Activation spaces and murals on show this time

MBABANE - This year’s Bring Your Fire Zone features a Mural Maze of visual art, illustrating the concerns being addressed by the various groups activating in the Zone, all created by local muralists and visual artists.

Festivalgoers are encouraged to explore the ways we can all make a meaningful personal contribution to a better world, by engaging with the activation spaces through quizzes, games and discover how to support beneficial causes through social media engagement and digital messaging.

Some of the issues being tackled this year include minority rights, social diversity awareness, environmental and climate action for the youth, challenging gender roles and norms in social and familial contexts, human rights dialogue, HIV prevention, COVID-19 vaccine and precaution awareness, positive social change in youth, and education initiatives on personal and group safety with regards to human trafficking and smuggling.

Sharing

The range of diverse organisations participating in the Bring Your Fire Zone include STEM Education, sharing the importance of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math to developing a nation, while The Prevention of Human Trafficking and People Smuggling Secretariat will educate festivalgoers on the different types of human trafficking and smuggling.

Rock of Hope and COSPE will be celebrating queer identity, encouraging festival attendees to write and display messages of solidarity, while issues of gender and the prevalence of gender norms will be challenged by the Moya Center, which provides psycho-social support for young women and girls.

NERCHA will be on site promoting HIV prevention and the continuing importance of using condoms, and PSA/USAID will provide educational materials on COVID-19 vaccines, HIV prevention and precautionary measures.

Beneficiary

Long-time MTN BUSHRIRE beneficiary Young Heroes, which supports youth orphaned and vulnerable through the on-going HIV/Aids pandemic, will encourage positive

social action through games, live-streaming and social media engagement.

Following the successful first Green Round Table held in Eswatini, Hlumisa will bring their fire around environmental issues and climate change, supporting the festival’s on-going recycling and green initiatives.

Encouraged

Festivalgoers are all encouraged to Bring their Fire,their spirit, passion and energy to create positive change to this inspiring and interactive creative advocacy space, then take a piece of the Bring Your Fire spirit home, promoting awareness around burning social and environmental issues that impact our daily lives and our future, both locally and globally, and igniting tangible action towards positive social and environmental change in your community.