What does it mean to be an activist today — and who gets to claim that title?

In this episode of Power, People & Planet, Kumi Naidoo is joined by Hardi Yakubu, Coordinator of Africans Rising for Unity, Justice, Peace and Dignity, for a powerful conversation on leadership, solidarity, and building people-powered movements across Africa.

From Hardi’s early experiences of standing up to injustice in school to his current role helping lead a pan-African movement with tens of thousands of members, the conversation challenges narrow, NGO-centric definitions of activism and calls for organising that goes beyond moments of protest.

At a time of overlapping crises — from climate breakdown to economic injustice — this episode asks how movements can rise with clarity, courage, and care.

Because pessimism is a luxury we simply cannot afford.

🧭 Topics Discussed
✅Early experiences that shape a life of resistance
✅The origins and growth of Africans Rising as a pan-African movement
✅Why mobilisation is not enough — and why organising matters
✅Building collective leadership beyond charismatic individuals
✅Challenging extractive economic models and imperial power
✅Unity, justice, peace, and dignity as foundations for Africa’s future

RESOURCES:

Hardi Yakubu- https://www.facebook.com/sonofafrica/

Africans Rising for Unity, Justice, Peace and Dignity- https://www.facebook.com/AfricansRising

Subcribe to Kumi Naidoo's Power People and Project for more updates and episodes! https://www.powerpeopleplanet.org/

“Your eco-anxiety is a sign your humanity is intact. You’re reacting rationally to an irrational world.”

In this episode of Power, People & Planet, Kumi Naidoo sits down with climate justice activist, author and musician Tori Tsui (It’s Not Just You) for a profound and unfiltered conversation about the world we’re living in — and the world we must build.

Together they explore:
🔥 Why climate change is not an “environmental issue” — but a failure of our political, economic & military systems
🔥 The deep connection between climate justice and the genocide in Palestine
🔥 How the military–fossil fuel industrial complex drives conflict and global emissions
🔥 The urgency of a Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty
🔥 Eco-anxiety: why it’s a rational response to an irrational world — and how grief, rage and sensitivity can be transformed into collective power
🔥 Artivism: how culture, music and imagination fuel resistance and liberation

Tori shares her journey from wildlife scientist to outspoken activist, her work with Brian Eno and Earth Percent, and the “Together for Palestine” concert at Wembley. Kumi reflects on the need to centre artists, storytellers and culture-makers to reach hearts, not just minds — and why validating eco-anxiety is essential for building a resilient, people-powered movement.

➡️ JOIN THE MOVEMENT
Support the Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty: https://fossilfueltreaty.org
Join the Global Artivism Movement: https://globalartivism.org

➡️RESOURCES
Follow Tori Tsui at : https://www.instagram.com/toritsui_
Together for Palestine: https://www.instagram.com/t4plive/
Massive Attack: https://www.instagram.com/massiveattackofficial/

______________

Check out Centre for Public Impact's latest episode for the Reimagining Government Podcast!

This podcast shines a light on government changemakers around the world. This season explores what happens when those too often excluded from decision-making lead the way, and what their leadership reveals about how governments can work differently.

Learn more here: https://centreforpublicimpact.org/our-work/reimagining-government-podcast/

Subcribe to Kumi Naidoo's Power People and Project for more updates and episodes! https://www.powerpeopleplanet.org/

Can beauty become the backbone of a social movement? 🧠✨

In this episode of Power, People & Planet, I sit down with artist and artivist Shilo Shiv Suleman to explore how art, beauty, and fearless imagination turn fear into love, trauma into healing, and streets into living canvases of resistance.

From building an “army of fearless” women reclaiming public space, to creating climate monuments with frontline and Indigenous communities, we talk about:
☑️ How beauty can save us and help us heal
☑️ Why rebellion and imagination are essential political tools
☑️ What it means to root climate action in wonder, magic realism, and ancient wisdom
☑️ How art and culture are powering a new wave of global, feminist, decolonial movements

If you’ve ever doubted that art can change the world, this conversation is for you. 🌟

#PowerPeoplePlanet #Artivism #FearlessImagination #ShiloShivSuleman #ClimateJustice #FeministFutures #GlobalArtivism

Shiloh Shiv Suleman: https://www.instagram.com/shiloshivsuleman/

Fearless Collective: https://www.instagram.com/fearlesscollective/

Subcribe to Kumi Naidoo's Power People and Project for more updates and episodes! https://www.powerpeopleplanet.org/