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Based on extensive research, Julika says that ECD and nutrition go hand in hand.<\/p>\nPoverty, unemployment and limited education remain rife in South Africa, with women and children bearing the brunt of this undeserved struggle. One woman, together with a dedicated team, is making a significant impact on the lives of women and children in KZN\u2019s rural communities.<\/p>\n
In 1999, Julika Falconer, a young single mother from Germany arrived in South Africa to do her Master\u2019s in Maritime Law at the University of Cape Town. This could not have been further from her calling. Fast-forward to 2025, and Julika now serves as chief executive of Durban-based Zero2Five Trust which focuses on Early Childhood Development (ECD), and leads a small, but dedicated team of donors and volunteers who share a vision of a future where every child in South Africa under five will thrive.<\/p>\n
Based on extensive research, Julika says that ECD and nutrition go hand in hand.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first 1000 days are hugely important because 90 per cent of children\u2019s brains develop during this period. Without proper nutrition, it could be too late for these children. When it comes to physical growth or cognitive development, they can never catch up.\u201d<\/p>\n
During the Covid pandemic, she says Zero2Five never stopped working. Then came the KZN riots and the floods. A return to so-called normality brought them head-to-head with ever-increasing food insecurity as the economy floundered. Now, seated at the upmarket Bellevue Caf\u00e9 in Kloof, and every inch the well-heeled professional, Julika explains that one of the highlights of the past 10 years was helping to run a soup kitchen from Bellevue. It produced 500 litres of chicken soup every day for 12 difficult weeks during Covid. Chefs volunteered, waitrons chopped vegetables and community members dropped off food.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor many people it was a lifesaver, and provided proper insight into how supportive and strong South African people are,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Initially, while studying in South Africa, Julika fell in love with the beauty of Cape Town and never wanted to leave. However, a meeting with her future husband Patrick – who is an established Durban lawyer – at a party, changed that. Although she began working with street children in the Mother City, and by 2004 was energised by\u00a0her\u00a0volunteering\u00a0experiences; she was grappling with a far harsher environment after relocating to Durban. It was a move that corresponded with a visit from her parents and two sisters and culminated in the family creating a German NPO to raise funds. They started a small feeding programme, Libalele Foundation, at Shongweni Dam in The Valley of a\u00a0Thousand Hills.<\/p>\n
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Having never seen shacks or imagined children growing up in informal settlements, she admits this was in stark contrast to her privileged childhood.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we started visiting preschools, it was mind blowing for me. They had nothing – no resources, no books, some in dilapidated structures. Whatever they had on that day, they would split up between everybody. They played with whatever they could find. There was a great deal of interest in early childhood development at the time and that\u2019s where we decided to put our money,\u201d she explains.<\/p>\n
Twenty years later, these centres still form part of Zero2Five\u2019s nutrition programme.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe began with peanut butter sandwiches and food gardens in the Upper Highway area. Now, we have more than 12 000 children in rural areas in KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape on our programme.\u201d<\/p>\n
By 2014, what had become the Future Life Foundation Trust was feeding 6\u00a0000 children on their\u00a0mission to alleviate hunger and malnutrition among South African children under the age of\u00a0five. The results in the\u00a0physical and cognitive development of these children were nothing\u00a0short of astonishing. However, in 2018, Julika broke away and rebranded the organisation to Zero2Five, backed by a growing relationship with educational resource and training funders, and developed a second programme to cover early learning on top of the nutrition.<\/p>\n
Since then, Zero2Five has added a third programme which promotes ECD registration and supports capacity building and training as well as Yes Youth which tackles youth unemployment.<\/p>\n
In her characteristically forthright German way, she explains that it was time to move from handouts to developing communities as a whole, especially around food security. On a more personal level, it took her from what some might have described as a hobby to running a registered organisation handling global donations.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIt\u2019s not easy. You have to deal with loads of rejection. You spend time on 30-page funding proposals only to get a one liner of regret back. But, you also build relationships with great people and organisations that share your passion, respect your work and trust your diligence and financial management.\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course there have been ups and downs. While running mother and child wellness clinics in the Valley of a 1000 Hills, Julika says they encountered very desperate people. This included three particularly traumatic instances where babies wrapped in blankets had died and were beyond help.<\/p>\n
Challenges can also be logistical, especially in rural areas where roads are often closed and bridges under water when they wish to do site visits. But, every challenge is matched by a reward, especially when dealing with women who Julika describes as the backbone of the nation.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe added 58 food gardens last year alone. Most of the women involved take this to another level by themselves. They just need the opportunity, the tools, the training. Over the past few years, we have made these centres special places for children and for women.\u201d<\/p>\n
With very little expertise in anything around Early Childhood Development, Julika has developed her three ECD programmes slowly over the years, with much care and outside expertise. \u201cI always know if and when there\u2019s room for improvement, and with the help of my colleagues and a board of incredibly passionate individuals, we have put together a five-year strategy during which time we hope to grow our support to 15 000 children every year and see them thrive in formal schooling. That is my dream.\u201d<\/p>\n
To find out more about Zero2Five\u2019s projects or how to get involved, visit zero2five.org.za or e-mail <\/em>enquiries@zero2five.org.za<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Poverty, unemployment and limited education remain rife in South Africa, with women and children bearing the brunt of this undeserved struggle. One woman, together with a dedicated team, is making a significant impact on the lives of women and children in KZN\u2019s rural communities. In 1999, Julika Falconer, a young single mother from Germany arrived […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":42824,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[11370,11369],"class_list":{"0":"post-42818","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-uncategorised","8":"tag-julika-falconer","9":"tag-zero2five"},"yoast_head":"\n