Telling the climate story through a fresh lens
Increasing the visibility of children and youth on the frontlines fighting back against the climate and environmental crisis.
The morning Johannesburg rush hour is in full drive as commuters navigate the traffic and the sun rises through the smoggy haze that covers the city. In the basement of a shopping precinct, removed from the chaos above, a group of young storytellers are gathering at FotoZA photography gallery for the start of a 4-month project.
‘The Green Rising: Climate Impact & Response – Through a Fresh Lens’ will bring to light, through the voices and images of children and young people, the visual story of the climate impact on young lives and how communities are fighting back to adapt.
Twelve adolescents and youth, aged 14-24-years, engaged in the project are now working with EPA Images Senior Visual Correspondent, Kim Ludbrook, to learn photography and storytelling techniques and to produce a photo book and exhibit that tells their climate and environmental story. The project is a collaboration between UNICEF South Africa, OHCHR, Maverick Citizen and EPA Images and the launch of the final work will be 05 June, World Environment Day.
“This project gives the agency to youth to share their stories of the reality of climate and environmental shocks but also the practical ways in which they are adapting and minimizing the impact,” said Christine Muhigana, UNICEF South Africa Representative, when talking about the project in late 2023.
‘Enviro-Champs’ in Mpophomeni, KZN, conduct water pollution testing as part of a project to improve the health of the rivers and streams that run through their community.
Sisanda is a 22-year-old participant who lives in Bloemfontein, Free State and has seen the impact of climate change on his family firsthand. “This project is important to me because my mother was born in the Eastern Cape in a village. Environmental issues like climate change hamper the lives pf people living there because most people depend on subsistence farming, which is planting veggies and it becomes a problem each time there are droughts and floods they do away with all the work that people from the village have done to live. I’m hoping this project will bring more awareness to the world, to our leaders that this is what most people are facing, its tough people need more support,” he adds.
“As photographers and storytellers, we are here to tell a story and how do we get that to other people, how do we get people’s attention in today’s world,” says Kim Ludbrook, the photographer leading the project.
The participants share their initial ideas and ways of covering their stories, from recycling trash to tackling water quality issues and protecting livestock.
The young storytellers will spend the next few weeks gathering content before re-grouping in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal in March where they will start designing their photo book and exhibit.
