During the summer of 2024, I spent two months in Kampala, Uganda, working in the Urban Action Lab at Makerere University.
This research has been captured to understand the ways data analysis and creation as well as global partnerships (from a decolonial perspective) can be done to combat the realities that have left Sub-Saharan African countries vulnerable and underdeveloped, dictating a change necessary in the waysbusiness leaders, policymakers, and foreign investors approach development and climate change.
Unfortunately, due to high density and lack of economic mobility, some Ugandans settle in wetlands, which is highly dangerous both socially and environmentally, though this issue is a compounding factor of infrastructure and economic disparities that exacerbate urban overcrowding, limit access to safe housing, and increase vulnerability to climate-related disasters.
Our research helped contribute to budget allocations and climate change ideologies in Kampala's local municipalities as, through spatial analysis, we were able to show the densest areas within a region and also where its inhabitants were residing.
We then performed field visits to ensure our points were exact, as well as meeting and showing community leaders our findings, which will ultimately be used within their 2030 disaster and risk management plan.
Being able to work and learn alongside so many wonderful individuals in a world so different from the one I was socialised in, I enjoyed the beautiful challenge of discovering how I can make an impact. I hope everyone embraces me with love and that the Laidlaw Foundation gives me an opportunity to explore and make change. I am truly blessed and grateful to have had these experiences and look forward to letting them empower me further.