Sara Nuru: a model between two worlds

A smiling young woman with long dark hair in a striped jumper and dark waistcoat against a white background — A young woman in a striped jumper and dark waistcoat against a white background [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

Sara Nuru became one of Germany’s best known models when she won a television casting show in 2009. Since then she has turned much of her attention to Ethiopia, her parents’ homeland.

From Erding to the catwalk

Nuru is the daughter of Ethiopian immigrants and was born in Erding, near Munich, according to her official website. At 19 she won the television show Germany’s Next Top Model, becoming the first person of colour to do so, the website says. GIZ, the German development agency, also dates her win to 2009.

A smiling young woman with dark hair and large hoop earrings in a black top — A young woman with large hoop earrings in a black top [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

A young woman in a grey sweatshirt with German text stands in front of a campaign poster — A young woman in a grey sweatshirt with German text in front of a poster [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

Ambassador and entrepreneur

Her search for her roots took her repeatedly to Ethiopia, where she has worked as an ambassador for the foundation Menschen für Menschen (People for People), according to her website. In 2016 she and her sister Sali founded the social business nuruCoffee, GIZ reported, and they later set up the non profit association nuruWomen, which gives Ethiopian women microloans and training to start their own businesses. GIZ said nuruWomen had already helped more than 800 Ethiopian women become economically independent.

A young woman in a blue shirt takes a selfie with smiling girls in headscarves at an outdoor gathering — A young woman in a blue shirt takes a selfie with smiling girls at an outdoor gathering [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

A woman in a blue shirt sits with a family in front of a mud wall, one woman holding a baby — A woman in a blue shirt sits with a family in front of a mud wall [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

Why coffee

Nuru told GIZ that coffee was an obvious choice because her parents come from Ethiopia and coffee is the country’s main export. After launching nuruCoffee, she said, the sisters realised that in coffee growing it is often women who do the hard work but receive little money and have even less say. Part of the proceeds from every packet of nuruCoffee goes to nuruWomen.

In 2018 Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development appointed her an ambassador for fair trade, according to GIZ.

A smiling woman in a blue shirt sits among schoolchildren at wooden desks in a classroom — A woman in a blue shirt sits among schoolchildren in a classroom [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

A group of women in colourful shawls sit in a circle on chairs outdoors, with a woman in a blue shirt among them — Women in colourful shawls sit in a circle outdoors [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

A young woman in a white top laughs with several young men outdoors on rocky ground — A young woman laughs with several young men outdoors [file photo]. Place, date and photographer unknown.

How nuruWomen works

According to Sara Nuru’s website, nuruWomen is a registered non profit association founded in Berlin in 2018 to support women in emerging economies, especially Ethiopia. It runs awareness and education work, training courses for microloan recipients, and craft training, and it grants microloans. The website gives examples of the businesses it aims to help women start, from a small shop or a hairdressing salon to trading grain. Its projects are funded by nuruCoffee and by donations from companies and individuals.

nuruCoffee has sold organically grown, fair trade coffee since 2017, Nuru told GIZ.

Menschen für Menschen

The foundation Nuru worked with as an ambassador, Menschen für Menschen, describes itself as Karlheinz Böhm’s aid organisation for Ethiopia and a public foundation under German civil law. On its website it says it has raised more than 300 million seedlings for reforestation since 1981.

Ethiograph