What is Shiboka

This is a space where women, communities, and individuals in informal settlements can share their challenges, creativity, and resilience.

Shiboka is an audio-visual storytelling platform and podcast that amplifies the voices of women and communities living under extreme heat in informal settlements. Through portraits, personal narratives, and community stories, we move beyond statistics to highlight lived experiences, daily coping strategies, and creative solutions.

Shiboka celebrates resilience and agency, showing that those most affected by heat are not just surviving—they are innovating, leading, and inspiring change.

Voices of the Women: 

Hearing Women's Stories of Heat

Extreme heat affects every aspect of daily life—from household routines and caregiving to health and wellbeing. Shiboka captures these personal stories, giving women the space to speak about:

 

  • Daily challenges in homes with iron-sheet roofs

  • Impact on children, elderly, and family life

  • Creative ways of coping and staying cool

  • Community experiences and shared knowledge

Share Your Story

Living with Heat – Your Story Matters

Shiboka is also a space for everyone—residents, students, creators, or anyone with a story—to share experiences of living with heat in informal settlements. Your story helps the world understand life under extreme temperatures, while showcasing local creativity and resilience.

We want to hear the voices of those living in informal settlements, those that are affected by the heat inside their houses.

Ways to Share Your Story:

  • Text: Short story, diary entry, or description (max 500 words)

  • Photo: Capture life under heat, roofs, or cooling solutions; include a caption

  • Video: Short clip (max 2 minutes) showing your space or coping strategies

  • Drawings: Sketches, cartoons, or visual storytelling

  • Audio: record a short story of how heat affects women's livelihood

Experience Shiboka at WUF

 An Immersive Audio-Visual Installation
Shiboka will feature an exhibition at the next World Urban Forum (WUF), where visitors can:

  • See portraits of women and communities while listening to their stories

  • Experience life under extreme heat through sound and emotion

This immersive approach makes the challenges and creativity of communities tangible, fostering empathy and understanding.

Our Partners

Collaborators and Supporters

Shiboka is developed in collaboration with Infor2Build and SDI, supported by researchers, storytellers, and community organizers who work together to amplify women’s and community voices.

 

Do you want to be a part of this?

Why Shiboka?

The name Shiboka comes from the Zulu language and is the traditional response to the greeting “Sawubona”, which means “I see you.” While Sawubona recognizes the full worth of a person, Shiboka affirms it—it means “I exist for you” and reflects the act of acknowledging someone as a complete human being.

We chose Shiboka as the name for this project because it embodies our mission: to truly see and honor the experiences, voices, and resilience of women and communities living under extreme heat.