Africa's creative industries get together at Design Indaba in February in Cape Town every year to hear from the world's legendary creators and designers on how to design a new world and solve global problems. The number of speakers from the continent increases every year. This year a clear theme emerging from several speakers, is the rise of Afrofuturism and the growing influence of African culture. Afrofuturism is defined on Wikipedia as: "Afrofuturism is a cultural aesthetic, philosophy of science, and philosophy of history that explores the developing intersection of African/African-American culture with technology." Various speakers took this definition further and spoke of their hope and optimism in the future and the ability of Africans to solve Africa's problems and indeed tell Africa's stories to the rest of the world, influencing culture and society elsewhere; while combating negative perceptions of the continent and the 'poverty, hunger, war narrative' that persists. Speakers who held the Afrofuturism torch high at Design Indaba, included: Zimbabwean filmmaker Sunu Gonera, Kenyan human centered designer Mark Kamau, Egyptian fashion designer Amna Elshandaweely, and Kenyan entrepreneur Leroy Mawasaru. Enjoy being inspired by these visionaries and their impact in Africa and the rest of the globe. Have a great week! Louise Marsland Africa Editor: Bizcommunity.com
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