
collection points smelly, stuffy and sometimes even intoxicated. We communicate with
the tenants on time in case of such delays, and their understanding is part of what
keeps us going. Besides, seeing the neighbourhood in a clean state makes us feel like
we are creating an impact and we get the drive to continue.

At ALX, we are challenged to “do hard things.” This is a slogan that the CEO
adopted and was proposed by one of the learners. It means we study very hard
and try to find ways to offer solutions to difficult problems. What advice would
you have for me?

Thank you. I think it's good to always try to do the hard things. However, one does not
have to wait till there is something “big” they can do, to create an impact. It's in exploring
the smallest ways of making change, that will gradually see you get to even do bigger
and better things for you and your community. If there is something you notice not
working well where you live or work, and it wouldn't cost you much to correct/ repair,
step up and do what needs to be done. It is in these tiny aspects that we get to be better
and make better, our neighbourhoods, countries and the world at large.

That's very powerful William. As a parting shot, is there a phrase, saying, quote
that you live by?

I do. “Measure your success by how many people you bless”.

This has been quite inspirational and insightful. Thank you very much.

Welcome. I am glad I have inspired you.