Across Africa, communities are finding innovative ways to adapt to climate change, and these solution-driven stories must replace the continent’s traditional disaster-focused narrative, Lead Convener of the TN Africa Digital Journalism Summit Senanu Damilola Wemakor, said at the second TN Africa Digital Journalism Summit in Limuru, Kenya.
“For too long, Africa’s climate story has been told only through disasters. But communities across the continent are innovating, adapting, and building solutions. These are the stories we must tell,” Wemakor said.
The summit, themed “Telling Africa’s Climate and Food Story in the Digital Age”, convened journalists, digital creators, and climate communicators to explore how storytelling can highlight Africa’s climate resilience, food security innovations, and local solutions to environmental challenges.
Wemakor highlighted the Story the Change campaign, TN Africa’s continental platform that aims to mobilize storytellers to produce over a thousand climate-focused digital stories in six months and reach at least 20 million people online. He emphasized the role of digital creators with large followings in shaping perceptions, influencing policy, and empowering local communities.
The Kenya summit built on the momentum from TN Africa’s inaugural Digital Journalism Summit in Ghana, hosted at the British Council, which trained over 300 attendees to produce accurate and impactful climate and food stories. “The Ghana summit showed us the power of equipping youth to tell their own climate stories,” Wemakor noted.
Panel discussions in Kenya featured experts, including Dr. Winnie Ndeta Otsiulah, Joyce Koech, Bonnke Museeve Mulaama, and others. They emphasized the importance of solution-focused narratives that highlight African innovation in tackling climate challenges.
Dr. Ndeta reinforced the role of communicators and digital creators in shaping the continent’s climate story. “As communicators, as digital creators, we are the gatekeepers in communication. Yet, the dominant narratives that often paint Africa as a victim must shift. We need to take these stories to the people; these solutions cannot remain confined to academic papers or library shelves,” she said.
The summit also featured the launch of the Story the Change initiative, setting up a structured pipeline: starting with 50 stories, selecting 20 journalists for direct mentorship, and supporting 10 fellows with deeper publication opportunities. The goal is to produce stories that connect climate and food issues, grounded in evidence and optimized for digital platforms, reaching real audiences including farmers, policymakers, and students.
“The summit is not just a one-off event; it is a movement,” Wemakor said. “We are here to give African youth and creators the tools to tell their own climate story, to reach millions, and to show the world that Africa is not just a backdrop for disasters, it is a hub of innovation, resilience, and solutions.”
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Source: The Newsroom Africa