Ten Years Later: A Journey of Seeds, Stories, and Change

In September, Nyika and Tara travelled together to the Lower Zambezi and Mfuwe to revisit the roots of the very first boys’ club, started ten years ago. What they found was both moving and inspiring.

In the Lower Zambezi, young boys spoke not only about gender equality but also about living in harmony with elephants and tackling human–wildlife conflict—big issues for their communities. In Mfuwe, they reconnected with alumni like Mjose, once a boy who argued that girls were “made for boys,” now transformed into a photographer and strong advocate for girl empowerment. They also witnessed today’s boys and girls sharing their own poems—raw, courageous, and hopeful—reminders of how mentorship unlocks voices and changes lives.

Together, Nyika and Tara wrote a collective blog to share their reflections from the journey—a story of seeds planted, lives transformed, and the hope that continues to grow.

Ten Years Later: A Journey of Seeds, Stories, and Change

By Nyika

The road stretched out before us, dust rising behind the car as if reminding me of the years that had passed. Ten years since that first journey in 2015—when we planted the fragile seed of a Boys Club. Back then, it was an idea about teaching boys positive masculinity and the power of empowering girls.

Now, a decade later, I found myself back on that road. Our first stop was in the Lower Zambezi, where Patrick, a new mentor, had started his own boys’ club, Kutchengetedza. The room buzzed with young voices—not only speaking of gender equality but pushing the conversation further. They spoke about conservation, about living in harmony with elephants, about finding solutions to the human–wildlife conflict that threatened both their future and their community.

One boy named Angel stood up, his voice steady, his eyes bright. He spoke of coexistence, of respect for animals and people alike. Listening to him, I realised that the work of years—the mentors’ meet-ups, the training, the curriculum—was bearing fruit.

From there, we travelled to Mfuwe. At Project Luangwa, I was introduced to a young man carrying a bag of cameras. “This is our photographer,” mentor Fwilane explained. I asked if he remembered me, and he dropped the bag, threw his arms around me, and said, “I remember you! My name is Mjose.”

I remembered him too—the boy who once argued that girls were made for boys, destined only for marriage. Now, here he was: a photographer, an advocate for girl empowerment, his transformation a living testimony to what mentorship makes possible.

At the club that afternoon, I saw boys waiting outside for the session to begin—eager, early, hungry for the conversations within. Laughter, music, and dancing filled the space, and I knew the future was in good hands. And it wasn’t just the boys. Girls too were rising—like Doroka and Maureen, alumni turned assistant mentors, carrying themselves with pride. The ripple effect was multiplying.

Nyika with the Junior Boys Club at Project Luangwa

Reflections in Poetry

By Tara

During this journey, I was deeply moved by the club sessions led by Fwilane and her team of junior mentors. Linked to International Day of the Girl Child, young people created poems beginning with “I am a girl” and “I am a boy.” What followed was a wave of creativity, honesty, and courage, reminding me of poetry’s power to unlock expression and connection.

Here is my own reflection from the trip, written as a poem:

Sitting in circle with boys

I was moved by the joy in Angel’s eyes by the spark of hope in a community barren and dry where elephants wander through fields into villages where deforestation eats into the land where women carry the weight of being seen as less and the burden of cutting wood to make fire to feed their families

I was moved by boys who come with wisdom beyond their years boys who speak with respect, who carry maturity like light in their hands, boys who sit in circles and write poems called I am a boy their words spilling like water on parched soil their laughter rising above the dust

I was moved at a time when toxic masculinity shouts so loud in the world these young men stand like beacons— not trite beacons, not slogans— but real, breathing boys changing mindsets rewriting traditions choosing to see women as equals choosing to be different

I was moved by Fwilane holding space with care by Nyika’s eyes lit with delight by Patrick’s contagious energy by Mjose’s transformation that buzzed in our hearts by songs at the end of every club by moments of connection with the children by the safe space where vulnerability is strength and dreams are spoken out loud

I was moved by the music, the laughter, the hope in my chest by the way loss is carried together by the familial feeling at Project Luangwa’s café by the hot, dusty spirit of Mfuwe by community by joy that persists in the midst of turmoil

I was moved by the wild spirit of the bush and the communities that border it thinking of real solutions to how to live in harmony

I was moved by Ian’s tenacious spirit and the vision for Project Luangwa by the heartwarming feeling of belonging to something bigger than myself

I was moved and I thought to share this…

Girl at Project Luangwa Girls Club speaking

Boy in Project Luangwa boys club taking part in session

Mentor Fwilane Janery from Project Luangwa facilitating a session

Carrying Hope Forward

Across our journey, we witnessed transformation at every turn: boys rewriting traditions, girls stepping forward as leaders, mentors guiding with courage, and communities finding solutions to challenges as complex as human–wildlife conflict. Project Luangwa’s model of working with the community, not for it, mirrored the very heartbeat of the GSGC Network. Together with Time + Tide Foundation and other partners, we saw how mentorship continues to ripple outward—ten years on, bearing fruit we could only have dreamed of at the start.

We return refreshed, encouraged, and full of hope for the bright futures of the youth we support.

With appreciation and gratitude,

Tara & Nyika