Alice Layiki was born in Buikwe, Uganda on the 21st of July 1959. She grew up in Arua, Uganda where she attended Mvara Secondary School. During the War of 1978/79, Alice's family home was devastated by the invading army. Many people in Arua were killed and Alice's family had to flee to the DRC (Congo). There, Alice worked as a nurse for Doctors Without Borders (MSF). One day, her medical team was attacked by a militia group and everybody was killed, except Alice who had been sent to work that day at a different location. MSF and the UNHCR sent Alice to a refugee camp in Sudan where she stayed for some time. In 1984, Canada accepted her as a state-sponsored refugee (through UNHCR), and Alice was flown to Toronto, Canada. 

Alice worked in Toronto as a nurse assistant, repeated Grade 13 high school to obtain a Canadian high school certificate, and was admitted to study Social Work at Queen's University in Kingston, Canada. Following her graduation, the city of Nepean (now part of Ottawa) offered Alice a position as community developer, and Alice moved to Ottawa, Canada's capital city. There, she met her husband Frank Dehne. After they got married, Alice changed her name to Alice Layiki-Dehne. Alice also obtained a Master of Social Work degree at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada.

In 1999, Alice made her first post-war visit to  Arua, and this is were the story of Smart Change International begins...

Alice's mother, Anna was back in Arua. Anna was widowed and without any financial means. Alice and Frank purchased a plot of land in Arua and built a house for Alice's mother. Alice also sponsored the school fees for several of Alice's many nephews and nieces who would then stay at the house to assist their grandmother. Alice also sent her mother money for food every month. During their next Arua visit, Alice and Frank were told that some of her mother's neighbours would invade her house and steal food. Needless to say, that was very upsetting but when Alice and Frank challenged those neighbours on their behaviour, the neighbours simply said "we are hungry". 

Alice came up with the idea of securing for the neighbours a plot of unused agricultural land, and buying them seeds and basic tools, so they can grow their own food rather than stealing it from Alice's mother. From the harvest, the neighbours would feed their families but also sell some on the village market to obtain the funds to secure the land for subsequent years. This way, the solution would be permanent and sustainable. Alice called it "Smart Change".

That year, the neighbours could not only feed their family, they also had money left to fix their house and pay school fees for their children. On Alice's next visit, more neighbours approached Alice and asked to join. So Alice created an organization which she named "Smart Change International". Alice did fund raising among family, friends and our church in Canada. Those funds paid for securing more land and buying more seeds and tools.

Smart Change International grew very fast. During Alice's last Uganda visit in 2015, more than 70 families in Arua who previously had no food were now growing their own food with the help of Smart Change International.

Then the unthinkable happened. In 2016, Alice was diagnosed with stomach cancer and she tragically died on the March 11, 2017, leaving her husband and family totally devastated.

Alice's Smart Change International organization was so ingenious, it continued to operate autonomously, without Alice's leadership and without any further funding. Seven years later, in 2024, Alice's husband Frank and Alice's uncle George Ambe in Arua found out that most of the 70 family plots were still operating. Food was still being grown and previously hungry families were still being fed. That inspired George and Frank to jointly re-start Smart Change International in honour of Alice.