Wanjiru Koinange is transforming Kenya’s cultural landscape by restoring public libraries and reshaping how Kenyans engage with reading and storytelling.
As the co-founder of Book Bunk Trust, she has pioneered the restoration and revitalisation of McMillan, Kaloleni and Makadara libraries in Nairobi.
Her organisation partners with the government to breathe new life into the libraries by renovating the buildings, modernising collections, and prioritising inclusion so that anyone can access relevant resources from the internet and local stories.
She is, at heart, a storyteller. Her book, The Havoc of Choice, was her thesis at the University of Cape Town for a Master’s in Creative Writing. Wanjiru studied at USIU for a Bachelor’s in Journalism and Literature before libraries stole her heart.
"Last year we had 600 kids walk into a public library. We fed them, gave them clean water, and books to read. That is what keeps me going."
The inspiration to start Book Bunk came in 2012 when Wanjiru walked into Nairobi’s historic McMillan Memorial Library and saw the state of disrepair. “It was walking into the McMillan with my co-founder and realising that I was going to be contributing to the same problem if we didn’t work on the infrastructure.”
Book Bunk is not just about books, it’s about people. Her organisation employs a full-time team of 18, and up to 80 people annually through internships, fellowships, and casual roles.
“Employment is everybody’s responsibility. If you can, you have to hire and spread the resources around.”
But the impact that speaks her truest language is that the libraries have had life-long impacts on users.
“Last year we had 600 kids walk into a public library. We fed them, gave them clean water, and books to read. That is what keeps me going.”
Her long-term vision is to rehabilitate all of Kenya’s public libraries to function as creative hubs, community centres and knowledge sharing spaces. “We don’t have to build any new ones. Just restore them, just rehabilitate them.”
-Ndugu Abisai