With the Pedal Project, children from the townships become explorers of Cape Town’s nature trails Photo –Supplied
Johannesburg – South Africa’s large, disadvantaged community often means children go unnoticed and forgotten.
Upliftment programmes, such as the Pedal Project, are founded to build and enrich children living in townships, where there is a lack of mentorship projects. Jaco van der Linde, the founder of Pedal Projects, started the project to give back to the community.
The Pedal Project paved the way for van der Linde to share his love for riding bicycles with kids in the townships. Not only was it a means to help kids get away from the problems of township life, but through incorporating biking lessons with life lessons, kids gain the skills and emotional awareness to take on life and conquer all their problems.
“I just wanted to give back and show kids who don’t have the opportunity what it is like to ride bikes in the mountains and what it means to me. I was in a fortunate enough situation to experience most of my life, and I’ve always wanted to do more. I think just doing recycling and doing a couple of donations was a starting point but if you have the opportunity to go the extra hundred miles and you’re willing to take it up, why not.”
While Covid 19 put an end to many initiatives, the pandemic played an unlikely role in getting the project up and running, explained van der Linde. It was also during this time van de Linde noticed the need for this project. The effects of covid on kids in the townships meant lack of safe spaces, little to no exposure to new experiences, and access to nature.
“Covid-19 was also why I started it. I was suffering. My mental health was suffering due to the deep levels of lockdown and not being able to participate in the sport. And anxiety and everything that was happening, and I came to realise that it obviously couldn’t just only be me and as I wanted to get more kids on the bikes, it just dawned on me, the situation kids in the townships find themselves in.”
The project was born after the first lockdown was instituted. Donations go a long way in keeping the initiative going strong Suplied photo
The project targets kids from ten to thirteen years old as van der Linde believes it is a “vulnerable age” and kids in the townships can experience “adverse child events that has a negative impact on them physically but also mentally”. It’s this period, he says, mental health support to overcome mental and physical mountains should be provided.
Through sport they build connections with the kids. With the mountain biking activities, they layer on other activities to help their mental state and provide them with the support they need.
“We layer on a variety of other support tools through mentorship where our coaches are more than just sport coaches. They are the older brothers. They are potentially the parents, who very seldom they see, in a single parent household. We also provide them with support mechanisms in terms of mindfulness, breathing techniques so that they’re trying to be aware, in terms of what their actions are going to lead to.”
Schools in South Africa lack funding and as such, when the school day ends, kids do not have any extracurricular activities to keep them occupied. They are left to the devices on the streets.
“The school finishes at three o’clock and they are there in the street and they are potentially exposed to all life and matters on the streets,” it is for this reason that van der Linde said the parents are “stoked” to have their kids be part of his project.
“We created that platform for the kids to engage and talk to us and for my coaches and for us to provide that support and find out what they need and what we can do, not just in our program and in our curriculum, but beyond that to provide holistic support in terms of what we can do. We work with as many partners who have been able to facilitate additional help because these challenges just keep mounting for all of us that are trying to provide a positive and good impact in the world.”
It is not only the kids that van der Linde is trying to help but also the parents. Children progress much faster in programs like his and parents often find it difficult to cope with the progress they have made.
“You can only work with them for so long and then it is what the parents and guardians do. There are organisations that try to work with parents whose kids are in programs like ours,” said van der Linde.
“The negative elements in and around there, it will always be there, but it comes down to what are your support structures around there, who’s going to help you and guide you and support you when you need it the most?”
One of his best moments occurred within the first few weeks of the project. Van der Linde explained, in his naivety he expected the kids to know how to ride a bicycle and when they eventually did learn, it was pure happiness.
“Just to get them on the bikes and see the happiness that was on their face. I think you drive and create this dream and this vision and build on from that as much and as far as you can but to see it to some form of the seed taking growth and how you can build and grow from there was pure joy… To see and work with them and help them grow and build their stock and for them to get on bikes and be that happy.”
Project Pedal has been a success using their method described by van der Linde as “trail therapy”. It has helped students in numerous ways and parents have even reported that they have seen the difference it has made in their kids’ lives.
“Trail therapy is to use the power of the bike and everything around them to expose them to new experiences and help build those capacities and build up social capital where they can at least know that when they go back home there is ways to do the challenges they face and give them a new sense of hope and inspiration for the day ahead and ultimately get them to be more engaged and fulfilled at school which we’ve picked up with evaluation reports that we’ve done. The kids are performing holistically better at school. At home, the parents can see the changes the program brings.”
The Pedal Project is currently running in Khayelitsha. Van der Linde hopes this year the project rides into other communities and hopefully grows from there.
Nafeesa Dangor spoke with Jaco van de Linde about the Pedal Project, listen here:
