COMMUNITY COB KITCHEN IN KENYA

THE PLACE

Nyahururu is a beautiful town in central Kenya, located about 190 km northwest of Nairobi at an altitude of approximately 2,300 meters above sea level. It is known specially for its waterfalls, the breathtaking Nyahururu Falls, the cool high-altitude climate, and the home of champions, the marathon runners who have won titles all over the world.

The project is hosted by Elizabeth Wambui Jungfer and her husband, Torben Jungfer.

Elizabeth was born in Nyahururu, Kenya. After studying Travel and Tourism, she moved to Germany, where she has built a career in the tourism and hospitality sector. Her life between Kenya and Germany has given her a strong connection to both cultures and a deep appreciation for bringing people, ideas and different perspectives together. Elizabeth speaks five languages, including Kiswahili, Kikuyu, German and English, and is passionate about culture, community, sustainable living and creating spaces where people can connect.

Torben Jungfer was born in Hamburg, Germany. He has a strong professional background in sports, fitness and wellbeing. He is a qualified fitness trainer with experience in various fields, including rehabilitation sports, EMS training and autogenic training. He is also deeply passionate about nutrition, healthy living and holistic wellbeing. His interest in natural building and sustainable ways of living began at a very young age. He has always been fascinated by the idea of creating spaces that work in harmony with nature and are built with natural, locally available materials.

Together, Elizabeth and Torben bring together their different backgrounds, experiences and passions to create a project that connects nature, architecture, culture, sustainability, health and community.

On her words:

Growing up there was a gift that has shaped who I am today. I had a simple but incredibly happy childhood. We had no television, no telephone, no gas, and often no electricity. Every evening, our family gathered around a small charcoal stove called a jiko. A jiko is a traditional cooking stove fueled by charcoal or wood, and for us it was much more than a way to prepare food.
Cooking outdoors around the jiko was a daily ritual.

The women of the neighborhood would gather together to prepare meals, exchange stories, share wisdom, support one another, and teach the younger generation. It was a place where laughter mixed with the smell of food, where knowledge was passed from one generation to the next, and where no woman ever had to carry her burdens alone.

Looking back, I now understand that this was also a place of healing.

The deepest wounds were often healed around the fire. People listened without judgment, comforted each other, and reminded one another that no one walks through life alone. It was community in its purest form.

Sadly, much of this tradition is disappearing.

Last year, when my beloved father passed away, something extraordinary happened. The women of our community came together with their cooking pots and prepared meals outdoors for the many visitors who came to mourn with us. Even in the middle of my deepest grief, I felt surrounded by love. Standing there beside the fires, watching the women cook together, all my childhood memories came flooding back. I realized that the greatest comfort was not only the food—it was the community.

It was there, among these women, that I truly allowed myself to grieve, to cry, and slowly to begin healing. They had carried me since birth, and once again they carried me through one of the hardest moments of my life. That experience planted a dream in my heart.

I wanted to build a beautiful natural outdoor kitchen as a gift to this community that has given me so much. Not simply a structure, but a place where people could gather again as they once did: a place where traditions are preserved, where meals are shared, where stories are told, where wisdom is passed on, where children learn from their elders, and where healing happens naturally through human connection.

Then I discovered your work, Nico. The beauty, simplicity, and soul in your natural buildings immediately spoke to me. I knew you were the person who could help guide this dream into reality.

This outdoor kitchen is not just about cooking.
It is about rebuilding community.
It is about slowing down in a world that has become too fast.
It is about creating a place where people feel they belong.
A place where neighbors can meet without an agenda.
A place where women can support one another again.
A place where children can experience traditions that are slowly disappearing.
A place where visitors from around the world can sit around the fire, prepare food together, laugh, sing, dance, and experience the beauty of being fully present.

Food has always connected people, but fire connects hearts.

My hope is that this kitchen becomes a living space where culture, nature, and community come together. A place that reminds us that healing does not always happen in hospitals or therapy rooms. Sometimes healing happens around a fire, while preparing a meal together, listening to stories, sharing silence, or simply knowing that you are not alone.

This is the purpose of the outdoor kitchen. It is not only a building.
It is a place where people reconnect—with each other, with nature, with their traditions, and ultimately with themselves. And this will continue to serve generations long after we are gone.