121 guests delved into the world of Aiducation and its impact in 2017 at the Impact Dinner in Zurich on October 25 2017. In between dinner and tombola prizes, Dr. Ringier shared her passion for education, AiduAlumnus Obrein Telly shared his past, present and hopes for the future with us, and we got glimpses into two novel academies: the E&Y leadership academy and the Swiss Study Foundation mobility academy. Until next year!

The fourth Impact Dinner brought together 121 people,who support the cause of Aiducation at the Dozentenfoyer of ETH Zurich on the 25th of October.

Guests enjoying the apéro on the terrace of the Dozentenfoyer

We were greeted by Dr. Ellen Ringier who presides over the Stiftung Elternsein, which strives for parent empowerment through education, and who has dedicated the past 25 years to NPOs and NGOs.

“Aid and Education, I share both goals with you, unconditionally and without any restriction!”,

she told us. She then highlighted how privileged we were to have been born in Europe rather than in, say, Syria and the responsibility this puts on our shoulders:

“To my mind we cannot be thankful enough for the favorable background that enabled us to become what we are. And it is this fact, that in itself obliges us to aid others, others who’s destiny was, is and will never be, to have had, have and will have a choice in life.”

Dr. Ringier addresses the 121 guests in her welcome speech.

She regretted that nowadays fewer people take this responsibility to heart. Her youth as a girl guide was guided by Lord Baden-Powell’s words

“It’s not what you can get, it’s what you can give that is important.”

She worked as a lawyer until the age of 40 and then quit disheartened. She finally learnt what Benjamin Franklin’s quote “time is money” really meant: Do not waste time and use it wisely to acquire knowledge. Because, as he justly wrote:

“The way to wealth: An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.”

She finished her speech by praising Aiducation and all Aiducators for providing access to education and to freedom of choice, as well as for equalizing equality of chances. Read Dr. Ringier’s full speech here.

AiduAlumnus Obrein Telly on a short visit from his internship in London.

One of the over 1200 students who have gained such perspectives through Aiducation was present to share his very own story: 26-year-old Obrein Telly. Obrein grew up in a large family in Nakuru, Kenya, where all family members shared a single room and he used to sleep on unused clothes at night for some meager comfort. Still, Obrein believed that this was not it, that his background would not limit him. He passed his schools with flying colors, went on to study law in Nairobi and currently completes an internship with Swiss Re in London. His heart is set on Kenya though: He dreams of impacting his country as a politician and ultimately as its president. “What I have achieved together with Kenyans is what most of them were dreaming of”, he already wrote on his application to Aiducation back in 2009.

Aiducation has been changing lives in Kenya and the Philippines for 10 years in 2017 and we were happy to greet two of its founders, Florian Kapitza and Eva Köberl. They recalled the early days when they discussed late into the night about their business plan around a lot of cheese for lack of money for fancier food. How much Aiducation has evolved in its first 10 years! They look forward to a bright future where many more lives will be changed.

Co-founders Eva Köberl and Florian Kapitza remember the early days

Two more impact highlights from 2017 were also shared with us:

• The first academy with E&Y took place in Nairobi in July 2017 on the topic of leadership. A video let us enjoy a lot of happy faces.
• A joint academy with the Swiss Study Foundation, that supports excellent students in Switzerland, was held in Nairobi in July 2017. 15 students from Switzerland and 30 from Kenya joined forces to work on challenges in mobility.

Guests getting ready for the tombola

It was a very successful and pleasant evening where guests went home with new impressions, great tombola prizes and a record 19 new scholarships were raised.

Aiducation thanks AiduAmbassador Kim Johansson for her support, Amelia Meier for the moderation, and all AiduAmbassadors, volunteers and sponsors who helped make the evening a success.

Listen to some of the guests sharing their thoughts on Aiducation and why they are part of it:

Robin Grünbichler – AiduMaker

Dominic Hofer – Ambassador

Monica Dreyer-Staub – Ambassadorin