Breaking the ice with a cow turd

Sounds like an eyebrow-raising start, doesn't it?

Let me set the scene: there I was, standing behind the speaker's desk at the Nigerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ready to dive into my presentation. The first slide pops up, oops, it was the usual snapshot of cow dung. Yep, not your typical way to begin a talk in front of this particular audience.

Well, faced with this unexpected visual aid, I did what any presenter might do - I acknowledged it head-on. I admitted that, in essence, I'm knee-deep in the sh*tty business.

While it might have seemed off-color, it surprisingly resonated with the audience. It was my way of illustrating something profound - the potential for all Nigerian piles of dung together power all kitchens across Nigeria with clean, free cooking gas. You can imagine the buzz of excitement that stirred.

Not one to miss an opportunity, I pitched my vision of making biogas a self-sustaining endeavor, free from reliance on aid. I extended an open invitation for everyone to join the BiogasUnite Roadshow event set for Abuja. And you know what? The response was fantastic! Sometimes, an unconventional icebreaker like a cow turd leads to the most engaging and impactful conversations.