Enterprising Creativity- weaving the bread basket of Africa through Art.

The lifeblood of a nation is in its people and their unique customs. The unique aspects of heritage and beauty in the natural world . All the rich components of culture intersecting with music, literature, film and fashion lend to a colourful tapestry of stories that illuminate our mundane human lives. In a way it is a kind of weaving, so this begs the next question. How have we come to undervalue arts and the significant impact they can make on our economy? The grassroots of pioneering change are evident in harvesting new ideas, in sparking visionaries.

Chioniso will share tips on how to embark on a journey of creativity that inspires practical and sustainable change in our day to day living.
Chioniso Tsikisayi is an award winning writer, performer, poet and playwright from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe whose primary mediums of expression are through spoken word, music, dance and storytelling. She took first runner up for the 65th Kenya Poetry Slam Africa Contest. Her work has been featured in Brittle Paper, Isele Magazine, The Kalahari Review, Ipikai Poetry Journal , Agbowó art, AFREADA, Intwasa Short Stories Volume Two, Imbiza Journal for African Writing, Tesserae; a mosaic of poems by Zimbabwean women. In 2022, her debut play, A Woman Has Two Mouths was shortlisted for the African Women Playwrights Network Festival of Plays held in Accra, Ghana. She won the Canopus Award 2023 for excellence in interstellar writing in the Original Local Short Form Fiction Category for her short story "Gumbojena." She won the Ibua Bold Continental Call for Climate Change, Poetry category and the 2023 Roil Bulawayo Arts Award for Outstanding Poet of the Year. She is a Creative Writing Alumnus of the Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx