Meet the Team Immortalizing Kenya’s 2017 in Words and Images

Welcome To Series 17

When the Idea of Series 17 occurred to me, I was musing about the singularity of the stories that govern our perspectives of life. The memory of history is heavily influenced by the biggest headline that you can remember. In this era of information overload, it is easy to forget what happened last month when you are constantly bombarded by new things in real time.

The tragedy in our shorter memories is that history is not a series of quantum leaps but a sequence of events that build up to a tipping point. I want to be part of the team that documents our recent history that we may be able to have dots to connect in hindsight. Reflection is no good when we don’t have a point of reference.

The Pulse of Kenya

In Kenya, the highlight of the year has been the prolonged electoral process and the country was in a state of bated breath for the better part of 2017. We are relieved to have emerged (barely emerged) from the bulk of the mess and are trying to chart the way forward. A few notable behavioral and cultural shifts have marked a pivot point in our lives and they should not go unmentioned.

The pace of progress and change in Africa is accelerated by the access that the internet age brings. We have leap-frogged stages that other civilizations had to crawl through and we are preoccupied by the quest for creating a new Africa. The intersection of Africa’s past with the influence of foreign global cultures, lead to a interesting situation where a new modern Afro-culture is being formed right before our eyes.

The beauty in analysis and paying attention is that deviation and progression towards the negative is detected early enough to influence a change. More than ever, do I believe that Africa has the opportunity to influence it’s people to think differently. To form a unit that is more powerful than we thought possible. I believe in influence. I believe that everyone has a circle that they can influence. Therefore, I believe that change comes from the bottom up.

For #Series17, we picked a team of people from diverse sectors so that we look at Kenya from a wide lens. The cast includes people influencing the Arts to people in the corporate sector actively working to influence the economic trajectory of Africa.

Without further ado, meet the team!

1. Gift Kyansimire

Gifted visual Artist based in Nairobi who uses his art to empower and motivate people to appreciate each other and the small things in life. Best know for his sketch art that he shares using his alias Zordfiles.

2. Wemo Kitawa

Recently recognized at the Global Women Economic Forum in May 2016 for her active efforts towards equipping youth and women with skills for economic empowerment, she believes in an Africa where entrepreneurs build legacies and businesses survive the harsh global climate.

3. Ongera Nyairo

Since 2014 crypto-currencies such as bitcoin and other decentralized applications on peer-to-peer networks has been the only topic he writes about. He has created content for hundreds of startups in the blockchain space

4. Jacque Njeri

One of the top graphic designers in Advertising since 2014 who has successfully began her art career this year (2017) with her most notable works being the globally acclaimed #Maasci series being featured on CNN, BBC, OkayAfrica just to name a few.

5. Bodo Charles

Mind behind BC Africa and the organizer behind the Soul Experience. He’s a man about town connected to all sorts of people in the performance arts. Especially Music and Poetry. He will introduce us to the magic lurking in the world of poetry and Music in Kenya.

6. Stella Njogo ( Me)

Passionate about the role of culture and the arts in influencing change and progress in Africa. Believes that we can shape and influence a better Africa by paying attention to the cultural nuances that are emerging. You can usually find her in all sorts of art events interacting laughing and mingling with people as she plots her next blog post in her mind. Founder Shape up Sahara, the influence people.

My name is Stella Njogo and I am a culture writer passionate about documenting the ever evolving modern day culture in Africa. Culture makes the world go round and is evolving right in front of our eyes. I talk about subcultures and trends that shape Kenya and the wider Africa in my blog.