What a moment it is to be a football fan! The 2026 @FIFAWorldCup has officially kicked off, and I had the pleasure of catching last night's opening game from the comfort of my living room. I would like to congratulate every African team that earned its place at this global tournament. Here is what makes me especially proud, both as an African and as a conservationist: look at the names our teams carry onto the world stage. Morocco's Atlas Lions. Senegal's Lions of Teranga. Algeria's Desert Foxes. Tunisia's Eagles of Carthage. Côte d'Ivoire's Elephants. Cape Verde's Blue Sharks. DRC’s Leopards. These are not just nicknames — they are declarations of identity. Our wildlife is so woven into who we are as Africans that when our nations step onto football's biggest stage, it is the lion, the eagle, the elephant, the leopard that leads us out of the tunnel. The same majestic animals we work every day to protect are the very symbols of our pride, our power, and our place in the world. Football has never really been about the final score for me. It's about what happens around the game. The chants echoing through the stands. The face paint. The drums. The flags draped over shoulders like capes. Fans bringing their culture, their identity, their entire soul into a stadium — and somehow, a stranger sitting next to you becomes family for 90 minutes. The fact that you can travel to the most remote corner of the world and football finds you is remarkable. A kid in a dusty village wearing a faded jersey of his favourite team, dreaming of the day he too will wear the lion on his chest, that is the true beauty of the game. This World Cup is more than sport. It's a universal language spoken by billions. To every team — and especially to Africa's flagbearers — play hard, play proud, and let the world hear our roar. #WorldCup2026

This week, as finance ministers across East Africa table budgets worth a combined USD 125 billion, I asked a question in the @nilepostnews (Uganda), The @NewTimesRwanda, @StandardKenya, and The @The_EastAfrican Newspaper: are these budgets simply funding government activity, or are they giving young Africans the agency to build the next economy? A demographic dividend is not automatic. It is earned, organised, financed and governed. Yet too many of our frameworks still treat young people as beneficiaries rather than as partners, builders and decision-makers. My argument is simple. We should train young people, yes — but we must also finance them. We should mentor them, yes — but we must also buy from them. We should invite them into consultations, yes — but we must also give them decision rights, procurement access and a fair chance to shape public priorities. A country does not become richer simply by spending more. It becomes richer when it trusts its people to create new value. East Africa's future will be stronger when its budgets finally trust its young people to lead it. Read the full piece in each publication below: 🇺🇬 Nile Post: nilepost.co.ug/opinions/3477… 🇷🇼 The New Times: newtimes.co.rw/article/36415… 🇰🇪 The Standard: standardmedia.co.ke/opinion/… The East African: theeastafrican.co.ke/tea/opi… #BudgetDay #YouthLeadership #AfricanDevelopment #Conservation #EastAfrica

A highlight of my afternoon today was catching up with H.E. Issoufou Mahamadou, the former President of #Niger and AWF Trustee, as the @AWF_Official heads into a new financial year. These are the conversations that sharpen your thinking. We talked strategy. We talked about the work AWF must do — the programs, the partnerships, the priorities. But more than anything, we talked about the continent: what Africa needs from its institutions, its leaders, and its conservation community right now. H.E. @IssoufouMhm brings the kind of perspective that only comes from having led at the highest levels — and having never stopped caring about Africa's people and landscapes. I left that meeting energized and clear-eyed about what lies ahead. Grateful for his time, his wisdom, and his continued belief in AWF's mission.

Today, the world comes together for #WorldEnvironmentDay — a global call for climate action. But let me be clear: global action must start at the local level. It starts with the community ranger in the Congo Basin who walks the same forest path every morning to protect a carbon sink that the whole world depends on. It starts with the young Kenyan entrepreneur turning degraded land into a thriving agroforestry business. It starts with the pastoralist in the Sahel who has managed landscapes sustainably for generations, long before the word "climate" entered the global vocabulary. Africa is not on the margins of the climate story. Africa is at its center. This continent holds the second-largest carbon sink on Earth. It is home to the youngest, most dynamic workforce in the world. The solutions are not coming — they are already here. The talent is not waiting to be discovered; it is already at work. What the moment demands is not more reports or more summits. It is action — locally rooted, African-led, and backed with the investment and political will this crisis deserves. To every young African reading this: the world needs what you carry. Act where you are. Protect what is near you. Lead from your community. That is how we answer this global call. #ClimateAction #NowForClimate

What a way to close out the month and step into a new one! This past weekend, I had the privilege of attending the #BALFinals in #Rwanda with my family, and what an experience it was. The energy in that arena was electric, the passion undeniable, and the sense of community absolutely infectious. A heartfelt thank you to the incredible @cakamanzi and the entire @NBA_Africa team for the kind invitation. Your vision for basketball on this continent is nothing short of inspiring, and witnessing it up close was truly special. And to the Rwanda Basketball team, The Tigers, CONGRATULATIONS! Defeating Angola in a hard-fought final was a masterclass in resilience, teamwork, and heart. Moments like these remind me why sport is one of humanity's greatest gifts. It tears down walls, bridges cultures, and brings families and nations together in ways few things can. As we step into a new month, I carry with me the energy of that arena, the pride of that victory, and the reminder that when we play together, we win together. Here's to June — and to the power of sport. #VisitRwanda

Today, I had the privilege of welcoming and having a dialogue with the fourth AWF Wall Leadership and Management Cohort in Nairobi for the in-person workshop at the @AWF_Official Conservation Center. What gave me particular joy and hope was my Q&A session with the fellows. The depth and thoughtfulness of their questions was remarkable. They were not simply seeking answers, but interrogating assumptions, drawing lessons from the leaders who came before them, and asking how they can do better. That kind of curiosity is rare, and it is exactly what Africa needs. A generation that studies the mistakes of the past not with cynicism, but with the determination to chart a different course. That spirit speaks to something fundamental about leadership. When new information challenges a past decision, the answer is never regret — it is learning. The challenges of today cannot be solved with the thinking of yesterday. I had the chance to emphasize that a true leader stays willing to examine their assumptions and change course when the evidence demands it. Every question these fellows asked reminded me that Africa's future is in capable and forward-thinking hands — leaders who understand the weight of the task ahead and are ready to carry it. AWF remains committed to walking alongside them — not just for these five days, but in the work they are doing back in their respective countries. A hearty congratulations once again to these 15 exceptional conservation leaders, and I do wish them a productive year with AWF as they continue to do extraordinary things. #AWFWallFellows

Happy International Day for Biological Diversity. Today, I reflect on a moment I keep returning to from my trip to the Congo Basin last month — not when we arrived at the forest, but the drive there. In the Congo Basin, the road to the forest is the destination. The trees don't begin when you step into the forest — they've already surrounded you for miles. Canopies overhead. Roots woven into the earth beneath. Green, layered, alive in every direction. Africa's biodiversity doesn't wait for you to find it. It finds you. This year's theme for this #BiodiversityDay, ‘Act Locally for Global Impact’,  resonates deeply with what I witnessed. The Congo Basin is the world's second-largest tropical rainforest, home to tens of thousands of species found nowhere else on Earth, is being protected not by distant declarations, but by the people who live within it and alongside it advancing local action, community knowledge and generational stewardship. Africa is not just a repository of the world's #biodiversity — it is a living, breathing demonstration of what it means to protect it. What we do — or fail to do — in places like the Congo Basin will determine outcomes that ripple across the entire planet. Issues like climate regulation, species survival, development projects and technological advancements are not regional concerns. They are ours to share. Acting locally is not a small thing. It is perhaps the most consequential thing. Here is a short video on what this trip meant to me and what this year’s theme looks like on the ground. #IBD26 #LocalAction

There are people born not to be here long — and yet, in her 18 years, Yzeera, our daughter changed institutions and touched more lives than most do in a lifetime. The world, and our family, have lost a bright light. My family and I are deeply grateful for every condolence, every message, and every quiet act of kindness we have received since the terrible news. Your love, and your gracious understanding that we needed space, has held us through the hardest days. Grief has a way of clarifying what truly matters. Yzeera reminded me — in the way she lived — that legacy is not about longevity. It is about depth of impact. I am holding this conviction close in all that I do going forward. I return to this space with a quieter heart, but a renewed lens on how @AWF_Official can achieve its vision. Again, I thank you all for your patience as I ease back into my new normal.

My trip to Cameroon would be incomplete without having genuine conversations with the media — not as a rushed side note after a long day of meetings, but with intentional, dedicated time. Time to sit, reflect, and share. I wanted them to understand why @AWF_Official is in Cameroon. What drives us. What I witnessed on this trip. And above all, the fire I see in the young people of this extraordinary country, a generation that makes up 65% of Cameroon's population. That statistic is not just a number. It is a responsibility. A promise. A movement that is already taking the lead. Journalists are storytellers, and Africa needs her stories told right. Our heritage, our wildlife, our landscapes: these are not abstract conservation concepts. They are our identity. They are legacy. They belong to every African, and every African deserves to understand why protecting them matters. When young people and journalists choose to amplify the right narratives, something shifts. Communities lean in. Leaders listen. And #conservation stops being something done to Africa and starts being something championed by Africa.

I’m back in Yaoundé and had the privilege of holding my first high-level meeting with Cameroon's Minister of Forestry and Wildlife, Jules Doret Ndongo, today. It was encouraging to hear about the strong partnership between the African Wildlife Foundation and MINFOF, and how collaboration continues to shape impactful conservation efforts. For many years, AWF’s work has been guided by national strategies across the countries where we operate, making these conversations with key decision-makers both necessary and meaningful. One thing remains clear: #conservation cannot succeed if it focuses solely on wildlife. Lasting impact depends on the active involvement of local communities, whose role is essential in protecting and sustaining our biodiversity. The stakes are global, and true progress requires alignment between government institutions, park authorities, NGOs, and the communities themselves. Our discussion went beyond partnerships with Indigenous communities. We also explored opportunities to convene leaders from across the Congo Basin to collectively define more sustainable pathways for managing Africa’s #biodiversity. As always, dialogue must lead to concrete action. I leave this meeting feeling optimistic about #Cameroon’s commitment to its people and to the protection of its natural heritage.

Some places remind you, with complete clarity, why conservation matters. Visiting the Dja Faunal Reserve this week with our @AWFCEO Kaddu Sebunya is one of those moments. Dja is not just a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it is a living ecosystem held together by people who have chosen to be its stewards. We had the privilege of meeting rangers who are also community members are actively protecting the forest from the inside out, combining professional dedication with a deep personal connection to the land. Additionally, Kaddu had the chance to meet women's groups who have embraced sustainable alternative livelihoods, turning away from extractive practices and building futures rooted in the health of the forest as well as engaging with Indigenous Baka community members, whose daily interactions with biodiversity are a masterclass in coexistence; a reminder that the knowledge systems needed to save nature have existed for generations. The trip continues to illuminate the fact that the local leaders who are our greatest ambassadors are raising a new generation of children and youth who understand, from an early age, that nature is not something apart from their lives but the foundation of their identity. Watching the Baka community move through the forest — reading it, living within it — was a profound reminder of what we are working to protect and why indigenous knowledge must be at the heart of conservation. To every ranger, every mother, every elder, every child at Dja: thank you for your commitment. You are the reason this mighty forest stands.

Every oil price spike is a reminder: Africa's economic fate must be decided by Africa. I wrote about this in a piece published by @BD_Africa today. When Brent crude crosses $100, it's not distant geopolitics for us; it's a direct tax on food, transport, and household budgets across the continent. But here's the thing: this moment shouldn't push Africa into anxiety. It should push us into clarity. What clarity, you may ask? We hold 60% of the world's best solar resources yet only 1% of installed solar PV capacity. Kenya already runs nearly 79% of its grid on renewables. Ethiopia hit 99.99% clean power. Morocco is betting $32.5 billion on green hydrogen. The transition isn't coming; it's here. The real question is whether Africa will lead boldly enough to stop importing volatility. Read the full piece and tell me, where do you think the biggest opportunity lies? businessdailyafrica.com/bd/o…

When I arrived in Yaoundé this weekend, my first stop was at the Reunification Monument. I’ll admit, as a football fan, being in the home of the Indomitable Lions already has me fired up. But standing here, it strikes me that the Lions are more than a football team, they’re a reminder that conservation lives in us. In who we are as Africa. That fierce, protective spirit isn’t separate from our identity. It is our heritage. And that’s exactly why this week matters so much. I’m here as the African Wildlife Foundation marks a decade of conservation in #Cameroon, a country that sits at the very heart of the Congo Basin and Africa’s biodiversity future. Over the next few days, I’ll be in Yaoundé with senior government officials and also out in the field in the Dja Faunal Reserve with our team, key partners and the most important of them all, the communities who make this work possible every single day. Ten years. Real results. And so much more ahead. Learn more about what this milestone means and what we’re building toward: li.awf.org/88y

Kaddu Sebunya (CASU member) that collects his works remarks that "Kateregga for us is very interesting because of his artistic approach on canvas. There is a way he brings to life the landscapes and sceneries he paints on his canvases with a sense of mystery and suspense. " 2/2

This Easter, we didn't fly across the world to find magic, we found it right here at home. Wrapping up the most incredible family trip from having picnics on the wild, to hearing the bush come alive at night, and remembering just how rich this continent is. Undoubtedly, Africa's biodiversity, landscapes, and history are unmatched anywhere on earth. As Africans, our national parks and heritage sites are not just tourist attractions, they are our inheritance. Every time we visit, we invest in our communities, our conservation, and our identity. We tell the world: we see the value in what we have. To every African family planning their next holiday, look inward first. The wonder you're chasing abroad is quietly waiting for you in your own backyard