Documentary Nelly Furtado: Road To Kisaruni

CTV Heads to Kenya with Nelly Furtado for the CTV Original Documentary NELLY FURTADO: THE ROAD TO KISARUNI

TORONTO, ON (August 24, 2011) – Grammy and Juno Award winning pop star Nelly Furtado joins non-profit volunteer arts organization Artbound on their first assignment to build Free The Children’s first all girls secondary school in the Maasai Mara region of Kenya. NELLY FURTADO: THE ROAD TO KISARUNI chronicles Furtado’s life changing experience in Kenya and airs Saturday, September 10 at 7 p.m. EDT on CTV (check CTV.ca for local listings).

The path to education is not an easy one in this part of the world. In the Maasai Mara high tuition costs mean that less than five percent of girls will attend high school and only one girl a year will then move on to university. The girls, as their mothers know, are the leaders of tomorrow and educating them is a top priority.

“I know that this school represents something magical,” said Furtado in the documentary. “It’s kind of a pioneer project in a way because it’s the first school of its kind in the area and that’s very special.”

NELLY FURTADO: THE ROAD TO KISARUNI introduces Furtado and viewers to the 40 girls admitted to the school and also to Susan, the girl who was number one on the waiting list. Vibrant, hopeful, eager and bright, Susan dreams of being a doctor; her meeting with Furtado delivers an unexpected connection and Furtado is genuinely touched by her strength and desire to learn. Through Furtado’s personal experience, her candid commentary, and genuine heart break, she shares with viewers a story about hope, and uses music as a common denominator between cultures and the strength of women as they champion their families and work for change for their daughters.

“It was just extraordinary to be in Kenya and to meet all the people and to share music and celebrate art,” said Furtado. “I’m completely changed and really excited about the future. It’s made me want to try harder as a woman, as a person, as a mother and as a citizen of the world.”

NELLY FURTADO: THE ROAD TO KISARUNI is produced by CTV and narrated by Nelly Furtado. Karen Barzilay is the Executive Producer. Bongo is Director of Photography. Concept by Shayna Haddon. Rick Brace is the President, Specialty Channels and Production, CTV. Mike Cosentino is Senior Vice-President, Programming, CTV Networks. Phil King is President, CTV Programming & Sports.

Artbound is a non-profit volunteer initiative in support of Free The Children. It was founded by a group of passionate individuals who believe that the arts have the power to create sustainable social change in the lives of underprivileged children. The Artbound team will travel to developing countries annually and build schools that are dedicated to the arts – institutions that will be fully integrated as part of existing Free The Children programs aimed to combat child poverty. The second edition of The pARTy is set to take place on September 23rd this yearto build on the $150,000 already raised towards the Kisaruni Girls Secondary School. The goal is to raise an additional $300,000 over 2 years - $60,000 of which will go back to Kenya to build 2 more classrooms and launch a series workshops that will provide the girls with exposure to various forms of art. The remaining $240,000 needed over the course of the next two years will go to fund the initiative in India, with the goal of launching a full infrastructure in Rajasthan. For more information on Artbound please visit www.artbound.ca.

Free The Children is the world's largest network of children helping children through education, with more than one million youth involved in innovative education and development programs in 45 countries. Founded in 1995 by international child rights activist Craig Kielburger, Free The Children is a charity and educational partner. Its domestic programs educate, engage and empower hundreds of thousands of youth in North America, the UK and around the world. Its international projects have brought over 650 schools and school rooms to youth and provided clean water, health care and sanitation to one million people around the world. Free The Children has a proven track record of success. The organization has received the World's Children's Prize for the Rights of the Child (also known as the Children's Nobel Prize), the Human Rights Award from the World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations, and has formed successful partnerships with leading school boards and Oprah's Angel Network. For additional information, please visit www.freethechildren.com.

CTV, Canada’s Olympic Network, is also Canada's largest private broadcaster. Featuring a wide range of quality news, sports, information, and entertainment programming, CTV is Canada’s most-watched television network and lead broadcaster of the London 2012 Olympic Games. CTV is a division of Bell Media, Canada’s premier multimedia company with leading assets in television, radio and digital. Bell Media is owned by BCE Inc. (TSX, NYSE: BCE), Canada’s largest communications company. More information about CTV can be found on the network’s website at ctv.ca.


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For more information, please contact:
Emily Young Lee, CTV, 416-384-3004 or emily.younglee@ctv.caLindsay Mattick, Artbound, 416-644-4123 or lindsay.mattick@narrativeadvocacy.com
Tamara Kaftalovich, Free The Children, 416-888-8536 or tamara@freethechildren.com



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