TEDWomen 2015
Achenyo Idachaba: How I turned a deadly plant into a thriving business
Achenyo Idachaba: Ako som zmenila smrtiacu rastlinu na prosperujúci obchod.
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Vodný Hyacint môže vyzerať ako neškodný, dokonca ako krásna kvitnúca rastlina - ale je to vlastne invazívna vodná burina, ktorá upcháva vodné cesty, znemožňuje obchodovanie, prerušuje školskú dochádzku a narušuje každodenný život. V tejto pohrome podnikateľka Achenyo Idachaba videla príležitosť. Nasledujete jej cestu, ako dokázala zmeniť burinu na utkané divy.
Achenyo Idachaba - Green entrepreneur
Achenyo Idachaba is the head of MitiMeth, a Nigeria-based company that makes handicrafts from aquatic weeds and other agro-waste. Full bio
Achenyo Idachaba is the head of MitiMeth, a Nigeria-based company that makes handicrafts from aquatic weeds and other agro-waste. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
Welcome to Bayeku,
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Vitajte v Bayeku,
00:15
a riverine community in Ikorodu, Lagos --
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riečnej komunite z Ikorodu, v Lagose,
00:18
a vivid representation of several
riverine communities across Nigeria,
riverine communities across Nigeria,
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ktorá predstavuje jednu z mnohých
komunít po celej Nigérii,
komunít po celej Nigérii,
00:24
communities whose waterways
have been infested
have been infested
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komunity, ktorých vodné cesty
boli napadnuté agresívnou vodnou riasou;
boli napadnuté agresívnou vodnou riasou;
00:28
by an invasive aquatic weed;
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00:31
communities where economic livelihoods
have been hampered:
have been hampered:
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komunity, ktorých ekonomická
samostatnosť bola obmedzená:
samostatnosť bola obmedzená:
00:37
fishing, marine transportation
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rybolov, vodná preprava a obchod;
00:40
and trading;
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00:41
communities where fish yields
have diminished;
have diminished;
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komunity, ktorých produktivita v rybolove
sa stále zmenšuje,
sa stále zmenšuje,
00:45
communities where schoolchildren
are unable to go to school
are unable to go to school
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komunity, kde deti nemôžu chodiť do školy
00:50
for days, sometimes weeks, on end.
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niekoľko dní, niekedy celé týždne,
stále dookola.
stále dookola.
00:54
Who would have thought that this plant
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Kto by to bol povedal, že táto rastlina
00:57
with round leaves, inflated stems,
and showy, lavender flowers
and showy, lavender flowers
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s kruhovými listami, nafuknutými stopkami,
a nápadnými levanduľovými kvetmi
a nápadnými levanduľovými kvetmi
01:04
would cause such havoc
in these communities.
in these communities.
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spôsobí takú pohromu v týchto komunitách.
01:08
The plant is known as water hyacinth
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Rastlina je známa ako vodný hyacint
01:11
and its botanical name,
Eichhornia crassipes.
Eichhornia crassipes.
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a jej botanické meno
je Eichhornia crassipes.
je Eichhornia crassipes.
01:14
Interestingly, in Nigeria,
the plant is also known by other names,
the plant is also known by other names,
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V Nigérii je táto rastlina známa aj
pod inými menami,
pod inými menami,
01:18
names associated with historical events,
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menami spojenými s historickými
udalosťami a mýtmi.
udalosťami a mýtmi.
01:21
as well as myths.
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01:23
In some places,
the plant is called Babangida.
the plant is called Babangida.
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Niekde je nazývaná Babangida.
01:27
When you hear Babangida, you remember
the military and military coups.
the military and military coups.
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Keď počujete Babangida, spomeniete si na
armádu a armádne manévre.
armádu a armádne manévre.
01:32
And you think: fear, restraint.
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S tým spojený strach a obmedzenia.
01:36
In parts of Nigeria in the Niger Delta,
the plant is also known as Abiola.
the plant is also known as Abiola.
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V delte rieky Niger je táto rastlina
známa aj ako Abiola.
známa aj ako Abiola.
01:41
When you hear Abiola,
you remember annulled elections
you remember annulled elections
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Keď počujete Abiola, spomeniete si
na anulované voľby
na anulované voľby
01:46
and you think: dashed hopes.
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a pomyslíte si: zničené nádeje.
01:48
In the southwestern part of Nigeria,
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V juhozápadnej časti Nigérie
01:51
the plant is known as Gbe'borun.
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sa táto rastlina nazýva Gbe'borun.
01:53
Gbe'borun is a Yoruba phrase
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Gbe'borun je fráza z nárečia Yoruba
01:55
which translates to "gossip,"
or "talebearer."
or "talebearer."
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a znamená to "klebetiť" alebo "donášať".
01:59
When you think of gossip, you think:
rapid reproduction, destruction.
rapid reproduction, destruction.
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Keď sa povie klebetiť, pomyslíte si:
rýchle opakovanie, zničenie.
rýchle opakovanie, zničenie.
02:05
And in the Igala-speaking part of Nigeria,
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A v časti Nigérie, kde sa hovorí
jazykom Igala,
jazykom Igala,
02:07
the plant is known as A Kp'iye Kp'oma,
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je rastlina známa ako A Kp'iye Kp'oma,
02:10
And when you hear that,
you think of death.
you think of death.
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A keď budete počuť toto,
pomyslíte na smrť.
pomyslíte na smrť.
02:13
It literally translates
to "death to mother and child."
to "death to mother and child."
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Doslova to preložíme ako
"smrť matke a jej dieťaťu."
"smrť matke a jej dieťaťu."
02:18
I personally had my encounter
with this plant in the year 2009.
with this plant in the year 2009.
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Ja osobne som sa s touto rastlinou
stretla v roku 2009.
stretla v roku 2009.
02:23
It was shortly after I had relocated
from the US to Nigeria.
from the US to Nigeria.
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Bolo to krátko po tom, čo som sa
presťahovala z USA do Nigérie.
presťahovala z USA do Nigérie.
02:28
I'd quit my job in corporate America
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Skončila som s prácou
v korporátnej Amerike
v korporátnej Amerike
02:31
and decided to take
this big leap of faith,
this big leap of faith,
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a rozhodla sa urobiť veľký skok,
02:34
a leap of faith that came
out of a deep sense of conviction
out of a deep sense of conviction
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skok, ktorý sa zmenil v hlboký
pocit presvedčenia,
pocit presvedčenia,
že v Nigérii je veľa práce,
ktorú treba urobiť
ktorú treba urobiť
02:38
that there was a lot of work
to do in Nigeria
to do in Nigeria
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02:40
in the area of sustainable development.
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v oblasti udržateľného rozvoja.
02:42
And so here I was in the year 2009,
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A tak som sa tam ocitla v roku 2009,
02:45
actually, at the end of 2009,
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vlastne to už bolo na koci roku 2009,
02:48
in Lagos on the Third Mainland Bridge.
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v Lagose na Third Mainland Bridge.
02:51
And I looked to my left
and saw this very arresting image.
and saw this very arresting image.
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Pozrela som sa vľavo a naskytol
sa mi pútavý obraz.
sa mi pútavý obraz.
02:55
It was an image of fishing boats
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Obraz rybárskych lodí,
02:57
that had been hemmed in
by dense mats of water hyacinth.
by dense mats of water hyacinth.
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ktoré boli v obkľúčení vodných hyacintov.
03:03
And I was really pained by what I saw
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To, čo som videla, ma zabolelo,
03:05
because I thought to myself,
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a pomyslela som si:
03:07
"These poor fisherfolk,
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"Chudáci rybári,
ako v takýchto podmienkach
ako v takýchto podmienkach
03:09
how are they going
to go about their daily activities
to go about their daily activities
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zvládajú každodenné činnosti
s týmito obmedzeniami."
s týmito obmedzeniami."
03:13
with these restrictions."
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03:16
And then I thought,
"There's got to be a better way."
"There's got to be a better way."
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A potom som si pomyslela:
"Musí byť predsa lepší spôsob."
"Musí byť predsa lepší spôsob."
03:19
A win-win solution whereby
the environment is taken care of
the environment is taken care of
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Riešenie, aby boli všetci spokojní,
životné prostredie udržiavané
životné prostredie udržiavané
03:24
by the weeds being cleared out of the way
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tak, že rastliny budú odstraňované
03:26
and then this being turned
into an economic benefit
into an economic benefit
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a potom sa premenia v ekonomický prínos
03:29
for the communities
whose lives are impacted the most
whose lives are impacted the most
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pre komunity, v ktorých život bol
najviac poznačený
najviac poznačený
03:32
by the infestation of the weed.
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premnožením tejto rastliny.
03:35
That, I would say, was my spark moment.
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Ten moment bol pre mňa impulzom.
03:38
And so I did further research
to find out more
to find out more
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A tak som sa pustila do hľadania
ďalších informácií
ďalších informácií
03:42
about the beneficial uses of this weed.
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ako využiť tú rastlinu.
03:45
Out of the several,
one struck me the most.
one struck me the most.
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Z viacerých možností jedna sa mi páčila
nadovšetko.
nadovšetko.
03:48
It was the use of the plant
for handicrafts.
for handicrafts.
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Bola to možnosť využiť tú rastlinu
v remeslách.
v remeslách.
03:51
And I thought, "What a great idea."
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Pomyslela som si, že je to výborný nápad.
03:54
Personally, I love handicrafts,
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Osobne milujem remeslá,
03:56
especially handicrafts
that are woven around a story.
that are woven around a story.
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Hlavne ručné remeslá,
ktoré sú pretkané príbehom.
ktoré sú pretkané príbehom.
04:01
And so I thought, "This could be
easily deployed within the communities
easily deployed within the communities
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Pomyslela som si: "Toto by mohlo byť
jednoducho uskutočniteľné v komunitách
jednoducho uskutočniteľné v komunitách
04:05
without the requirement
of technical skills."
of technical skills."
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bez potreby technického vybavenia."
04:09
And I thought to myself,
"Three simple steps to a mega solution."
"Three simple steps to a mega solution."
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A tak som si pomyslela:
"Tri jednoduché kroky k mega riešeniu."
"Tri jednoduché kroky k mega riešeniu."
04:15
First step: Get out into the waterways
and harvest the water hyacinth.
and harvest the water hyacinth.
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Prvý krok: Vybrať sa k vodným cestám a
zozbierať vodný hyacint.
zozbierať vodný hyacint.
04:20
That way, you create access.
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Tak si zabezpečíte prístup.
04:22
Secondly, you dry
the water hyacinth stems.
the water hyacinth stems.
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Druhý krok: Vysušiť stonky hyacintu.
04:27
And thirdly, you weave
the water hyacinth into products.
the water hyacinth into products.
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Tretí krok: Utkať z vodneho hyacintu produkt.
04:32
The third step was a challenge.
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Tretí krok bola výzva.
04:34
See, I'm a computer scientist
by background
by background
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Viete, ja mám základy ako
počítačová expertka
počítačová expertka
04:37
and not someone in the creative arts.
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a nie ako niekto, kto má byť kreatívny.
04:40
And so I began my quest
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A tak sa začala moja cesta
04:42
to find out how I can learn how to weave.
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nájsť spôsob ako sa naučím tkať.
04:45
And this quest took me
to a community in Ibadan, where I lived,
to a community in Ibadan, where I lived,
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Moja cesta ma zaviedla do komunity
v Ibadane, kde som potom žila,
v Ibadane, kde som potom žila,
04:49
called Sabo.
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nazývaná Sabo.
Sabo znamená "čudné miesto."
04:50
Sabo translates to "strangers' quarters."
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Komunita bola zložená
hlavne z ľudí
hlavne z ľudí
04:53
And the community is
predominantly made up of people
predominantly made up of people
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Ktorý pochádzali zo severnej časti
krajiny.
krajiny.
04:56
from the northern part of the country.
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04:58
So I literally took
my dried weeds in hand,
my dried weeds in hand,
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Takže som vzala vysušené
rastliny do ruky,
rastliny do ruky,
05:01
there were several more of them,
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bolo ich celkom dosť,
a vydala sa od dverí k dverám najsť
niekoho, kto by ma naučil
niekoho, kto by ma naučil
05:03
and went knocking from door to door
to find out who could teach me
to find out who could teach me
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05:06
how to weave these
water hyacinth stems into ropes.
water hyacinth stems into ropes.
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ako utkať z vodných hyacintov lano.
Poslali ma k chalupe Malam Yahaya.
05:10
And I was directed
to the shed of Malam Yahaya.
to the shed of Malam Yahaya.
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Problém bol, že on nevedel po anglicky
05:14
The problem, though,
is that Malam Yahaya doesn't speak English
is that Malam Yahaya doesn't speak English
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a ja som neovládala reč Hausa.
05:17
and neither did I speak Hausa.
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Našťastie nám pomohli malé deti
05:20
But some little kids came to the rescue
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a pomáhali nám sa dorozumieť.
05:22
and helped translate.
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Tak sa začala moja cesta učenia sa tkať
05:24
And that began my journey
of learning how to weave
of learning how to weave
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A tak premeniť suché stonky
vodných hyacintov
vodných hyacintov
05:27
and transform these
dried water hyacinth stems
dried water hyacinth stems
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na dĺhe laná.
05:31
into long ropes.
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05:35
With my long ropes in hand,
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S lanami v rukách,
som mala všetko na výrobenie
konečného výrobku.
konečného výrobku.
05:37
I was now equipped to make products.
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Takto vzniklo partnerstvo.
05:40
And that was the beginning
of partnerships.
of partnerships.
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V spolupráci s košikármi sme
vymysleli produky.
vymysleli produky.
05:43
Working with rattan basket makers
to come up with products.
to come up with products.
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05:47
So with this in hand, I felt confident
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Všetko sedelo a verila som
že budem schopná tieto vedomosti odovzdať
05:50
that I would be able
to take this knowledge
to take this knowledge
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05:52
back into the riverine communities
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riečnym komunitám
05:54
and help them to transform
their adversity into prosperity.
their adversity into prosperity.
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a pomôcť im tak pretransformovať ich
starosti v prosperitu.
starosti v prosperitu.
Pozbierajú rastliny a utkajú z nich
05:59
So taking these weeds
and actually weaving them
and actually weaving them
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06:03
into products that can be sold.
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produkty, ktoré môžu predať.
06:05
So we have pens, we have tableware,
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Máme perá, máme riad,
máme peňaženky, máme krabice na servítky.
06:09
we have purses, we have tissue boxes.
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06:13
Thereby, helping the communities
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Takto pomáhame komunitám
06:15
to see water hyacinth
in a different light.
in a different light.
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aby videli vodné hyacinty v inom svetle.
Aby videli ich hodnotu,
06:19
Seeing water hyacinth as being valuable,
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06:21
being aesthetic,
being durable, tough, resilient.
being durable, tough, resilient.
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sú estetické, sú trváce, odolné
a nepoddajné.
a nepoddajné.
Zmena mena, zmena živobytia.
06:27
Changing names, changing livelihoods.
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06:31
From Gbe'borun, gossip,
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Z Gbe'borun klebety
06:34
to Olusotan, storyteller.
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na Olusotan rozprávač.
06:37
And from A Kp'iye Kp'oma,
which is "killer of mother and child,"
which is "killer of mother and child,"
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A z A Kp'iye Kp'oma,
čo znamená "vrah žien a detí,"
čo znamená "vrah žien a detí,"
na Ya du j'ewn w'Iye kp'Oma,
06:41
to Ya du j'ewn w'Iye kp'Oma,
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06:43
"provider of food for mother and child."
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"poskytovateľ jedla pre matku a dieťa."
06:46
And I'd like to end
with a quote by Michael Margolis.
with a quote by Michael Margolis.
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Chcela by som to zakončiť citátom
Michaela Margolisa.
Michaela Margolisa.
Ktorý povedal: "Ak sa chcete dozvedieť
o kultúre počúvajte príbehy.
o kultúre počúvajte príbehy.
06:50
He said, "If you want to learn
about a culture, listen to the stories.
about a culture, listen to the stories.
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06:55
And if you want to change a culture,
change the stories."
change the stories."
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A ak chcete zmeniť kultúru,
zmente príbehy."
zmente príbehy."
A tak od komunity Makoko,
cez Abobiri, cez Ewoi,
cez Abobiri, cez Ewoi,
06:59
And so, from Makoko community,
to Abobiri, to Ewoi,
to Abobiri, to Ewoi,
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cez Kolo, po Owahwa, Esaba,
07:05
to Kolo, to Owahwa, Esaba,
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my sme zmenili ich príbehy.
07:08
we have changed the story.
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07:11
Thank you for listening.
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Ďakujem za pozornosť.
07:12
(Applause)
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(Potlesk)
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Achenyo Idachaba - Green entrepreneurAchenyo Idachaba is the head of MitiMeth, a Nigeria-based company that makes handicrafts from aquatic weeds and other agro-waste.
Why you should listen
In 2009, Achenyo Idachaba bid her corporate career in the United States goodbye and relocated to Nigeria to start a new chapter as a social entrepreneur. She founded Greennovative Chain, which provided research and advocacy services in climate change mitigation, and later founded MitiMeth, a for-profit social enterprise based in Ibadan, Nigeria, which she considers a tangible expression of her research advice.
MitiMeth creates eco-friendly handicrafts like home décor and personal accessories from weeds prevalent on Nigeria’s waterways. The company also conducts training workshops for locals on river handicraft product development.
Achenyo Idachaba | Speaker | TED.com