Nelson Mandela Day – Ashanti’s contribution

The theme for Mandela day was  “take action, inspire change”  As a founding member of the Tourism Community Development Trust, Ashanti does  a lot of work on social development projects behind the scenes but on 18th July (Madiba’s birthday) Ashanti staff and backpackers departed with faces painted and hands eager to get ‘down and dirty’.

We travelled in a wonderful GreenCab bus to a primary school in Heideveld.  The Backpack (another great hostel in Cape Town) have a few social development projects on the go there.  I think that it was rather appropriate for Nelson Mandela day, putting our differences aside in the search of a greater good!

Working at a backpackers in Cape Town, the Ashanti staff were cautious when they heard they would be de-weeding, however once they had grasped it they were keen 🙂 We spent the day digging, planting and playing around here and there with the primary school children. We assisted in creating a small greenhouse area to grow herbs and vegetables from, as well as space for sustainable growth of the plants.  The overgrown gardens were cleared of all weeds and alien plants removed – it is amazing how much can get done in such a short period of time with so many pairs of willing hands.

A local community upliftment project, spearheaded by the GCU Academy and supported by the TCD Trust (www.tcdtrust.org.za).