THE BEAT
STORIES FROM WE ARE AFRICA, THE AFRICAN CONTINENT & AROUND THE GLOBE
For the inaugural We Are Africa, conservation was at the top of the agenda with ‘The Conservation Lab’ taking place on 4 May at One&Only Cape Town to kick off the inaugural show. This private event saw the coming together of over 50 conservation specialists to tackle the issues that impact the African wildlife.
With We Are Africa’s inaugural show under his belt, we caught up with Event Manager Ryan Wallace to get the lowdown on the first edition of We Are Africa, and what the team has in store for year two.
In 2015 the increasingly powerful and influential Tribe united in its passion for Africa makes its return pilgrimage to the iconic Cape Town Stadium from 4-7 May 2015 to further unlock the continent’s potential and chart the roadmap for its rising tourism landscape. Join the Tribe to connect with Africa’s visionary travel elite.
2014 Conference Speaker – Rob Caskie THE WONDER OF AFRICA STORY-TELLER | BUSINESS MOTIVATOR | KEYNOTE SPEAKER Rob has been
2014 Conference Speaker – Marie Jamieson THE OPPORTUNITY TO REBRAND THE CONTINENT ADVERTISING EXPERT | TBWA\ EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AFRICA Marie
A HORNY ISSUE INVESTIGATING OUR TRIBE’S FIGHT TO SAVE THE RHINO WORDS BY OLIVIA SQUIRE “In 30 years’ time will
The founding principle behind We Are Africa is to showcase the wonders of modern Africa on a truly global stage, forging connections and opening channels of communication in both established and emerging markets. With Asian countries like Singapore, Taiwan, Indonesia and of course, China demonstrating huge leaps in outbound tourism, the time for high-end African travel providers to connect with the right type of travel trade from these regions in order to secure future customers has well and truly arrived.
From honeymoon havens in the Indian Ocean to conservation powerhouses on the Maasai Mara, the We Are Africa tribe truly represents the diversity and individual character of each country on the continent. After a fantastic founding year in which members came together from all corners of Africa, we thought it was time to introduce a few of the new additions who will be joining them for the first time at our 2015 edition.
Luxury and sustainability can sometimes seem like an incompatible pairing, which is why We Are Africa and our sister show PURE Life Experiences are dedicated to sharing our communities’ expert knowledge on the subject. We believe that the insights gained by our members from years of determination and experience have the power to transform the high-end travel industry for the better. Consequently, at PURE’s first seminar series in November, MATTER, community leaders took to the stage to inspire meaningful change in the arena of sustainability.
With statistics announced in the last week revealing that rhino poaching in South Africa in 2014 showed a 21% increase on 2013, it is clear that something – or in fact many things, by many people – must be done to prevent environmental crises such as this gaining more momentum.
We’re giving our tribe the opportunity to narrate their individual stories of Africa. In demonstrating the uniqueness of each African country, we stand united in diversity
2015 Conference Speaker | Zain Asher News anchor | CNN Newsroom Co-Anchor, CNN International Now an anchor at CNN International,
Next month, our tribe will come together in Cape Town to share and celebrate their individual stories of their countries, showcasing the incredible diversity of the continent along the way. To help illustrate this philosophy ahead of our 2015 edition, we’ve created a video (see a sneak peek above!) and invited our tribe members to tell us a story that illustrates how they are changing, inspiring or promoting their corners of the continent.
The 2015 Conservation Lab is a forum for the forging and sharing of powerful ideas to help win the battle for conservation. 2015 speaker and founder of the International Anti-Poaching Foundation, Damien Mander, reminds us in a single sentence of the importance of these kinds of discussions: “Without a backyard, we will cease to exist as a species”.
At We Are Africa we are committed to challenging outdated, monotone perceptions of the continent by showcasing the diverse stories of modern Africa with our Not One Story philosophy. As part of this ambition, we are delighted to announce our new partnership with the City of Cape Town, in which we will highlight the city’s vibrant climate of innovation that continues to allow We Are Africa to break convention in spectacular style.
At We Are Africa we are committed to sharing the many and diverse stories of the modern continent, providing a platform for its countries to tell the world what makes them unique. In this spirit, 2015 sees the launch of our community engagement initiative: Untold Stories.
We are Not One Story. We Are Africa. Discover the philosophy behind Not One Story and We Are Africa.
We caught up with Councillor Roxanne Hoorn, Chairperson of Tourism Events and Economic Development for City of Cape Town, to hear how We Are Africa is contributing to the Mother City’s bright future, and why she’s proud to be part of the tribe
This year saw the second edition of the TWO SHOWS ONE AFRICA alliance between We Are Africa and Indaba, designed to showcase the very best Africa has to offer to the world’s leading travel and tourism buyers over the course of one week
There are a million reasons why We Are Africa chose Cape Town as our host city. From its breathtaking natural landscapes, ranging from rugged mountaintops to verdant wine valleys, to its explosion of world-class art, food and culture: this is a very modern city with the diversity and forward-thinking attitude required to compete on the global stage.
Explorer, writer, photographer and maker of documentary ‘Walking The Nile’, Levison Wood takes to the We Are Africa 2015 Conference stage to talk about how his journey changed his story of modern Africa
Brand strategist Zami Majuqwana takes to the 2015 Conference stage to talk about the role our tribe has to play in rebranding outsiders’ perceptions of the continent
Hear Executive Director & Chief Curator of Zeitz MOCAA, Mark Coetzee, explain how art has a fundamental part to play in rewriting modern Africa’s story, ahead of the opening of the new art museum in Cape Town in 2016
2014 Conference Speaker – Michael Power THE SOCIO-ECONOMIC FUTURE OF AFRICA ECONOMIST | STRATEGIST AT INVESTEC ASSET MANAGEMENT An economist
2014 Conference Speaker – Alex Granger MASTER OF CEREMONIES PROFESSIONAL SPEAKER | MC Alex Granger, an exceptional business motivational speaker
2014 Conference Speaker – Graham Boynton CONFERENCE CURATOR JOURNALIST | CONSERVATIONIST Graham Boynton has worked as a newspaper and magazine
Conservation is usually seen as saving the big five, protecting natural habitats from urbanisation and pollution but seldom are flowers the focus. Michael Lutzeyer’s Grootbos Private Nature Reserve is largely involved in conservation, one of the notable aspects being the protection of the Cape Floral Kingdom and protection of the indigenous flora
Weekend markets have become popular destinations for a truly authentic, African shopping experience.
INSPIRING INNOVATION: MASINGITA MAZIBUKO We Are Africa’s Innovation Awards are back for 2016 and now accepting applications! Tell us your
We talk to the second judge for the 2016 Innovation Awards, conservationist Colin Bell, about what he’s looking for from this year’s entries.