OUR WORK
NETWORKING SOUTH AFRICA'S 73 TOWNSHIPS
InSTED serves as a bridge, connecting 73 township communities across South Africa. By sharing educational programs, resources, ideas, and support, InSTED empowers residents to implement sustainable practices within their communities. Through partnerships, networking, and collaboration, InSTED facilitates the sharing of knowledge and resources among fragile communities, fostering aspirational, peer-to-peer learning and collective action. By bridging the gap between township communities, InSTED promotes unity, resilience, and sustainability, driving positive change across South Africa.
AGRI-ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Black City Farm and U Can Grow, partner to empower individuals and create livelihoods in local communities. Together, they equip aspiring agri-entrepreneurs with the necessary knowledge, skills, and resources to thrive in the agricultural sector. Through collaborative efforts, participants receive comprehensive training in sustainable farming practices, crop management, livestock care, market analysis, and financial management. Additionally, access to land, equipment, seeds, and mentorship is provided, ensuring aspiring entrepreneurs have the support they need to start and sustain their agricultural businesses. Beneficiation of the produce that is grown ensures maximum economic value is extracted. Chili sauces and plant-based soups are products that sell well. Affordable plant-based meals in community cafés and surplus given to ECDs ensure the community’s dietary and nutritional needs are met.
WOMEN AND YOUTH EMPOWERMENT
Through our strategic partnerships with GIRL’S ADVOCACY LEADERSHIP EDUCATION (GALE) and WOMEN ARE POWER (WomAP), InSTED specifically supports women and girl’s empowerment development as this plays a vital role in fostering leadership and economic empowerment in fragile communities. GALE offers leadership and advocacy workshops for girls aged 14-21, helping them develop self-confidence, communication, and decision-making skills to create positive social change and ensure a smooth transition into adulthood. WOMEN ARE POWER focuses on empowering women from underserved communities through basic education, entrepreneurship, and digital literacy training. The primary goal is to achieve financial independence, with a secondary goal of accessing better job and entrepreneurship opportunities. These programs collectively promote gender equality and drive economic growth.
COMMUNITY BASED TOURISM
Community-based tourism (CBT) ‘people & culture’ , ‘going & doing’ is one of the fastest-growing tourism sectors globally. The ‘sharing economy’ e.g. UBER and Airbnb open opportunities for township communities to participate in tourism and in turn drive development from the ground up. Strategic relationships with tourism stakeholders; willing to partner over the long term, who give equal priority to the community as well as their visitor’s needs, can create sustainable tourism development in partnership with the broader community’s needs and aspirations.
