Every year, So They Can’s Founder and CEO, Cassandra Treadwell, takes So They Can Board Directors and engaged supporters to visit our teams and programs in Kenya and Tanzania.

These Immersion Trips are a transformative opportunity for our Board Directors and supporters to deep-dive into So They Can’s programs, understand the specific economic, political and cultural context we are working in, and appreciate the urgency of our work. It is also a vital opportunity to meet with our 43 local implementing staff on the ground.

On our latest Immersion Trip was Georgie Herb, a Board Director with So They Can Australia. With a background in finance, and a passion for social justice, gender equality and education for all, in this interview we explore what the experience meant to Georgie.

When did your journey with So They Can start and why?

I first came across So They Can when my husband joined the Chain Reaction bike ride, riding 1,000km in a week to raise funds for kids in need. We then decided to sponsor a child for each of our three children to help them understand how others’ lives are different to our own. If we can provide help to others, then it is important to do so. As we continued to develop our family’s giving in a more structured way, we decided that education and poverty were two key pillars we wanted to focus on, and So They Can was front on mind for that. Upon meeting Cass, we knew we had found our fit – it was clear there was a common belief in the power of education for all.

I then joined So They Can’s Australia Board in 2025 year. I hadn’t expected to be able to visit the programs in person quite so soon, our children are still very young, but when this year’s trip came up and the calendar was free, my husband and I decided that we needed to make it work. I am so glad that we did.

What did the Immersion Trip teach you about So They Can’s model?

When I first met the So They Can team in Kenya, I asked “what is your favourite project, which has the most impact?”. I thought I was being very clever asking this, but by the end of our first school visit I realised that this was the wrong question entirely. A single project doesn’t result in lasting change.

What good is a new classroom and clean working toilet facilities without a farming program to feed children and encourage attendance at school? What good is having lunch to offer if families aren’t supported to send their children instead of keeping them home to work? And none of it matters if treatable illness becomes deadly because the nearest clinic is a day’s walk away.

The Immersion Trip demonstrated to me the huge importance of each discrete project, but also that it is only when these 13 projects work together that long-lasting change is fostered.

What were some of your key takeaways from the Immersion Trip?

The key takeaway for me was learning about what sustainability looks like in practice in international development. Development vs aid had always been a vague concept to me. At this point, I almost thought they were buzzwords.

However, through visiting So They Can’s Education and Community Development Programs, and having the opportunity to have long discussions with implementing staff and communities, I had the opportunity to see development in action.

What advice would you give to others interested in supporting So They Can?

The Immersion Trip was so important for me in understanding the realities and the urgency of the situation. It also reinforced to me that with the right resources and models, there is still hope for a bright future. Having the privilege to meet so many smiling faces is something that will stay with me forever. I saw firsthand how highly these children and communities value the gift of education, and how with these interventions, we can help many more communities in need.

Visiting Perkerra Primary School in Baringo County Kenya was particularly eye-opening for me. With more than 300 students from one of the most remote, underserved and dangerous areas of Kenya, the school has achieved food sustainability for its students. In just four years, the school now grows enough produce on its ‘Shamba Letu’ (school farm) to not only feed the children, but to generate income to invest in new infrastructure at the school, such as a toilet block or school fence.

In short, the Immersion Trip reaffirmed my commitment to do as much as I can but also captured the powerful role that we as Australians can play in this process. What I didn’t expect was how much I got back from the trip – giving is genuinely as good for us as it is for the people we’re trying to help.