Recently, I attended an event organized by young people active in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. The event was very well organized and attracted more than a thousand young people, overflowing a hall with a capacity of 600.
As I sat among them, I found myself reflecting on the important role religion (particularly the different expressions of Christianity and Islam) plays in the lives of young Africans today. Specifically, the question I was contemplating was: to what extent do the values we cultivate through Africa Unbound – agency, authenticity, reverence for life, and the capacity to imagine different futures – align with, complement, or challenge the influences shaping young people’s lives today?
Besides religion, other factors that have major influence on young people include education, family expectations, history (in particular conflicts), and intergenerational trauma.
If we take education, for instance, for the most part, our educational systems place a heavy emphasis on rote learning. While memorization can be useful, I wonder to what extent students are being encouraged to ask questions, challenge assumptions, and think independently.
Can the youth ask questions such as:
Why?
What if?
How do we know?
What else might be true?
My guess is that environments that encourage such questions are very much the exception, not the norm. I myself have annoyed some instructors by asking such questions, even as a graduate student enrolled in a Ph.D. program in the United States.
Yet, these are precisely the kinds of questions that often lead to discovery, creativity, and innovation. If young people are not encouraged to ask such questions, how can they develop agency and genuine reverence for life?
Collective trauma has even deeper influence. Societies that have experienced prolonged periods of instability, conflict, or hardship develop strategies for survival where safety, predictability, and certainty are valued much more than experimentation.
Curiosity, imagination, and risk-taking tend to flourish when people feel safe. However, throughout history, progress has depended on the courage and conviction of individuals who imagined possibilities in environments where conditions around them were anything but safe. Examples include Leymah Gbowee of Liberia, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in the U.S., and Pres. Nelson Mandela of South Africa. They worked day and night, facing great adversity and hardship, because they had the courage to imagine possibilities that did not yet exist, and the conviction to move forward, come what may, until the mission was accomplished.
As I continued to think about these issues, I posted my reflection on the Pathfinders discussion board at AfricaUnbound.com. The thoughtful comments I received helped me crystalize the main point.
Josephine from Uganda pointed out “[religion] offers community, identity, hope and purpose.” She further emphasized:
“[Religion] remains one of the strongest and most trusted sources of hope for many people. I see Africa Unbound’s focus on agency, curiosity, and new futures as a good complement to faith, not a contradiction. Many religions encourage people to seek meaning, help others, and make a positive impact.”
Josephine concluded that balancing tradition with new possibilities is one of the great challenges facing young Africans today.
Chinedu from Nigeria observed that “religion often succeeds where many other institutions struggle; it gives young people a strong sense of belonging.”
He added, “What I find interesting is not whether religion and independent thinking are in conflict, but whether young people feel safe enough to ask difficult questions within the spaces that shape them.”
What a powerful point this is!
Tsegaye from Ethiopia, referring to the most recent Easter celebration wrote:
“Millions of Ethiopians gathered in churches across the country. Many were praying not only for themselves, but for peace, justice, good leadership, better harvests, healing, and a better future for Ethiopia.”
He pointed out:
“Africa Unbound challenges us to ask questions, imagine alternatives, and exercise agency. For many of us, that can feel uncomfortable because our educational systems, workplaces, and even family structures have often rewarded obedience more than curiosity.”
Speaking about the educational system Tsegaye said:
“In some cases, the student who asks difficult questions is seen as challenging authority rather than contributing to learning… Yet many of our most pressing challenges require exactly that kind of curiosity and critical thinking.”
Highlighting the role of family and parenting, Belay from Ethiopia wrote:
“Family and community expectations can provide support and stability, but they can also shape what young people feel they are allowed to dream about or pursue… Parents play a major role in shaping children’s confidence, curiosity, values, and willingness to explore new ideas. The way children are raised can either encourage independent thinking or reinforce conformity. Parenting itself is influenced by culture, religion, education, and past experiences, so it may be one of the key factors connecting all these different influences.”
What these brilliant young people confirm for me is this: Africa does not lack talent or ideas. What is lacking, or is in very short supply, are environments where curiosity is welcomed, questioning is safe, and new possibilities can be explored.
We need more platforms and spaces that demonstrate:
Curiosity is not a threat to faith, but a path to deeper understanding.
Agency is not a rejection of community, but a prerequisite for meaningful contribution
Imagining different futures can be an expression of hope, rather than an act of disloyalty to tradition.
Since the launch of the online platform in 2011, with the opening of the Africa Unbound Museum in 2019, and now with the ongoing work to establish the Africa Unbound Village, our work has focused on creating and expanding the conditions that allow people to think deeply, live consciously, and become fully themselves.
At Africa Unbound, we believe that every single person possesses creativity, wisdom, imagination, and the capacity to contribute meaningfully to the world. The young people enrolled in the Pathfinders program continue to strengthen this belief.
I imagine more and more people engaging with us, and some going on to establish their own initiatives, so that every young person who dares to dream big and is willing to work for it, has the support needed to realize their vision.
This is how we become both rooted and unbound.
If this work resonates with you, I invite you to join us by becoming a Pathfinder or a mentor to Pathfinders.
By Dr. Rahel Kassahun
June 2026