Paul Musyimi on what social movements really are, why peaceful organizing wins, and how activists keep each other safe when the work gets dangerous. With Malemi, Paul talks about the principle "Seek Safety in Support Networks": when activists are threatened, national and international networks can provide support and deter violence.

Guest: Paul Musyimi, who works with social movements through Global Platforms P4C program (ActionAid). Passionate about young people strategically organizing and mobilizing for social change, and about keeping activists safe and alive to do that work.

Three takeaways

1. Social movements aren't automatically troublemakers. They use many tactics, and peaceful ones win better, longer-lasting results.
2. Safety is collective, not solo. Activists stay safer through support networks that watch over each other.
3. Good governance needs an active citizenry. Opposing power carries real risk, from surveillance to threats to detention, but staying vigilant is the price of accountability.

License of use

© Troublemakers Podcast. Free to share with full credit. Not for reuse or resale without permission.

Youth activist Nancy Siatwiko on why young Zambians are done waiting for permission to lead. Host Malemi talks with her about locked-out candidates, young women in politics, and using social media to organize.

Guest: Nancy Siatwiko, Movement Manager for Youth for Parliament and the first female student president of Cavendish University Zambia. Twice locked out of party adoption for being young and female, she now helps other young people contest.

Takeaways

1. Youth for Parliament exists because young people kept getting locked out. It pushes the youth agenda across party lines, and with youth at 53% of Zambia's voters, representation is just math.
2. If you're not given the seat, take one. The demand is inclusion at every level, based on merit, not age.
3. Young women face an extra wall of patriarchy and smears. But the shift is real, and social media now lets young people back each other across any distance.

License of use

© Troublemakers Podcast. Free to share with full credit. Not for reuse or resale without permission.

#Youth4Parliament

Ep 55: Youth, Power & Political Spaces with Tilvas Ngosa

Recorded at the Global Platform studio in Zambia, this episode asks why youth political participation across Africa stays so low, and what it takes to change that. Host Malemi talks with activist Tilvas Ngosa about systemic barriers, youth leadership, and the real cost of getting into African politics.

Guest: Tilvas Ngosa, Program Officer at ActionAid Denmark, based in Zambia. Activist and campaigner with roots in social movements.

Host: Malemi

Three takeaways

1. The barrier isn't a lack of political education, it's the field itself: expensive, often violent, and gate-kept by leaders who won't step aside.
2. Youth inclusion looks good on paper and thin in practice. Quotas exist, but representation stays low and mentorship means nothing without a real seat.
3. The moment is still worth seizing. Civil society is building a new generation, and young leaders prove it's doable. The time to claim space is now.

License of use

© Troublemakers Podcast. Free to share with full credit. Not for reuse or resale without permission.