The East-African Medialab Collaboration (EAMLab) 2017 was a pilot residency program focused on networking and collaboration amongst young professionals and innovators in the East African media sector.
The collaboration was initiated through a Step Up Event in Addis Ababa, including all fellows and invited experts.
The initiative was aimed at introducing spaces of collaboration between East African media centers and East African media professionals and activists in order to promote engaged, creative and peaceful media work.
The inaugural EAMLab cohort worked on projects ranging from a multimedia exploration of the arms trade in Uganda to a feminist based creative writing workshop in Tanzania, a research project on the ICT4Ag community in Ethiopia to a photography exhibit exploring the lives of South Sudanese in Sudan.
The EAMLab fellows were matched with host organisations in other East-African countries. Together they developed collaborative projects that they realised during month-long residencies at each host location.
The EAMLab focused on peer-learning and open and free media technologies. Participants were encouraged to approach political and social challenges in creative and interdisciplinary ways through digital means.
Fellows and hosts presenting and discussing their achievements and experiences in Kigali after completing their residency collaborations.