'The Herds' starts journey from Africa to the Arctic Circle

Photo : AP

In the Kinshasa Botanical Garden, Congo, a group of cardboard animals stood still in a clearing. The animals included monkeys, a gorilla, leopards, and a giraffe. Puppeteers dressed in black started moving the animals, slowly at first, then faster until they were running.

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This marked the start of “The Herds,” a traveling performance with puppet animals. The animals, who are forced to leave their homes because of climate change, will travel from Congo to the Arctic Circle. The goal is to show how the climate crisis affects animals and the planet.

This week, the animals began their journey in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), which is in central Africa. The story of "The Herds" is about animals being pushed from their natural homes due to global warming. The animals will move north, visiting cities along the way, and more animals will join them on their journey.

Just a short distance from the performance, a real example of climate change could be seen. The botanical garden had flooded because of heavy rain earlier in the week. The flooding left parts of the city underwater, making it hard to get around and causing the loss of many lives. This flood made the story of “The Herds” even more real and urgent. The big event planned for Friday had to be canceled because of the rain.

“The Herds” is created by the same team behind "The Walk," which took place in 2021. In "The Walk," a giant puppet of a refugee girl named Little Amal traveled through 15 countries to raise awareness about refugees. Now, the team is using “The Herds” to draw attention to the climate crisis and its impact on the planet.

Tshoper Kabambi, a filmmaker from Congo, is helping produce “The Herds” in the DRC. He said the main purpose of the project is to make people care about the environment. “Nature is important to us, but people often ignore it,” he said. “We want to show everyone what is happening, like the floods, global warming, and deforestation.”

After staying in Kinshasa, “The Herds” will travel to Lagos, Nigeria, and then to Dakar, Senegal. The performance is starting in Congo because the country has the second-largest rainforest in the world. The Congo Basin is known as the “lungs of the Earth” because it helps regulate the planet’s climate. But the rainforest has not gotten as much attention as the Amazon Rainforest, and it is in danger.

Artists from Congo were an important part of creating the first part of “The Herds.” As the performance moves north, more artists from different countries will join the project to spread the message of protecting nature.

Amir Nizar Zuabi, the artistic director of "The Herds," explained the importance of the project. He said, “This project will travel to 20 cities, through different cultures, and the story will grow as it moves. It will also tell the story of Congo in places like Norway.” The project hopes to make more people aware of the need to protect the environment and stop climate change.