Rahel Mwitula Williams is the lead designer at ILAVA which means “It Can Be Done”. Ilava is a socially responsible lifestyle brand using fashion- mainly African fashion, to empower women and create change globally.
ILAVA is a registered non profit and has enabled Rahel to impact women and leaders across the world.
“ African prints are not a trend. It’s a lifestyle”
Rahel
PARTNERS WITH NONPROFITS IN TANZANIA AND KENYA
Donates 15- 20 % of sales depending on the year
BIKES ARE BOUGHT LOCALLY IN TANZANIA
Rahel can’t wait to to see the end of possibilities.
Connect with Rachel Mwitula Williams : Website | Instagram | Personal IG
[00:00:00] Paula: Welcome to “Chatting with The Experts”, a podcast for immigrant women from Africa and the Caribbean who have relocated to the UK or the US or Canada or even australia here, we talk about things that we have experienced the struggles, the triumphs and some of the disappointments that we might have experienced when we moved abroad. We also share resources that would be helpful to other immigrant women like ourselves. My guest today is a fellow African sister Rahel Mwitula Williams who lives and works in Chicago and that’s of course in the US. She serves as the lead designer of Ilava which is a socially responsible lifestyle brand that uses fashion to empower women and inspire change around the world. Her role in Ilava has not only reinforced her passion for seeking global change but it has also led to her ability to impact women and leaders across the globe through various opportunities. To name a few, Ilava was invited to showcase their latest collection at LA fashion week in 2017 and in 2018, Rahel had an opportunity to represent Ilava at Northwestern university through a TEDx talk called redefining philanthropy faces of change makers. Rahel as I said is from Tanzania and wow, I’m always fascinated with my guests, I always say they’re special so she is of course special but now I’m going to ask her to talk even more about herself because this is so mind bubbling I don’t even know where to stop so Rahel, welcome to “Chatting with The Experts”.
[00:02:23] Rahel: Wow, thank you so much, Paula, I know we tried to do this in January but technology will not let us be great but you know what? We are not a quitter so we just see how everything happens for a reason so I thank you for your flexibility for welcoming me back in to share my story and my journey so thank you so much as you mentioned so I am from Tanzania born and raised. I always say I was born and raised in Tanzania but groomed in the Southside of Chicago, moved to United States when I was 12 so I did not choose Chicago or United States, I was a kid so my parents that was my parents’ decision but I’ll always say looking back at this age, I’ll probably be choose you know, maybe not Chicago in the winter but I would still choose Chicago. My parents migrated here and my father came in 89, he came to continue his education and my mother joined him 6 months later and then of course my sister and I came 2 years later I’m sure a lot of us have that story no, you know, this tech mission of who comes first prepare the way and everybody else follows so when I came it was really hard, I was 12 years old, I don’t listen as you can imagine in any place being 12 years old going on 13, it is a tough time you’re, your body’s changing, you are, emotions are changing, everything about yourself is changing then you are in that place where it’s a different culture and I did not speak one word of English I mean, we learn in Tanzanian just like a subject like most schools here learned French or Spanish, you know, you just know ola como estas may bien that’s much I knew about English, hi, bye, my name is, right so when I came here, I honestly I said, I did not speak English but I went to an amazing because where my father was in school, we live in a very diverse neighborhood in high park so I went to very good school and I had really nice English as a second language community and class stuff. I had my own little kind of international, I would say, our own little UN so that group of students really helped me to define who I am but it was hard the bullying, the teasing, you know, just imagine taking your left over African food lunch to school at seven and eighth grade and everybody is like, what is that? Are you going to eat that? And then you go home and you tell your mom like I don’t want to take this to school anymore just imagine that store does not really go well with the Africans parents and you are not getting McDonald’s. There was days I pretend to be sick so I won’t go to school, I cannot express myself because I did not know the language so it was really hard so I always I tell my parents of course there was opportunity moving like but please why would you move us at that time? You know? But of course I can laugh about it then, but now I did not laugh it then but now I can but so the transition was hard but I had my sister who’s two years older than me so we had each other so really help the transition so I had, you know, very normal childhood in terms of high school, you know, I immerse myself in sports so that really helped my confidence and you know, my accent to today you know, I still, it’s funny because I still have my accent and people ask me why you try to get rid of it I’m like, why would I try to get rid of my identity? So that’s always been, even to today people were like, wow, you have an accent and I’m like, you do too. No, I don’t, I’m like, are you mute? I mean, everybody has an accent, I always tell people trust and believe and I always use bill Clinton and George Bush, you cannot tell me they don’t have those Southern Texas accent I mean, come on so I always tell people if you have a spoken language, you have an accent everybody has an accent you take somebody from New York, Mississippi, North Dakotans and you put them together they are dialect is not the same they have access so is this notion that American stand of English is the final it always bothered me and people was like but you have an accent and I’m like, you do too. What is funny when I go to Tanzania and I speak Swahili they actually questioned me like “You have an accent” when I speak Swahili so I cannot win so like, you know what? Yes, I have an accent when I speak Swahili because my Swahili is being challenged because I’ve been in America for too long and I have an accent when I speak English I’m like, you know, That’s a good compliment, I don’t even see that as an issue but growing up as a teenager that was not a badge of honor that I liked too but as I mentioned, sports and just being active really helped me to define my identity and I’ve always, my parents did not, you know, they continue to send us home in the summer so we will really connected to our culture and our family so when I got to the age where I work in the summer cause I did not go as often even as I was going to college, I’ve always knew going back to Tanzania and that part of me is always going to be who I am so I start, you know, and I’ll always knew like and when we became US citizen, it was different because you know, the movements were not the same and I had to like, I felt like I had to choose so especially when I’m traveling to like European country or Caribbean And people ask where you from, I’m always posing like, oh, do I say Chicago USA? Do I say Tanzanian? Because as soon as I say Tanzania, they it’s almost like, but do you live there? I’m like, no, I live in Chicago was any from Chicago and then when I say I’m from Chicago the person like, but you don’t talk like somebody from Chicago so I can never win so I’m always like Chicago via Tanzania, Tanzania via Chicago, whenever I have two place that I call home so now to me being able to say that I have two place that I call home and I do not have to choose is a pride of my I call Tanzania home, I call United States home specific Chicago so that is always been but it was a journey to accept that and to embrace that and it was not an easy thing because people always make you or force you to choose, like who are you, this notion that you can only be one or the other I just refuse to believe that yes, there’s some things are very black and white but every now and then some of us leave this, you know, this lukewarm gray area and in my life, I feel I calling two places home and doing work that I’m able to I don’t like to say empower because I’m a woman of faith only God can empower somebody, I’m just merely human being who has given the opportunity to connect with other folks and to help other folks so I don’t have the power to empower anybody to be anything I’m just a vessel so I know it’s the language we use a lot but I just, I catch myself sometime when I say I like to empower because I don’t have that power I’m just merely a vessel I try to use the privilege and resource and the lesson that I’ve learned in the past so life is too short for everybody to make all the mistakes so I’m trying to learn and those who have any especially young people wants to ear about my journey I’m all open and to share my stories so I’ve always. I know you mentioned that Ilava is my business and that’s what I do but Ilava is not the only thing that I do professionally also, I am a full-time fundraiser for a nonprofit and I oversee their global funding. I work for faith based organization and I oversee the global mission funding so for sustainability, hunger, development so I really enjoy and it gives me an opportunity especially when I get to raise funds for even though it’s global so there’s Latin America, there’s Asia about the continent of Africa is one of our biggest recipient of a lot of our funds so they bring so much joy for me to be able to be the face of philanthropy and helping other people and inviting other people to make an impact in the world, in the continent that I love and that I call home and yeah, so, but Ilava was my passion I’ve always loved fashion I, and every time during those childhood times I go home, I come back, I’m winning my beautiful African France in the modern way people be like, who did that? Like, well I saw when I was back home and I was like, okay, when you go, when you come back, can you bring me something? So it started that way and when I was in graduate school, I wanted to do my, I did my research and my thesis about grassroots women’s social entrepreneur and how they are key to economic development so I’ve interviewed women in Kenya and in Tanzania those women that you see on the street that a lot of people have no respectful for there’s nothing aggravate my soul when we talk about those women who are cooking, selling their product, they produce or they’re sewing or bead work and we labeled them as unskilled
[00:12:40] Paula: so that’s why I want you to talk about that because the three things I’m here, three threads, there’s the Ilava, there’s the philanthropic work you do and now you’re talking about women that we see on the streets and I guess they’re kind of interwoven into what you do both with their philanthropy and I guess the Ilava is for profit.
[00:13:02] Rahel: Yeah, Ilava is for profit but then there is Ilava gives back is a nonprofit of Ilava so right they all those three into triumph.
[00:13:13] Paula: I want you to talk about how they became intertwined because you’d mentioned that Ilava started primarily because when you were being bullied, when things were being, you know, you were going through your teenage difficulties of transitioning which is very hard I mean, if you, as you said, you came here as a 12 twin 12 years old and then you will put you would, you had to find your way or you were immersed or you were, you know, just put into a school system that didn’t understand you and you didn’t understand that so you, your outlet seemed to have been fashioned which has developed into Ilava which also has like you said, a philanthropic part and then now you started talking about these women that are on the street, I think are all part and parcel about of tell us more about that.
[00:14:04] Rahel: Yeah Great So it’s funny you say that because now I run and I have a business about fashion because I was so bored about how I dressed and wearing secondhand and Payless shoes ,I did not know about name brand so it’s funny that now I design and I style people for something that I actually was bullied and laughed upon it’s just funny so you’re right so when I went to college, I majored psychology and I knew but then I was like I was not sure honestly just like college because I was not sure what I want to do but there’s one thing I’ve always knew whatever I was going to do has to connect me back home but I saw, I thought maybe international law, humans rights because I’m always to be an advocate I’m always advocating for something always see opportunity I I’m grateful that when I see trouble, I don’t see a negative thing I always see like how can this be an opportunity to do something right an invitation to do something so I decided to do my graduate study at DePaul here in Chicago international public service. The title just made sense to me it’s international, it’s public and it’s service I was like, yes, I want to service, I want to public, I want international so during that time, I went to Kenya for startup road honestly, I chose Kenya because Tanzania was not in the option I love you guys from Kenya and you know, we have this love, hate relationship so why in Kenya? It’s interesting because at that time, HIV and aids was like the trending thing, right? Everybody was and so that’s what I thought I was going to do I literally went to Kenya I was going to research about HIV and aids. However, why in Kenya, the whole thing fall apart one of the things we were doing in Kenya, we were visiting various women, social enterprise grassroots, women’s social soul and what I saw what they all had in common was if all these women were given the resource and connected to the right resource they really the talent and the skillset to really change their lives and they just missing that tool they missing that to be able to scale to the next level but also it was bothering me people keep calling them unskilled for some reason if you are not in corporate milk or you are not in wall street or wherever anything else is unskilled workers that I that’s been always bothered me I’m like, there’s nothing about unskilled talent that this woman is joined because this is how she’s feeding her children, this how she is able to send her children to school, this is how she build her house I don’t care how small or unfit you think it is it’s a home, she put that roof there, she put those window with the same unskill quote, unquote job that she has so one of the organization. I connect with was Kibera paper project is a you know, August next year in Kibera, Kenya, for those who do not know, kibera is probably then was the second largest slum in Kibera. K I B E R A and it is crazy because it’s in the middle of Nairobi you stand in Kibera you can see some fancy golf estates crazy yes
[00:17:41] Paula: wow.
[00:17:42] Rahel: The disconnect it was just so these women make greeting cards from recycling paper from A-Z like a to Z like amazing work so I started, I bought their cars, I brought them to Chicago I frame them, I give to my friend, I helped them so for a couple of years I was like, oh, I can help them to sell but then that’s when Ilava was born, I was like in order for this to work, Yeah, I need a plan I need a strategic plan I need the business plan I need Olga’s nation and that was, it gives me hope I was like, you know what? Economic development it lies on these women, these women know exactly what they want they know they have skillset that they can try they just need the market and so that’s how Elavil was born ironic Ilava is actually my childhood name given to me by my maternal grandmother and it means, it can be done.
[00:18:36] Paula: I love it. Back up by that, Ilava means, it can be done.
[00:18:40] Rahel: It can be done.
[00:18:42] Paula: So you don’t have to have like a special committee or you know how to come about with this name it just
[00:18:48] Rahel: no, I was just, this is it, I was very clear if anything, I was so clear is what I was going to name it and I started very small with just greeting cards I did I think so I re you know, I was like, oh, doing business is, you know, I did not register so it was just like volunteer, helping them and then I start, you know, and then I start adding small things. Now, Ilava has clothing line but clothing line did not start until 2016 because I do not draw nor I can sow I can envision, I can pick print, I can close my eyes and picture a beautiful outfit that I want to make and these women and some men who works with Ilava at that time that they can just listen to me and come up with an amazing piece of work
[00:19:37] Paula: so are these women here in the united States or are there those so-called unskilled
[00:19:43] Rahel: it’s those so-called unskilled women and men so this is interesting thing I learned so when so going back, so elaborate start with those Kibera card and we slowly added like jewelry Messiah beat we, and then we had home decor we just slowly but surely add different things remember at this time I’m still working full time and so my sister came along to start helping me with the business but we will really small and because giving back is always been a big part of who we are, philanthropy and giving back as an African I always die, laugh and I talk about this on my Ted talk at Northwestern, I remember in college a professor mentioned that when you look at the list of philanthropy people are giving back our names, African and black people from the continent we don’t come up right? Because we have a very untraditional way of giving. First of all, we don’t give because we want a tax write off giving for us is in our DNA is in our culture right? You can imagine ask any most African, like how much money are they sending home every year to help that surgery, that school fee, that seed full farm I mean, we I always say we invent philanthropy we just did not have the fancy name for it but we are like blue print of what giving back is so I’ve always knew my business had to have the component and not because I want to have a tax write off I actually we did backwards we gave back our sales number not our profit, this, it could be the worst business model we ever came up with me and my sister but it was really important for us to be able to give back during the growth stages of our business it could be wrong I guess time will tell how we are going to grow later on but that part was really Important that’s why Ilava gives back came along so we always, we partner with the other nonprofit in Tanzania and in Kenya also and we look for opportunities for us to engage the, so one of the project right now is called one girl, one bike that we donate funds to help buy bikes for those girls who have to walk two to three hours every day to go to school so you know what that means they in danger, this girl experienced some dangerous things are on their way or men take advantage of them rape they drop out of school because of that then they don’t go to school so we partner with the August Msichana initiative based in Tanzania and they do, they oversee that project so every we based on the donation we receive here in sales we donate bags I think so far we have done over 386 bikes in Tanzania in the raw Tanzania. Also, we do white coat coffee periods with another organization in Tanzania because cycle mistress cycle is in transportation are the number two reason why a lot of girls in the raw Africa do not go to school believe or not this things that we take for granted here, pads are very expensive so for a girl can miss school for 17 days a month because she cannot afford sanitary pads during her cycle so we work with an organization that provide that so we sponsor about 200 girls a year to be able to go to school so for donating funds to be able to buy sanitary pads so that also that’s how giving back and also the people we are working with the women so I wanted to say this when we stopped the intention was to work with women because I was like, I want, you know, women, women, women, missed in the middle of our working we realize the African culture it is not very friendly to women who are working because whether you like or not, that same woman is responsible a hundred percent at home so and we are in Chicago so when we go to Tanzania for production We have two, three weeks to finish production so guess what? We have to work long hours and most women have to leave about three, four o’clock so they can get home and to kill they did not wherever either obligation they have in the morning they may have to be late because they got obligation at home before they give it so I realized really fast my male can that’s when my mail can capitalism kicked in really fast what do you mean you have to leave at three o’clock? What do you mean? You cannot get here till nine o’clock. We only have two weeks to finish this then I realize that it’s not just about giving an opportunity for employment there’s a whole culture needs to change about how we see women and working women in our culture so we have couple of men now working with us for a couple of reasons. Number one because we need people to work longer hours and most men can do that and number two, to have that gender conversation at the workplace so they can see themselves working with men and women these men now see this women like this can be your wife so how would you feel if your wife works here? How would you treat, how would you want other men to treat your wife?
[00:25:34] Paula: that’s right
[00:25:35] Rahel: and then see them as an equal and the peer and also to see themselves at their one is not this, you know, I’m better than you and I, you know, and women to be able to see themselves, I can make as good over a dress just the same as that man Is just again, empower them to just give them the confidence they never, you know, that setting of work, normally those are kind of working seasons, like only women, only men so now having that interaction has really helped the dynamics in their homes too and for them to see themselves that we are peers, we are colleagues and even for myself and my sister when we are there working we are there for wake up with, you know, we are open the shop, we are working, we eat in the same meal, we are doing the same work like you don’t like, and know, that’s another stigma that we are killing because most kind of this work, there’s this high, I’m the boss so I’m sitting in my big sofa drink, nice Coca Cola, you know those African, you know, but I’d be in Tanzania like looking as rough as anybody else sit in the hot sun because where our shop is it’s like outdoor it’s open space so we get fresh, you know, wind and people comes in and they’ll be like, oh, whose in charge of operating this they never assume it’d be me or my sister because we look young, we are women, we are local again, the work that we do normally is associate by a white person went back to the continent is giving back, giving back, doing something with it that population that so-called unskill is never associate with us it’s always associated with that white person what it pisco volunteer fell in love with the country now she heals she is back giving back right? Those are the stories that you hear, those are the ones
[00:27:31] Paula: I’m glad that you and your sister changing the narrative, you are making it well in both ways you’re changing the narrative in that, as you said you are influencing the culture because I know being an African too that it’s a patriarchal societies you know, the man is in charge and I’m not demeaning that demean a man but at the same time I mean, we live in the 20th century so we need to, you know, beaware that in order to eat and I mean, in order to feed your family, you’ve got to adapt and so I love what you and your sister have done which is now you have brought both men and women to work together so as you say they’re learning from each other the man will see oh this is how these women are working and vice versa, then women are saying that, you know, well, what a man can do a women can do as well and at the other side, on the other hand, We’ve also brought in a bit of the American culture to say, you know, we can all work together you know, even though I’m the boss, I’m here working side by side with you there is no, you know because our society too does authoritarian, you know, I’m the boss
[00:28:41] Rahel: yeah, I’m the boss yes you know it paula you know it, it’s a damaging and it’s a very damaging it is and again the time also, they the Western culture of time right because we have this tendency of like, you know, take your time like and so even teaching them yeah and time is money so I’m like time is money and you don’t have it it’s one I always said reminded myself it’s one of non-renewable resource that we tend to waste it can never get it back so that, even that concept but also they teaching me to slow down so it said learning like on both ends it’s a win-win because you know, my American culture kicks in and I’m like, bulls, you know, like it lets me go, let’s do this and but then it’s like, you know, it’s okay to slow down it’s okay to relax it’s so, you know, so finding that balance
[00:29:45] Paula: so I’m going to ask you a question now, so where are you? Because I mean, all good things have to do have to come to an end and we’ve been talking about this amazing business and philanthropy, the intersectionality of all of it. Where are you now with everything? With the Ilava with the philanthropic work you’re doing with the One girl, One bike is that it? Yeah.
[00:30:11] Rahel: And comfy period, comfy we said comfortable period so we want them to have a comfortable period
[00:30:17] Paula: I mean, this is 2021 oh my God, this is 2022. Come on paula where are you, I’d love to know that so that we can, you know, tell people how to find you, how to give, you know, and as you say
[00:30:32] Rahel: yeah, so Ilava still growing we the place where we want to be able to scale, we are looking for retail partners to be able to kill some of our amazing you know, where it’s February so we tend to be busy because everybody want to wear some African prints because it’s black history month and this is the moment that I wanna remind people Africans fashion is not a trend it’s a lifestyle so our tagline is always it’s a lifestyle not a trend because I am black I’m African all year long I just don’t wear African print in February so I challenged for those who have that mentor to really think about that if you go to our website you can shop, you can it’s. My Ilava is MY ILAVA.COM there you will see we have a new arrival coming soon after we were supposed to have it this week but again the production is a little bit behind so it should be up and available when you arrive or by February 15 and then there, you also see an opportunity to give back so even though it Ilava donates portion of ourselves we do it between 10 and 15% it depends on the ear and the sales number but because Ilava gives back is a registered nonprofit you can still donate towards the one girl, one bike, it costs $75 to for one bike and the reason that surprise not only we buy those bike locally so we can stimulate the economy we don’t ship bikes from United States also because bike made to go riding United States or not the terrains in the continent so you take your fence to the little bag from here you put that on the village is going to be busing broken two days because the terrains they are different so we buy them locally one, to stimulate the economy two, because they bikes made two for the terrains of Africa tanzania is different from here and also we provide the kids with the locks to be able to lock their bag transportation from the city where we buy the back to the village so all of that equal $75 and believe on that it costs $2 to sponsor a month to sponsor one girl so you can imagine $2 to sponsor one girl a month so I always tell women this remember when you are going to the store buy you a self-care things think about that you can donate what that body mass 2 times 12 is what? 24 so $24 yeah you can sponsor one girl to be able to freely comfortably be able to go to school without thinking about where her next sanitary pad is going to come from so if you can definitely donate to one of those two projects and we are always looking for either organization and in the continent now, people ask me, I just want to say this part we don’t have a lot of time. why turn you know, why not Zambia or Zimbabwe I’m from Tanzania and I had to start where I’m not necessarily married to Tanzania I am married to the continent so when God-willing Ilava grows and we at the place where we are, we have partners in the other country with his Malawi, with his Senegal, where they Zimbabwe and we able to grow and to start working with nonprofit there or even make up a production that I was in Senegal last summer oh my God the fashions there is amazing the clothes that I was like, oh my God, I would love to incorporate that so it’s all about resource and capital so we are hoping to grow to scale and to be able to incorporate I had a fashion from the continent and I, that nonprofit I’m all about the girls because I was once the girl who was bullied, who didn’t, I had to find a way to love her culture and to love who she is and so every time I see that little African girl, I see right hell and I am I’ve met my life mission to forever serve that girl to see that to honor that girl and to tell her that I see you, I hear you, and you are amazing. So I am this is why I do this and I’m just grateful to be able to do that and to have a job that actually allows me to invest back in my passion and what I love and to give back to my beloved continent of Africa so, yeah oh, I am just grateful to be able to give back and to do the work that allowed me to serve my beloved, the continent of Africa. I always laugh because I tell people is the continent of Africa so Africa,
[00:35:19] Paula: not great continent of Africa they call it.
[00:35:22] Rahel: of Africa and specific Tanzania as again, I am God-willing, I’m open, whatever the wind takes us to the continent we’ll go and we’ll love people support
[00:35:33] Paula: Absolutely this has been absolutely I’m, I’ve lost for an adjective to fill me in with one give me one this has been, I enjoyed to see the passion and the thing that you have, you know, for the work that you do as you said, it’s not just because it’s not just for you, it’s for first of all, the continent of Africa and then when we the country of Tanzania
[00:36:00] Rahel: Tanzanians yeah and I want them to see themselves and this is going to sound a little weird I tell people this I’m not bill gates I’m not Oprah but trust and believe each one of us you are bill gates and open to somebody you are and when I am back home, I’m in those villages and I see busy little girls and they see me and it’s not about my ego it just reminded me to work harder and there’s nothing’s too small when you’re doing good just imagine $2 $75 that is millions to somebody, somebody’s future depends on that
[00:36:42] Paula: you can change a whole generation just by that school, education makes a world of difference I saw it when I lived in Nigeria you know, just the fact that somebody became a university graduate there, as you said, we always give back that’s our culture so they look back into the summer and you train the next person put them through school and that person then, you know, you have a generation of educated people and that makes a world of different, your mindset changes see growth, you know, the possibilities are endless.
[00:37:19] Rahel: Oh, I always say that Anne Lister so where’s Ilava we are ready to see the endless possibility where this can go
[00:37:27] Paula: I love it can I just say being black history month there’s nothing better than being able to showcase someone who says African prints are not a trend then this is not a trend
[00:37:40] Rahel: It’s a lifestyle maybe when I take this off, I’m still African it runs in my it’s in my vain, it pumps daily, you know, uh, it’s my lifestyle it’s who I am so but I express it with clothes and that’s what it is so I welcome people to do the same
[00:37:59] Paula: thank you so as we come to and then remind our listeners where they can find you online. Are you on Instagram? Are you on Facebook? Tell us.
[00:38:09] Rahel: Yeah. So, oh, online is a www.myIlava.com our Instagram same thing it’s my Ilava Facebook, my Ilava we made it easiest so you can definitely follow us, connect with us. We’ll go back to writing a newsletter to share more content about our stories and sharing this story so, yes, my Ilava MYILAVA.COM and all the social media MY Ilava
[00:38:47] Paula: myIlava.com, it can be done
[00:38:50] Rahel: yes.
[00:38:51] Paula: Being featured on TEDx, Fox news and Fox 32 and the Huffington post so HuffPost
[00:39:00] Rahel: often I’ve been a part of Chicago fair trade which is an amazing organization that allows us to connect with like-minded businesses so it has opened up doors for a lot of opportunity to be featured in news and share our stories so
[00:39:17] Paula: love it and so for my listeners if you have just enjoyed what you heard from another fabulous guest on “chatting with an expert” please head over to apple podcast, Google
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[00:39:28] Paula: podcast, Spotify, anywhere that you listen to podcasts and follow us and also click subscribe and if you are an amazing woman just like Rahel from Africa, the continent of Africa, not the country and mind you, there is no country of Africa or from the Caribbean and you’ve found these stories or this show fascinating when we showcase our sisters from these regions of the world if you’d love to be a guest why not head over to my website which is chatting with the experts.com / contact us and let’s chat.
[00:40:10] Rahel: Thank you.
[00:40:13] Paula: Tell me, tell us about that.
[00:40:16] Rahel: It’s thank you in Swahili. Thank you very much. Exactly. Thank you very much sona is much so I asante sona