Vayanga Donzo is passionate about environmental issues related to climate change, biodiversity conservation, project management and monitoring and evaluation. He is currently enrolled in two ( 2) master’s programs, one in Migratory Cooperation and Local Development at the Université Général Lansana Conté de Sonfonia, where he is conducting research on plastic waste management in the Republic of Guinea, the case of the city of Conakry, and the other on project management at the International University of Switzerland.

Mr. Vayanga Donzo has over six (6) years of experience as a young climate activist, community project manager and research associate. He has participated in high-level national, regional and international conferences (COP-21, COP-27, African Climate Week, Regional Climate Camp, Nairobi Summer School on Climate Justice, Regional Coastal and Marine Forum 2024, AFSA Youth Summit on Food Systems and Agroecology…).

Professionally, he is the representative of several international organizations in Guinea, including : Executive Director of the Association des Jeunes Dynamiques pour le Développement Durable, Monitoring and Evaluation Officer of the World Bank Guinea Youth Network ( RJBMG), National Representative of Cub Encore de L’Inde in Guinea, National Co-coordinator of the International Federation of Youth United for Water and Climate ( UN1FY) in Guinea, Coordinator of the Green Initiative in Guinea, Fellow of the Africa Research and Impact Network (ARIN) where he researched how to “Optimize synergies between forest landscape restoration and climate-smart livestock practices in the Republic of Guinea” and is currently working as a project assistant at GreenTransformation2050 in Guinea.

Franklin Pyokpung Zaure for the past six years, lectures in Theatre and Performing Arts department, Ahmadu Bello University, Nigeria with a research focus on performance design and environmental sustainability. He has four years’ experience teaching cultural and creative arts to children between the ages of three to fifteen at the primary and secondary education levels. He is a Fellow, Fulbright Visiting Research; Rise-Up Leadership Accelerator Program; https://riseuptogether.org/franklin-pyokpung-zaure/ He is a transdisciplinary researcher/artist, development communicator, an advocate for environmental justice, a climate change advocate and the founder of the Creative Arts for Development Center, a grassroot organization that leverages on creativity for social change.

I am an interdisciplinary researcher and critical urban scholar. My research revolves around urban informality, urban inclusion and exclusion, urban transformation and cities, space and power. My goal is to contribute to knowledge, public debate, policy discussions and practice around these themes. I am currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the African Climate and Development Initiative (ACDI), University of Cape Town. My current research is on Urban water adaptation: Exploring practices of adaptive governance for building urban water resilience in Cape Town’s informal settlements. I hold a Ph.D. in Social Sciences (Migration and Land Settlement), an M.Sc. in Social Ecology, and a B.Sc. in Urban and Regional Planning both from the University of Zimbabwe. I am also affiliated with the African Center for Cities (ACC) at the University of Cape Town where I teach the module – Climate Change and the City for the Masters in Sustainable Urban Practice program. I am also a former Research Fellow at the University of the Free State, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Centre for Applied Social Sciences (CASS) at the University of Zimbabwe. I have published extensively in High Impact International Journals like Urban Forum, Sustainable Development, Land Use Policy, Anthropology Southern Africa, Pan-African Conversations, Journal of Asian and African Studies, Town and Regional Planning, African Identities, and International Journal of Sustainable Development & World Ecology, among others. My recent BOOK: “COVID-19 Lockdowns and the Urban Poor in Harare, Zimbabwe: Emerging Perspectives and the Morphing of a Sustainable Urban Future, published by Springer, Cham is available at: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-41669-9. Outside academia, I have more than 7 years experience in applied policy and development research, undertaking commissioned research and program evaluations and baseline studies on issues such as affordable housing, urban innovation, local economic development and inclusive urban economies, urban economic resilience, urban poverty and inequality (urban social geography), climate justice for marginalized populations, immigrants and racialized people’s experiences for national and local government agencies, civil society and international organizations such as USAID, FAO, CESVI Zimbabwe, Center for Affordable Housing Finance (CAHF), and Homeless International, among others. My research and professional experience spans across countries such as Zimbabwe, Senegal, Zambia, China, Germany, South Africa, Lesotho, Morocco, Belgium, Ghana, and Switzerland, among others.