The internationally acclaimed MTN Bushfire Festival has launched a youth-focused environmental challenge aimed at mobilising young people to engage in climate and sustainability conversations through creative expression.
Through its Bring Your Fire Digital Creators Challenge, the festival is calling on young storytellers across Eswatini to produce short-form digital content addressing pressing environmental issues, particularly under the theme of sustainability, climate and energy. The initiative forms part of the festival’s long-standing eco-conscious ethos, anchored in its “Green Your Fire” campaign, which has been embedded into the festival’s operations for years.
Communications Officer Zakwethu Vilane said the challenge reflects the festival’s broader commitment to driving social and environmental change through creativity. She noted that MTN Bushfire continues to position itself as more than an entertainment platform, but rather a catalyst for dialogue and action. “At the heart of MTN Bushfire lies the Bring Your Fire mandate, a call to awaken purpose, inspire responsibility, and mobilise communities toward positive social and environmental change,” Vilane said.
Participants are required to create a 30-second reel responding to prompts such as what a sustainable future in Eswatini looks like and how young people can contribute to it. The challenge is designed to push youth voices from passive observation into active engagement, encouraging them to influence discourse around environmental responsibility.
Vilane explained that the initiative is rooted in the Bring Your Fire Zone, a dedicated space within the festival that fosters creative activism and collaboration among artists, advocates and socially conscious organisations.
“It is a space alive with dialogue, collaboration, and bold ideas, where passion meets purpose,” she said.
Selected participants will receive festival tickets and access to exclusive experiences within the Bring Your Fire Zone, while also joining a network of young innovators contributing to national conversations on sustainability.
The challenge underscores MTN Bushfire’s continued positioning as an eco-aware festival, where environmental consciousness is not peripheral but central to its identity. Submissions close on 10 May 2026, with organisers urging youth to use their platforms to “ignite dialogue” and drive meaningful change. “The fire is yours. The moment is now,” Vilane added.
