Pulitzer Center Update

This Week: 2016 Olympian Runs for the Future of Congo

Kirotshe runners

The runners in Project Kirotshe take off through forested mountains. For participating in the club, they each get a stipend to pay school fees. Image by Fiston Sadiki. Democratic Republic of Congo, 2016.

What Makes the Kids of Congo Run
Daniel Socha

Watch for 19-year old Beatrice Kamuchanga at the Olympics next week—she'll be running the 5,000 meter for the DRC. Beatrice got her start in a running program in Eastern Congo called Project Kirotshe. Daniel Socha, our Kent State University student fellow, reports that the program encourages youth to stay in school and covers the school fees for 53 students. It’s the brainchild of Dee Salukombo, a Congolese war refugee who attended Denison University and then returned home to create Project Kirotshe. Dee will be in Rio too, running the marathon.

See the related lesson from our Lesson Builder tool.

Denmark: Alone, Pregnant, in Hiding

Ana Santos and Allison Shelley

Denmark’s au pair program, once banned and newly reformed, continues to attract large numbers of Filipino women. Grantees Ana Santos and Allison Shelley report on au pairs who are mistreated, overstay their visas—or get pregnant.

Malawi's She-Chief Fights HIV
Amy Maxmen

In Malawi, where 10.3 percent of the population live with HIV, Senior Chief Theresa Kachindamoto has taken measures to end child marriage and see that children return to school. Amy Maxmen interviewed the royal leader at the International AIDS Conference in Durban, South Africa.