Bicycles for Education

Bicycles for education help the environment and rural students.

Today, African carbon dioxide production is growing three times faster than the rest of the world. Furthermore, Africa has the fastest urban growth rate in the world, yet it is the slowest to plan its cities and road infrastructure. This results in massive overcrowding and congestion problems. Many African cities are now covered in a toxic haze for most of the day as a result of increasing personal and business traffic. If this trend continues, it will lead to serious economic costs, human suffering and irreversible environmental damage. Africa is already disabled by myriad plights, including poverty, HIV, malaria, and civil war among others, and will not be able to cope with the human health consequences of increasing air pollution. In order to mitigate pollution problems, African cities need to adopt sustainable ways of travel immediately. The cheapest and easiest sustainable method today is bicycles.

Bikes pollute less than cars, are cheaper to produce, cheaper to maintain, last longer than combustion engines, and require minimal costly road construction. In addition, providing bicycles to young rural African students who walk 10 or more miles a day to reach their schools will help students get to school faster. This will leave them more time to studyand will provide an incentive for currently disadvantaged students. In the long run this will help our communities as our young are given a chance to gain the human capital necessary to move out of poverty.

GACE current project involves collecting used bikes in the United States of America, repairing them, and distributing them to rural students in Togo. GACE is also conducting bicycle and air pollution awareness seminars in Togo. You can help by sending us your function used bikes or monetary funds to purchase parts.

How you can help

1. Donate your bicycle - Although we truly appreciate all donations, our preferences are as follows:

First Preference: Mountain bikes of all sizes in working condition
Second Preference: Donations of bicycles needing minimal replacement of parts.
Third Preference: Bicycle Parts and Accessories in good working condition.
We also need bike tools and repair equipment.

Please contact us before donating your bicycle. You can drop your bicycle off in Olympia, WA, but we are not able to pick up bikes. We do have volunteers that will pick up bikes in certain areas in Washington and Oregon.
Bainbridge Island WA: please call Adrian Mason at (206) 842-1991.
Olympia WA: call (360) 866-0080 or drop off the bicycles at 1978 Olympia Ave NE
Camano Island / Stanwood WA: call (360) 387- 4611
Salem OR: please call (503) 581-8068 or drop bikes at 5398 Hickory Hill Dr. SE

United Kindom: please call 0845 4589242

2. Donate your time -

Organize a bike donation drive or drop off in your area
Volunteer to help get donated bikes into working condition

3. Monetary donations

We estimate spending $30 per bike to get them in working order. In addition, we will need funds to pay for shipping the bicycles to Togo.