WHAT LENS DO YOU VIEW AFRICA THROUGH?
What comes to mind when you envision a group of divers exploring the southern tips kelp forests, restoring East Africa’s coral reefs or filming wildlife in warm and wild forest and plains across the continent?
What do filmmakers, scientists, innovators and conservation heroes look like, sound like, and dress like?
Our Story Arc is a collection of stories that amplify, and powerfully celebrate some of the trailblazing, compelling, complex, funny, hopeful, nuanced, inspiring, passionate and hard-fought journeys of African storytellers, conservationists and scientists in the NEWF community - and far beyond.
Through these stories, we celebrate our collective agency, and seek to share the value of community-centric impact through warm, thought-provoking narratives that highlight the richly diverse cultures, multidisciplinary talent and Indigenous knowledge systems that play a significant role in the preservation of our wild spaces, species and the communities that coexist with them.
Travel across Africa alongside these storytellers, innovators and explorers; the curious creatives, passionate peers, and radical agents of change refocusing the narratives of Africa.
Africa Refocused, Reimagined, and Rising Together at #NEWF2025
The 8th NEWF Fellows Summit and Congress emerged as a culturally vibrant, supportive and engaging source of community, connection and creative energy once again. Curated to respond to the evolving needs of fellows, covering everything from storytelling craft, pitching strategies and collaborative production approaches - to inviting the industry to join the conversation reimagining the future of community-inclusive, African-led storytelling, science and art.
eKhaya TURNS ONE!
Last year, we shared our mission to build strong communities for NEWF fellows to grow and take up space. eKhaya has become a dynamic space to gather, learn, challenge, train, eat, and rest in community. #ChangingTheNarrative manifests as 250+ African storytellers, scientists, researchers, and conservationists bringing diverse perspectives, ideas, and dreams to life.
Exploring the Future of Storytelling
This year has been electric with momentum! One of the most exciting events on our travel calendar is the National Geographic Society Explorers Festival - an opportunity to celebrate our community and see our dream of seeing diverse catalogues of authentic stories featuring a global melting pot of culture, language and community-inclusive impact come true.
What does the Africa you dream of look like?
Dr.Aristide Takoukam Kamla and eight (8) prospective open water SCUBA divers from Cameroon, Ghana and Senegal were welcomed to eKhaya Storytelling, Research and Dive Centre in Sodwana Bay. Straight off accepting a highly acclaimed Whitley Award for Nature, he shares how a small Weevil helped Lake Ossa breathe again.
In Retrospect: #NEWF2024 Fellows Summit and Congress
#NEWF2024 is a whirlwind that starts our community's year and sets it on a busy course to bring ideas to life and keep the momentum created through networking, inspired dialogue and interactive learning at large. But this year was different. Word on the street is that it was our best yet - with more impact on the horizon.
eKhaya: We are HOME
Our mission has always been to create strong communities for storytellers, conservationists, and scientists to help each other grow and take up space. At NEWF, we have watched this community grow from one group of fellows pitching their films in 2017, to more than 200 fellows from more than 25 African countries. If only these walls could talk!