Rev. Olive Branch
Director and Consultant in Portland, Oregon (USA)
About Me – Olive Branch
I am a writer in two waters.
One current runs through the world of international development—where I have spent over fifteen years translating climate adaptation, gender justice, and green energy into fundable narratives that have secured millions from Sida, DANIDA, UKAid, and UN Women. As a grant writer and proposal strategist, I build bridges between complex technical truths and the human stories that move donors to act.
The other current is literary. I am the author of Unfettered Soul: an anthology of a reluctant master—a collection of poetry and short stories that opens a window into rural Kenyan life, culture, and philosophy. My writing there does not explain Kenya. It lives inside it: in the cadence of Luhya dialogue, the dust of western Kenyan footpaths, and the quiet rebellions of characters like Dunia, the village vagabond who says what decorum cannot.
I hold an MSc in Organizational Development from USIU and am currently pursuing a PhD in Corporate Governance and Ethics at Birkbeck, University of London. But my real classroom has been the tide line of Kilifi Creek, the fish market at dawn, and the patient voices of Giriama elders who taught me that a story—well told—is also a form of survival.
Today, I write at the intersection of adventure, climate, and culture. My forthcoming narrative feature for a magazine, "The Tide's Edge," walks the falling tide with fishermen, paddles through mangrove restoration projects, and asks what happens when a 15th-century Swahili ruin, a traditional tide calendar, and a rising sea all meet the same shore.
Whether I am shaping a proposal for a UN agency or crafting a poem about a reluctant master, my north star is the same: to write with precision, empathy, and the unmistakable texture of a life fully observed.
I am based in Nairobi, Kenya. I work globally. And I am always following a story downstream.