This year I partnered with the Himalayan Cataract Project and imagine1day and produced Ethiopia’s first ever running trail race. Here’s what happened: –179 runners competed in Ethiopia’s first ever trail race. –871 successful sight-restoring surgeries were performed. –1 new library was funded to serve 500 primary school students and a 1000-person rural community in the heart of Northern Ethiopia. Running is universal. That’s part … Read More
Change the Conversation: Interviews with Accelerate Ethiopia
On March 2nd over 150 runners will compete in Ethiopia’s first ever trail race– a half marathon in the country’s northern mountain highlands. The race is a culmination of a week of shared contribution to the eye health and educational strength of Ethiopia with Himalayan Cataract Project and imagine1day. In the days leading up to the race I will be bringing you profiles of Accelerate Ethiopia–runners (including … Read More
That’s My Life: Interviews with Accelerate Ethiopia
Interviews with Accelerate Ethiopia On March 2nd over 150 runners will compete in Ethiopia’s first ever trail race– a half marathon in the country’s northern mountain highlands. The race is a culmination of a week of shared contribution to the eye health and educational strength of Ethiopia with Himalayan Cataract Project and imagine1day. In the days leading up to the race I will … Read More
Accelerate Ethiopia: The Beginning
This week, eleven committed runners will join elite athletes Scott Jurek, Gebre Gebremariam and Yemane Tsegay, along with 150 up and coming Ethiopian runners for the first ever trail race in the cradle of humanity, culminating a week of shared contribution to the eye health and educational strength of Ethiopia. Last week I had the opportunity to sit down and … Read More
I Can’t Go to Ethiopia This Year, Can You Instead?
This October, a powerful, engaged, and curious team is heading to Ethiopia to both change the world, and change how they interact in that world. Usually, I’d be joining them. But this year I need you to take my place. Imagine Ethiopia 2012 is the third iteration of a dream I helped create in 2009 with imagine1day. Our goal was simple: enable … Read More
The Best Worst Idea
I’m in Africa, again. And on this trip, Africa x 3. My bags are loaded with what I need to find the course for a trail race in Ethiopia’s high sandstone escarpments, to lead a trip where I and fourteen others will rock climb, mountain bike, and do yoga from Lake Langano’s western shore to Tigray’s northern fields, and to journey … Read More
Imagine Ethiopia 2011: You Can “Go” From Home
As one of the leaders of Imagine Ethiopia 2011, I wanted to share a progress update to inspire and potentially involve you in our next steps. Read on for more. Earlier this year, Vancouver-based charitable organization, imagine1day, launched their second annual Imagine Ethiopia trip: a two-week adventure that takes participants on a daily exploration of the best that Ethiopia has to offer. imagine1day … Read More
Three Ways to Do Something About Famine in Africa (From Forbes.com)
A guest blog by Majka Burhardt on Frederik Allen’s Leadership blog on Forbes.com. There is famine in the Horn of Africa. Of course. Isn’t there always? Are you cringing yet? Good. Here are three things we can do now to help the Horn of Africa, beyond just sending famine relief: (1) Change the conversation. (2) Invest in the positive. (3) Tackle … Read More
Coffee Story: Ethiopia Available Now, Needed Now
Signed Copies Available Above* You may also purchase at It’s a big day for me today. It’s the day Coffee Story Ethiopia comes out, and moreover it is the day I get to thank everyone who has helped support and create this amazing project. We’ve done it. This morning a friend asked me to write her a note about … Read More
Going Big
In Conjunction with Pemba Serves Five days ago I drove out of Eldorado Canyon after seven pitches of climbing with two professional women who live in Boulder. We’d spent the day climbing sandstone cracks freshly crisped by the proceeding evening storms. The river roared beneath us for the full day making communication difficult and creating isolation of judgment and choices for … Read More