Developing a sustainable way of living
This site is about SEEtrust, a private initiative dedicated to support local communities to create a better future for themselves. SEE stands for Social and Economical Empowerment. SEE also stands for seeing: seeing others, seeing strengths, seeing possibilities, seeing a future. The Word trust indicates that it is a business trust. But it means more: trusting in people and their future, trusting each other.
Our vision is that we live in one world, one community, and we have a common interest in working towards a better future. Our ambition is social and economical empowerment through creating enabling conditions: care facilities and educational facilities for children, work and development opportunities for adults, and sources of income to keep the facilities sustainable. In short: enabling a community to sustain and develop itself!
SEEtrust is not a charity and is not about donating resources. Our approach is social entrepreneurial: investing money, talent and passion, in order to create an environment that enables a people to create a better future for themselves. We start from local possibilities, talents, energy and opportunities. Building on these strengths enables local communities to create their own future and enables us to engage in a positive, personal and meaningful way.
The first SEEtrust project is now happening in Roodepoort, Johannesburg South Africa. On the edge of an informal settlement we are realizing housing, commercial space, day care and schooling facilities, together with people from the community.
The idea of the SEEtrust and the project in Roodepoort started when we got involved in supporting Susan Rammekwa, founder of the Tshepang project for orphaned and vulnerable children, to find a place for the now more than 110 children she and her team are feeding, supporting and educating every day.
SEEtrust is now developing into an approach that combines economical and social investment, individual and community development. We founded the SEEtrust as a vehicle to make this happen. Together with Susan, we have found a property for the continuation and extension of the Tshepang program and on which we can create housing and other facilities. We want to involve the community in this development: create jobs for those who can and want to work in this project, offer possibilities to learn a profession and help them become more employable.
