Hope is a Verb 2025 brings communities together to build a better future
Ordinary citizens, extraordinary change, the event highlighted the initiatives turning South Africa’s challenges into opportunities.
The 5th edition of Hope is a Verb took place on September 18 at Flame Studio, Constitution Hill, bringing together South Africans who are working to build a better future.
Hosted by the non-profit Fine For Good, the event focused on active citizenship and highlighted projects that show hope is not something to wait for, but something created through action.
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One of the standout stories was My Walk, which recycles used medical drip bags into durable school shoes. To date, more than 300 000 children have received shoes through the initiative.
Food Justice is tackling nutritional inequality by helping small farmers produce and supply healthy food.
Another project, This Way Up, is a podcast sharing stories of ordinary South Africans doing extraordinary things, from setting up mobile clinics to cleaning rivers.
The event also highlighted work being done in cities. Jozi My Jozi is working with citizens, corporates, and government to restore dignity and pride in Johannesburg, while We the People SA is ensuring South Africans understand and protect their constitutional rights.
In healthcare, Surgeons for Little Lives reflected on a decade of work to improve paediatric surgery through partnerships between public institutions and private organisations.
Speakers said the message of Hope is a Verb is that solutions already exist, communities are rising to challenges, and people are proving that positive change is possible.
“Engagement between corporates and civil society must grow beyond donations to include dialogue and cooperation,” said Rizwana Bawa from Fine For Good. “Together, we are not just imagining a better future; we are building it today.”
The event ended with a call for all South Africans to play their part, no matter how small, in creating a hopeful future for the country.
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