Radio Workshop

Pascal Mirindi, a 25-year-old activist from Goma, in the Democratic Republic of Congo, grew up surrounded by the violent fall-out of the Rwandan genocide of 1994, which spilled over into the DRC. But at age 17, when Pascal joined a peaceful demonstration in the streets of Goma, it showed him another way to fight. Experiencing non-violent resistance changed his life and set him on a path to  protect his country's ecosystems from the greed of oil companies. But – being confronted constantly with police repression, threats, and even forced exile – he wonders if it's time to step back or time to step up…
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Before the month of love comes to a close, we wanted to share one of our favorite episodes from the archive. 
Dating is complicated. Not to mention dating on the apps! And for LGBTQI+ folks on the African continent, where many countries criminalise queerness, it’s even MORE complicated. We asked reporters in Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Kenya and Namibia to share how they navigate the highs and lows of seeking romance, community and friendship online. Despite all the pitfalls, love calls out to all of us.
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Abiodun Oyeniran lost his sight completely at age 21. At 28, he finally makes it into the University of Lagos, only to realise the campus is not equipped to fully support the needs of blind students. So, Abiodun becomes an accidental activist, creating a grassroots system that helps visually impaired students navigate exams for 5 years—until the university decides his solution is a threat to their policy and shuts it down.
Show Notes
Sources:
2017 National Policy on Inclusive Education 
2018 Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities Prohibition Act
2023 Study on Nigerian Visually Impaired Students’ Computer Skills
The Tweet
Acknowledgements:
This episode would not be possible without support from Fondation CHANEL, Ford Foundation, and Luminate.
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Last week, one of Radio Workshop’s producers was featured on the Sound School podcast. Sound School, hosted by Rob Rosenthal, spoke to Kabir Jugram about his podcast episode “Nothing Wrong, Bro,” which explores the mental health struggles of young men in South Africa’s most densely populated city, Johannesburg. 
Twenty-three-year-old reporter Kabir Jagram says young men in South Africa are stoic. Holding back emotions is a survival mechanism in a country wracked with youth unemployment. And that can lead to serious mental health issues. So, how then, as a young man himself struggling with expressing feelings, did Kabir manage to produce a captivating radio documentary about emotions?
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Aphiwe's grandmother taught her to flatten cardboard boxes when she was just a kid, selling the tiny "baby bundles" and saving the money in a piggy bank. Now 19, Aphiwe wears her grandmother's old work clothes and does the job alone — supporting her entire family. Waste pickers like Aphiwe recover 80% of South Africa's recycled plastic and paper, yet earn poverty wages in an industry that depends on them but won't protect them.
Shownotes
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Sources 
Occupational Groups in the Informal Economy: Waste Pickers
Infrastructure News - Stop Pretending Waste Pickers Don’t Exist
Nature News - South Africa’s waste pickers deserve more recognition for environmental role 
Newcastillian News - SA’s Recycling Lie: What Really Happens to Your Rubbish
Acknowledgements
This episode would not be possible without support from the UMI Fund. Special thanks to Hindenburg for supporting our projects across Africa with audio editing software.

Support the show
We can only do this work because of your support. You can make a donation at radioworkshop.org.