TROUBLEMAKERS

Reggae artist and human rights defender Maiko Zulu, known as Comrade Father, on five presidents, Pan-Africanism, and why he refuses to let a funder own his conscience. A sharp, hopeful conversation about resistance, music, and the next generation. Guest: Maiko Zulu (Comrade Father), Zambian reggae artist and human rights defender with 35 years in music and a Pan-African agenda. Three takeaways Politics has moved from service to commerce. Democracy is now for sale, and young people get reduced to tools of political expedience instead of real decision-makers. There’s a difference between activists and career activists. Much of what passes for activism is a job, which is exactly why the state can buy it off, as happened after Zambia’s last election. Hope lies in the younger generation. Young people need peers in positions of authority to inspire them, and Pan-African solidarity means one African’s struggle is every African’s. If you don’t stand for anything, you’ll fall for anything. License of use © Troublemakers Podcast. Free to share with full credit. Not for reuse or resale without permission.

On The Feminist Utopia, feminist Qate Mongi shares what the word really means to her and what a more balanced world could look like. A conversation about equality, leadership, and why feminism isn’t about replacing one energy with another. Guest: Qate Mongi, feminist. Three takeaways Feminism isn’t anti-men. It’s a vision of a peaceful world for both, where masculine and feminine energies complement each other. Her utopia is simple: all men, not just a few, seeing women as equals with the same capacity to think, lead, and create. Women already lead well at the family level. In real decision-making seats, where women and children are too often left out, that leadership could bring real balance. License of use © Troublemakers Podcast. Free to share with full credit. Not for reuse or resale without permission.

Strategic communications expert Brian Roberts on how activists can get their message right: verify before you share, match the message to the audience, and break dense policy into language people actually understand. Hosted by Monicah Kamandau, they talk about misinformation, AI, and knowing your rights before you demand them. Guest: Brian Roberts, strategic communications expert. EU Youth Sounding Board member and a 2026 Danida Fellowship member working across youth advocacy and the SDGs. Three takeaways Verify before you spread. Every message needs a credible source, and the source beats asking an AI that can invent references. Match the message to the audience. Dense policy and hard Swahili lock people out, so simplify it into podcasts, audio, radio, or TikTok. Know your rights fully before demanding them. Half-known rights get exploited, and understanding the law lets you demand it rightfully, or push to change it. License of use © Troublemakers Podcast. Free to share with full credit. Not for reuse or resale without permission.

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 Social movements aren't automatically troublemakers. They use many tactics, and peaceful ones win better, longer-lasting results.  Safety is collective, not solo. Activists stay safer through support networks that watch over each other. 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 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. If you're not given the seat, take one. The demand is inclusion at every level, based on merit, not age. 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