Gbemisola Isimi & Buki Obayiuwana

Culture Conservationists Want To Raise Rooted Children

Gbemisola Isimi is the Founder of Culturetree with over 12 years experience as an educator in creating and broadcasting online educational and culturally relevant content for children of African heritage. She is also a creative entrepreneur and has written many songs and scripts for online and mainstream media, including television. Gbemi has a passion for preserving her heritage and believes children should be proud of and excited about their culture.

Buki Obayiuwana is an entrepreneur, management consultant and chartered accountant with over 18 years experience guiding organisations through strategic and tactical changes, which shape them for the future. She runs her own management consultancy business, mentors senior business leaders and sits on the board of two non- profit organisations. As a culture conservationist, Buki believes that in order to conserve our culture, customs, language, music, books, art, history, and ideas, we must first appreciate them.

In this interview, the duo tell us about their efforts at preserving Nigerian languages and culture, the gradual erosion of many Nigerian languages, factors responsible for this, how Nigerians and the government can stem this development as well as their upcoming webinar series focused on Raising Rooted Children.

By Tobi Awodipe

You are at the forefront of preserving Nigerian languages and cultures, from where does this passion and desire stem?

GBEMISOLA: My passion comes from wanting to pass on my language to my children. Seven years ago, when I had my first child, I discovered that there were very few resources/ avenues available to teach children Yoruba and so, I decided to create them myself. What started as a Youtube channel of rhymes and songs aimed at teaching children Yoruba has now grown into a thriving community and a range of products, which include physical classes, online classes, and cultural events.

Buki: About 10 years ago, I was having a conversation with a Greek friend who was born and bred in the UK. Although he had never lived in Greece, he was as Greek as all my other friends who had. When I asked him how this was possible, he mentioned that in addition to speaking Greek at home, all throughout his childhood, he attended Greek school every weekend. It made me wonder why we did not have something similar for Nigerians. I started researching this issue and I was pained by my discovery. I pulled a business case together, with the noblest of intentions, but I was sent abroad to work for a short while, and life took over. Many years later, another friend introduced me to Gbemi and I did not need to be convinced, we had a shared vision and the rest as they say is history.

Tell us about Culturetree, what does it seek to achieve?

Gbemisola:

Culturetree was set up five years ago with a mission to preserve and promote African languages and culture in the hearts and minds of children and adults across the world. We want everyone of Nigerian and African origin to feel proud to embrace and express their culture in a personal and authentic way, regardless of where they live. We started off with a focus on Yoruba and have now begun to explore other languages. When Culturetree started, it was just me running it. I am pleased to say that with my business partner, Buki, we are growing the Culturetree team and our capabilities. We also have experienced advisors who bring a wide range of expertise.

How do you go about fulfilling your mission? Buki:

A key objective for us is making learning fun, so we have designed our core products with this in mind. We currently have Culturetree TV, Culturetree Academy and Culturetree Events.