Meet Our Founders
Three women. Three journeys. A shared vision.
Daraja Maarifa was founded by three Kenyan women whose professional journeys connect education, cultural heritage, entrepreneurship, historical inquiry and social transformation.
Working across Kenya and Germany, we bring different forms of knowledge and experience together. Our backgrounds are not identical, and that is precisely our strength. We believe learning becomes more meaningful when different disciplines, generations, cultures and lived experiences are brought into conversation.
Together, we are building Daraja Maarifa as a bridge between people, knowledge and possibilities.
Kiswahili for Every Level
Beginner Kiswahili
Dr. Moraa Thamm
Dr. Moraa Thamm brings expertise in language teaching, second-language acquisition, language development and linguistics to Daraja Maarifa.
Her professional background connects education and language learning with a commitment to expanding opportunities for children and communities.
Through Daraja Maarifa, Moraa contributes an educational perspective that connects teaching, language and the development of meaningful learning opportunities across geographical boundaries.
Gillian Lwangu Piroth
Gillian Lwangu Piroth is a Kenyan entrepreneur, culinary educator and founder of My Ethnic Cooking & Catering in Germany.
Her work introduces people to the diversity of African cuisines through cooking classes, cultural events, catering and shared culinary experiences. Beyond recipes, Gillian is interested in the histories, traditions and knowledge carried through African food, including culinary practices that existed before colonial rule.
Her entrepreneurial experience includes developing African cooking programmes for individuals, groups and corporate clients, alongside professional catering and event services.
At Daraja Maarifa, Gillian brings the perspective that food is not merely something we consume. It is a connection to land, history, identity, community and the knowledge passed between generations.
Elizabeth Horlemann
Elizabeth Horlemann is a Kenyan-born author, trainer, consultant and advocate whose work spans intercultural communication, critical whiteness, anti-racism, decolonisation and disability inclusion.
With more than two decades of professional experience, she works with organisations, institutions and communities to examine structural inequalities, inherited assumptions and the relationships between knowledge, history and power.
She is the author of Bitte nicht jetzt! Das Leben mit Ableismus, Rassismus und Trauer, a personal and political examination of racism, ableism, grief and the struggle for dignity.
Her interest in African history, indigenous knowledge, colonial legacies and the recovery of overlooked narratives informs Daraja Maarifa’s approach to historical and heritage journeys.
Elizabeth brings a perspective that asks not only what we know, but who produced that knowledge, whose experiences have been excluded and how history can be encountered beyond dominant narratives.
Different Expertise. A Shared Purpose.
Education, food, history, language and lived experience may appear to belong to different worlds. Yet each carries knowledge about who we are, where we come from and how we relate to one another.
At Daraja Maarifa, these connections form the foundation of our work across LEARN · JOURNEY · REFLECT.
Rooted locally · Connected globally · Learning across borders
Kiswahili for Every Level
Beginner Kiswahili
Learn knowledge
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