William Lubuulwa
Ugandans love stories. From the katogo breakfast tales at roadside stalls to WhatsApp voice notes longer than Parliament sessions, we are a storytelling nation. But one story we haven’t told nearly enough - with the urgency, clarity, and hope it deserves - is the story of our changing climate and the quiet, determined fight to restore our wounded environment. Yes, we have seen the headlines: Floods Swallow Up Shops in Bwaise; Bududa Landslides Roll Down Villages; Severe Droughts Burn Karamoja, and so on. And while the climate is indeed misbehaving, not enough is being said about how Uganda is responding, healing, or even innovating. That is where climate change journalism must step up. It should not always be a messenger of doom, but a storyteller of hope. Yet, if you open your newspaper; scroll through your X feed; listen to the radio or watch TV, the environmental stories often stop at the disaster. We all forget to do follow-up coverage of what comes next, for instance, how people are trying to fix what has been broken, and the policies and practices that are promising to work. Take the Lubigi Wetland System.
This area was once better known for car washes and impromptu pork joints than for biodiversity. Located in the heart of Kampala and Wakiso, Lubigi was fast becoming a ‘lost’ wetland. Then, in 2023, the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), regained her iron hand and a green heart. Backed by environmental police, NEMA cleared more than 500 illegal structures, evicted encroachers, and restored more than 480 hectares of the wetland. Residents didn’t just fume and protest. They also listened. Through radio talk shows, community barazas, and social media campaigns under #SaveLubigi, people began to see the link between their own behaviour and the floods lapping at their doorsteps. Similar stories are unfolding across the country. In Mpigi District, youth under the Green Roots Uganda initiative have planted over 80,000 trees since 2022. In Luweero, women’s savings groups have teamed up with schools to establish mini-forests on former grazing lands.
In Gulu, students at Gulu University are turning plastic waste into eco-bricks to build school latrines. This is recycling with a mission! In reshaping the climate change conversation, training is key. Journalism schools must mainstream environmental reporting into their curricula - not as electives but as core components. Journalists should be able to interpret climate data, question environmental budgets, and follow up on restoration pledges the same way they chase election campaigns and promises. Moreover, institutions like NEMA, the Uganda Communications Commission, and the Uganda Media Council should invest in climate journalism fellowships, storytelling awards, and local content incubation hubs to support journalists committed to this beat. Uganda has committed to restoring 2.5 million hectares of degraded landscapes by 2030 under the AFR100 Initiative. That is not just a number. It is a lifeline. But it won’t happen in silence. It needs journalism that tracks, celebrates, critiques, and educates.
Mr William Lubuulwa is the senior public relations officer at NEMA.
