At eMbo, about 50km outside Durban, flood survivors are teaming up with researchers from the Africa Health Research Institute at the University of KwaZulu-Natal to show how climate disasters affect peoples mental health.
eMbos people lived through the devastating floods of 2022.
Through digital storytelling, such as drawing pictures of their experiences and voice recordings, residents turn their personal trauma into evidence, detailing the emotional costs of floods and droughts.
The project is part of the Weather Events and Mental Health Analysis Wema study, which is doing similar work in Kenya, Mozambique and Burkina Faso, creating a picture of how climate change is affecting communities across Africa.
The goal: to use this newly collected evidence to push for policies that make mental health support a core part of disaster recovery, not an afterthought.
Intodays newsletter, our Health Beat team looks at the mental toll of climate change.Sign up for our newsletter today.
Bhekisisa is a collaborator on the Wellcome Trust-funded project, led by the Africa Health Research Institute Ahri at the University of KwaZulu-Natal. Bhekisisa, however, operates editorially independently of the project. Find out more about our funding policies.
