This film makes me wonder if equal access to education is the answer to Africa's environmental issues.
DISCLAIMER: This blog post contains spoilers for the Netflix film The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind.
The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind is an award-winning film based on true events that follows 14-year-old William Kamkwamba as he uses his smarts to save his family and village from starvation. The film touches on themes all too familiar to any African, from political corruption and poverty to inaccessibility to education. The latter of these is of major importance, particularly as it is one of the most defining obstacles of William's journey. His thirst for knowledge and his innovative nature are only intensified after he is kicked out of school. It's what leads him to solve the issue of famine-induced hunger in his village.
While all of it was truly inspiring to watch, it also really made me wonder: is education the answer?
Africa's Environmental Issues
According to the UN Environment Programme, some of Africa's biggest environmental challenges include land degradation, deforestation, biodiversity loss and extreme vulnerability to climate change. There has also been a steady increase of air pollution, water pollution and scarcity of food in both urban and rural areas.
Some of these challenges can lead to public health issues which in turn lead to an increase of deaths. And to make matters worse, environmental issues left unchecked can result in civil unrest as people become more desperate. Just like we see in The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind, communities crumble when people are desperate, with some people turning on their fellow peers. In the fight for potential solutions, people may fight over land and resources. Extreme poverty caused by environmental damage can lead to an increase of criminal cases. And of course, marginalized groups such as women and children are the most vulnerable to the violence that comes with this kind of desperation.
Fortunately, there are plans for environment-friendly and community-centered methods/policies already in place to help curb the worst case of scenarios, one being to educate the youth and spread awareness on environmental issues. Every African country is different and environmental policies vary among them, but widespread environmental education has the potential to empower young Africans to make some changes. The UN Environment Programme, as well as other stakeholders, believe that environmental education is a key contributor to sustainable development in Africa.
But I don't think education alone is enough and I think The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind demonstrates this.
Just One Piece of the Puzzle?
In order to solve the food shortage issue, William comes up with the idea to build a windmill that will generate electricity to power a water pump. He uses the pump to create an irrigation system so that people can farm at any time of the year. While all of this would not have been possible without the knowledge he learned from school, the way the film portrays William makes me believe his own intellect and curiosity played a significant role in his success.
From the very beginning of the film, we see William spend a lot of his free time tinkering with radios and digging through the trash pile for scraps of technology to experiment with. This is not a trait he was taught at school. He was driven by his own curious nature and it came in handy when everyone needed it most. But there's more. If it were not for the support of William's family and friends, none of what he accomplished would be possible.
William's parents are perhaps the best example of this. The lengths at which they went to ensure that their children are well cared for is truly inspiring. They worked tirelessly in the fields and took money out of their life savings to feed their children. Even William's older sister played an integral role in his success. Her relationship with his science teacher seemed to come in handy when he needed help with gathering the necessary materials. And the support of his close friends was useful in testing and executing his windmill plans.
All of these things together, combined with the education he received, are the reasons William was able to save his village from hunger. The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind teaches us that African youth are capable of making the changes necessary for a more sustainable future. However, it also teaches us that they need to be supported because the responsibility of environmental stewardship does not fall on them alone. It takes a village to harness the wind.
Sources Used
Walker, Monique. "The Social and Economic Effects of Climate Change in Africa." Wilson Center, 25 Aug. 2021, www.wilsoncenter.org/blog-post/social-and-economic-effects-climate-change-africa.
UNEP 2016. GEO-6 Regional Assessment for Africa. United Nations Environment Programme, Nairobi, Kenya.
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