The Africa Center and Africa Soft Power present Lines of Survival: Living, Adapting, Imagining Tomorrow, a new exhibition of African climate photography
2026 Africa Soft Power Climate Storytelling Fellowship & Photo Essay Prize exhibition opens September 17 in New York, on view throughout UNGA81 and Climate Week NYC
(New York, NY, September 10, 2026) – The Africa Center and Africa Soft Power (ASP) will present Lines of Survival: Living, Adapting, Imagining Tomorrow, an exhibition bringing together the work of five young African photographers documenting how communities are living with, responding to and imagining their way through a changing climate.
The winning and finalist works will be on view at The Africa Center in New York from September 17 to November 1, 2026, remaining on display throughout the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly and Climate Week NYC.
South African photographer Mpumelelo Buthelezi has been named the 2026 Africa Soft Power Climate Storytelling Fellow and Overall Winner for E'Plazini: A Place to Call Home for Waste Collectors, a series documenting waste pickers in the Dryhook informal settlement in Soweto. Buthelezi receives an award of US$2,000 alongside inclusion in the international exhibition.
He is joined by four finalists: Kevin Ochieng Onyango (Kenya) for Climate Realities, documenting communities in northern Kenya through a drought in its fourth year; Vanessa Mulondo (Uganda) for The Fishermen’s Tale, photographed on the shores of Lake Eyasi in Tanzania; Brian Ongoro (Kenya) for When the Water Stays, on families living amid persistent flooding near Lake Victoria in Kenya; and Nicolas Vava (Togo) for Stand in the Sand, tracing the effects of coastal erosion on fishing communities along the Togolese shoreline.
The 2026 edition was judged on the theme Lines of Survival: Living, Adapting, Imagining Tomorrow, which asked photographers aged 18-30 from across Africa and the global diaspora to document how communities live with climate pressure, adapt to it, and imagine what comes next.
The entries were assessed by a jury spanning photography, documentary practice, curation and the visual arts: Polly Irungu, Founder of Black Women Photographers and former official photo editor to Vice President Kamala Harris; Bernard Kalu, Fujifilm Global X-Photographer and Canon Miraisha Master Storyteller; Gaëtane Verna, curator and member of the Board of Trustees of the Sobey Art Foundation; and Tsoku Maela, photographer and filmmaker.
From Dr. Nkiru Balonwu, Founder & Creative Director, Africa Soft Power: “Climate change is discussed every day in terms of finance, policy, energy and targets. Those conversations matter, but they are incomplete without the people living the consequences of the decisions being made. These photographers bring us close to those realities. They show us loss and pressure, but also work, ingenuity, adaptation and the determination to keep going. Opening this exhibition in New York as the city prepares for UNGA and Climate Week is about making sure those perspectives are present when the world is talking about what comes next.”
From The Africa Center: “The Africa Center is thrilled to partner with Africa Soft Power on this important exhibition, which brings together the work of five young artists documenting one of the most pressing issues of our times. We remain committed to presenting art and ideas that speak to the realities and experiences shaping Africa and its Diaspora.”
This is the second time work from the Prize has been shown at The Africa Center, following the inaugural edition's presentation during the UN General Assembly in 2023.
The exhibition is presented as part of the Africa Soft Power Climate Storytelling program, which brings together the Climate Change Photo Essay Prize, identifying emerging photographic talent; the Climate Storytelling Fellowship, providing recognition, and support; and international exhibitions and media that take the work to wider audiences.
Exhibition Details
Lines of Survival: Living, Adapting, Imagining Tomorrow
Africa Soft Power Climate Storytelling Fellowship & Photo Essay Prize 2026
September 17 – November 1, 2026
The Africa Center
1280 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10029
8am-4pm (Tuesday - Sunday)
Free and open to the public.
***
About the Africa Soft Power Climate Storytelling Fellowship & Photo Essay Prize
The Africa Soft Power Climate Storytelling Fellowship & Photo Essay Prize supports African and diaspora photographers aged 18-30 to document the realities of climate change and the ingenuity, adaptation and resilience emerging in response. Across three editions, the program has received more than 1,140 photographs from over 30 countries and exhibited finalists’ work across Africa, Europe and North America. Through the Prize, Fellowship, international exhibitions and media, the program brings African perspectives into global conversations on climate, energy and development. It forms part of the Road to 100 Million Climate Soldiers in Africa initiative, run in collaboration with African Women on Board.
About The Africa Center
The Africa Center is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit institution committed to the principle that a just and peaceful world begins with a flourishing Africa in deep communion with its Diaspora. Located in New York City, The Africa Center convenes artists, creatives, cultural leaders, entrepreneurs, investors, and policymakers to shape artistic expression, narratives, investments, and partnerships critical to the prosperous and secure future of Africa and its Diaspora.
About Africa Soft Power
Africa Soft Power works to bring African perspectives, ideas and experiences into global conversations and the institutions and platforms that shape them. Through research, convenings, cultural programs and initiatives spanning climate, creativity, leadership and economic development, ASP connects African and diaspora voices with audiences and decision-makers across sectors.
Media Inquiries:
The Africa Center: Camille Wanliss, Communications & Media Relations Manager, cwanliss@theafricacenter.org
Africa Soft Power: Adiel Okonji, Communications Lead, curator@africasoftpower.com