Building Capacity from Behind the Scenes

Some of the most meaningful work at Wine To Water happens behind the scenes. For Kened Snilla, that work began each morning not in a field site or office, but at his computer in Tanzania.

As an intern supporting Wine To Water’s Africa Programs team, Snilla spent his summer coordinating and summarizing key program documents, organizing, and activating a Google Classroom used for staff onboarding and training team members to navigate shared resources. His focus was simple but essential: strengthening systems so teams on the ground could work more efficiently and sustainably.

“While my role was largely behind the scenes, the goal of my work was to support program efficiency, staff training, and long-term capacity building within WTW Africa,” Snilla said.

A Personal Connection to the Work

Unlike many Wine To Water interns who work from the organization’s U.S. office, Snilla completed most of his internship remotely from his home in Tanzania—bringing a unique and deeply personal perspective to the work. He first learned about the internship opportunity as a freshman at Fairfield University in Connecticut, where the university’s Humanitarian Action Club raises funds each year for Wine To Water Filter Build® Events.

“I was drawn into this internship when I learned about all the impactful work that Wine To Water does not just for people struggling in the U.S. but also back home in Tanzania,” Snilla said. “I felt inspired and motivated to be a part of it.”

Bridging Systems and the Field

Although much of his work took place online, Snilla had the opportunity to visit the Wine To Water team in Arusha, Tanzania, and see firsthand the programs he had been supporting remotely. During his time in the office, he shared the Google Classroom onboarding project with staff and learned more about their roles and ongoing water, sanitation, and hygiene initiatives.

“He was the first intern to intern with us for the Tanzania program,” said Emily Warari, HR Specialist with Wine To Water. “We were all learning together what that would look like, and he did a really tremendous job just diving in.”

After spending much of the summer working independently, the visit helped bridge the gap between systems-building and field implementation.

“Meeting the WTW team in Arusha reinforced the real-world impact behind the work I was doing,” Snilla said.

At the end of the summer, Snilla returned to the U.S. to continue pursuing degrees in economics and political science at Fairfield University. While his internship has ended, his connection to Wine To Water has not. He continues to support and advocate for the organization through Fairfield’s Humanitarian Action Club, helping raise awareness and resources for clean water initiatives.

A Lasting Perspective

Beyond technical skills in research, organization, and time management, the internship shaped how Snilla sees the world—and his place in it.

“For me, it helped me see the world in a different light and made me realize just how grateful I should be for the clean water I use every day straight from the tap,” he said.

Want to serve like Kened?

In the last year, Wine To Water has had 27 interns. 

“Our interns work all across our organization—from finance to marketing to fundraising and our programs team,” Warari said. “Their contribution is absolutely essential and they bring so many  fresh ideas and energy to our organization that I have really, really valued and appreciated. It’s really cool to have these young people coming in every semester with a lot of vibrant enthusiasm for the work that we’re doing.” 

You can join them. Apply for an internship, and help bring clean drinking water to communities that need it most.