Hermann Vivier, the founder of Bitcoin Ekasi, explains how a decade-old surf school in a South African township became a blueprint for a genuine Bitcoin circular economy. Instead of trying to build something new, they took an existing community pillar and “flipped” it to a Bitcoin standard – proving that you don’t need a massive launch to make an impact, you just need to start small. In this deep dive, Hermann breaks down the reality of paying salaries in sats, overcoming the “scam” stigma through real-world utility at local shops, and why he’s moving the project away from aid dependency toward a self-sustaining business model. This isn’t about the Twitter hype; it’s about a 10-year journey of building trust, one coach and one transaction at a time.
Community Calls are part of our Scholarship Program for Bitcoin educators and builders in the Global South. If you want to be a part and contribute to our growing community apply here for a scholarship.
Here is an audio only version for people with poor internet connection.
