Introduction – who I am

Hello, I’m Kimberley Burton, founder of Guild of Life Limited a Singapore based Non Profit I am finally able to fully bring to life with your help.

Help Guild of Life raise $20,000 for people, water, learning and community-led action across Bintan and Kenya.

For more than ten years, I have worked alongside grassroots leaders and community partners in Indonesia, Kenya, Cambodia and other countries—supporting learning, gardens, water access, environmental work, youth opportunity, storytelling and locally led enterprise.

Much of that work has been held together in the most ordinary way possible: through approximately 7,000 Uber Eats deliveries, short-term work, freelance projects and countless unpaid hours.

That commitment has helped Guild of Life grow into a real network of people, projects and possibilities. But it is no longer sustainable for one founder to carry so much through patchwork income and voluntary effort.

We need to return to basics: keep the people doing the work supported, complete urgent commitments already underway, and get me back to Bintan, Indonesia, where I can start teaching, work directly with local partners and help turn years of planning into practical action.

We are raising $20,000 to make that happen.

Me about 20kg lighter happily working on Koh Dach (Cambodia) 2019 at the eco-learning centre we were supporting the creation of until the pandemic forced me back to Western Australia.

Why this campaign matters now

This campaign has immediate priorities. It will help us:

Get me back to Bintan, Indonesia, to begin teaching and coordinate the next stage of Guild of Life’s work on the ground.

Keep our Indonesian interns and social-media team supported as they help build the platform, organise content, communicate with partners and keep the work visible.

Complete water-related support with Polydord Wasokye and Life Skills for Better Future in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Kenya.

Provide practical support for water at the Kawagumba Community Farm in Homa Bay, Kenya, helping the farm continue its work with local community members.

Keep developing and bringing the Guild of Life digital platform online, so partners, supporters, learning programmes, stories and opportunities have a shared home.

Support essential coordination, communications and organisational costs needed to keep the Guild functioning responsibly.

This is not a request to fund a finished institution or make unrealistic promises. It is a launch fund for the practical foundations already needed now.

Mangrove planting with Iwan the founder the Pengudang Mangrove Community Hub in 2025

Why Bintan matters

Bintan is where Guild of Life has been focusing to turn its connected vision into visible, grounded activity.

In and around Pengudang on this northern coast community on this Indonesian Island, we are developing a locally appropriate pathway for learning, community participation, mangrove and coastal stewardship, storytelling, responsible travel, youth opportunity and locally led enterprise.

A proposed collaboration framework with Universitas Maritim Raja Ali Haji explores a university-linked regional learning function and locally led community resource and learning centres, subject to institutional approval, community consultation, funding and further written agreements.

Getting me back to Bintan means I can do what I cannot do effectively from Western Australia:

Founder of Life Skills for Better Future Polydord busy in their community kitchen garden.

Why Kenya matters

Guild of Life also has immediate commitments to people we already walk alongside in Kenya.

Life Skills for Better Future, led by Polydord Wasokye in Kakuma Refugee Camp, is developing refugee-led practical learning, food-security, livelihood and community-support activity. Guild of Life and Rotary Club of Kisumu have supported a water connection for LSBF’s women’s community kitchen garden. Completing that water-related support is one of the first priorities of this fundraiser.

We also want to support water access for the Kawagumba Community Farm in Homa Bay, Kenya. Small practical investments in water can make a meaningful difference to food growing, local resilience and community dignity.

We will only describe partner work publicly with appropriate consent and will report on funds used with care and accuracy.

The team at Kawagumba Community Village Farm taking a much needed break from growing food for the most vulnerable.

What $20,000 makes possible

Your contribution will help us move from survival mode into a more stable working base.

Immediate priority and what it supports

The exact amounts within these categories will depend on funds received, exchange rates, verified needs and partner arrangements. We will share practical updates as money is used.

Where I am planning on getting very dirty and sweaty in the community park in Pengudang helping to construct a new food garden. What a view though !

This is about reciprocity

Guild of Life exists to connect people, learning, stories, ethical travel and community-led opportunity.

We are happy to open doors, share knowledge, create platforms, make introductions and help people participate. But a healthy Guild cannot be built on one person giving endlessly while the wider network takes without contributing.

If you have benefited from Guild of Life’s ideas, connections, encouragement, platform, stories or opportunities—or if you believe this work should continue—this is a moment to help carry the load.

You can contribute by:

Crowdfunding works best when people who already understand the founder, work and purpose help bring the campaign into their own circles. Social media will make the campaign visible, but trusted personal sharing and introductions will be essential.

With gratitude and determination,

Kimberley Burton

Founder, Guild of Life Limited