Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi has spent over two decades documenting some of the world’s most pressing crises. He has trained his lens on resilient communities facing political upheaval, natural disasters, and the growing impacts of climate change. A photojournalist with the Associated Press and two-time CNN Africa Photojournalist Award winner, Mukwazhi has ventured across Africa, Europe, and Asia, and his photographs have brought global attention to underrepresented voices.
Now, as a Knight Science Journalism Fellow at MIT, Mukwazhi is exploring new ways to bridge linguistic and sensory divides. He is working on a project at the intersection of climate science and sign language: He is collaborating with linguists, educators, and technology experts to create sign language adaptations for essential climate terms that currently have no sign-language equivalent. By building tools for more inclusive communication, Mukwazhi aims to fully involve Deaf communities in discussions about climate change.
This work stems from Mukwazhi’s personal and professional experiences, including his photographic coverage of Cyclone Idai — a record-breaking storm that struck the coast of Southeast Africa in 2019. During this event, he saw firsthand how the absence of standardized, up-to-date climate terminology in sign language created barriers to accessing essential information.
I spoke with Mukwazhi about his storytelling journey, commitment to inclusivity, and the evolving role of journalists in addressing climate change. (The following interview has been edited for length and clarity.)
Mackenzie White: You’ve covered major climate disasters like Cyclone Idai. How has witnessing the direct impact of climate change on communities shaped your storytelling approach?
Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi: I think when you’re on the ground, you are confronted with all sorts of feelings and emotions that prompt you to try and find ways of communicating how dire the situation is. It ignites that passion and the need to bring to light how lives can be affected by climate change.
I think communicating about climate change is not an individual thing. It’s about collective and creative efforts to try and showcase the impact of climate change in an engaging manner. One has to evolve as a journalist, as a photographer, as a writer, and incorporate different aspects of storytelling. And I think I’m on that path of evolution in my career, in terms of how best to communicate any stories, but in particular, focusing on climate change.
MW: Your project at MIT focuses on bridging the gap between the evolving language of climate change and sign language. How did you first become aware of the linguistic and communication barriers faced by the Deaf community, and why did this become such an important focus for your work?
TM: The issue of the Deaf community is deeply personal to me.
When I was about eight years old, I lost my eyesight–my ability to see–for a very long time. I think it was about a year or so. My parents took me to special schools where I learned with the Blind, with the Deaf. And that was my first contact with sign language and with people with various disabilities and challenges. And this went on all the way to my high school and through to university. So it has been a part of me, in a way. I connect with it.
About two years back, we underwent training webinars within the Associated Press on climate, education, science, and how to report on climate change. I was trying to digest all this language, which was very foreign to me, which was very complex. And I was trying to sign that. I was trying to put myself in the shoes of someone who’s deaf and trying to understand various terms. How do you break that down?
We should not just wait for a crisis to happen, but we should address that predicament now more than ever, with the same agency that the world’s attention is focusing on the need to address carbon emissions and various issues in terms of trying to bring down pollution.
MW: Climate fatigue is a growing challenge in today’s media landscape. How do you balance documenting the harsh realities of climate change while still providing a sense of hope and a call to action?
TM: I think striking that balance is up to us as journalists. It’s up to us as the media to find success stories where climate initiatives and various programs are making a positive impact in the community.
You go to these meetings, and you read all these stories across the media. It can be depressing, really, to say the least. I think every now and then, the media should really shift their attention.
Let’s throw in a bit of gloom and doom. That’s fine. It’s real. I want something lighter, and it’s a call on us as journalists to do our homework, to look for those stories within our communities. And it doesn’t have to be hugely impactful. But those small steps that people, that my grandmother, that my nephew are doing to at least show that they are aware of the threat of climate change. Those need to be highlighted. There are lots of stories there.
MW: In your teaching roles, you’ve mentored young journalists from around the world. How do you see the next generation of photographers innovating in how they tell climate stories, especially with new technologies emerging?
TM: When I started teaching my first teaching role in Bangladesh, it was the very beginning of digital photography, so it was very exciting times.
But things have gone to another level altogether, where the next generation of photographers have to be fully equipped in terms of their skills. It’s about them learning new skills and, most importantly, embracing technology, embracing AI, we cannot run away from it.
I think there’s always room for someone to be behind the camera, someone to be on the ground, someone to give us a feel of the environment and tell colorful stories. I think just being a photographer is not enough. You have to do more. We’re living in an era where you’re called upon to do more.
MW: How can they work to make stories resonate across cultures and communication barriers?
TM: I think it’s a combination of so many factors, and it’s challenging, but it can be done. It’s just about finding the right voice, the connections, placement. Climate change has brought the whole world together because everybody’s affected. I think we need to tap into technology and ensure that everybody has access to such information.
MW: You’ve dedicated your career to storytelling, teaching, and pushing journalism forward with more inclusivity. How can journalists improve accessibility and diversity in climate communication, and how do you see your work contributing to this in the future?
TM: Diversity and inclusion are very important when it comes to climate voices, but also when it comes to how we approach our stories. As journalists, we need to be aware of that minority. Essential groups of people – the Blind, the Deaf, the Disabled – need to be a part of these conversations.
I feel that when you are talking about climate change issues there’s a need to be able to ensure that the persons who are at the forefront of telling climate stories are from that community or from that particular region.
I think I’ve forged very strong relationships with my home community, with people from other regions of the continent, and it’s because I connect with them. It’s because I identify with them. So I think it’s all about building those relationships that foster how you tell the stories.
Mackenzie White is a student in MIT’s Graduate Program in Science Writing.
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