Burkina Faso Rapper, Farmer Talks of Climate Change
2021-07-19
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1Africa's Sahel is seeing the worst effects of climate warming anywhere on the planet, says the United Nations, or U.N.
2The Sahel is a region of western and north-central Africa that stretches from Senegal to Sudan.
3Because 80 percent of the region's economy is from agriculture, farmers in the Sahel are suffering from the severity of climate change.
4Art Melody is a musician in the nation of Burkina Faso, which sits in the Sahel.
5By day, he is a farmer.
6By night, he raps in the local Djula and Moore languages.
7As a farmer, he knows from experience what is happening to the crops.
8His songs express the fear and emotion felt by millions of people across the region because of climate change.
9Art Melody says his grandparents have told him the rainy season used to start in April.
10But now, it can start as late as July, so there is less rain and more heat.
11The Sahel has been experiencing both desertification and drought.
12Desertification is a process by which dry land turns to desert as its quality declines over time.
13Drought is a long period of time during which there is little or no rain.
14The U.N. says the effects of desertification and drought on farmers is partly to blame for the Sahel conflict, which involves the nations of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger.
15Combatants include terror groups linked to the Islamic State and al-Qaida.
16More than two million people have been displaced because of the fighting.
17And more than 20,000 people have been killed since 2012.
18That information was gathered by a nonprofit group called the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project.
19"When there's a drought, it's a disaster, it's hell," said Ibrahim Thiaw.
20He is executive secretary of the U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification.
21"When that situation happens, you have two options - flight or fight.
22Either you flee because there is no way you can produce anymore, or you fight with your neighbors for the limited resources that are still there."
23Conflicts often arise between ethnic groups that traditionally grow crops and those that raise farm animals.
24That is because the land usually cannot be used for both purposes.
25While that is a major barrier, new methods and technologies can help combine agricultural production with animal farming, says Marc Gansonre.
26He is a representative of a Burkinabe farmers' union.
27As for Art Melody, his songs attempt to raise awareness of the difficulties the farmers are experiencing.
28He says if people's eyes are closed, they will always end up destroying everything, whether it is plants or human relationships.
29Melody has been spreading his message around the world through his music since the early 2000s.
30He released his latest record last month.
31He has appeared at performances with world famous Benin-born singer Angelique Kidjo and Nigerian musician Seun Kuti, son of Fela Kuti.
32I'm Alice Bryant.
1Africa's Sahel is seeing the worst effects of climate warming anywhere on the planet, says the United Nations, or U.N. 2The Sahel is a region of western and north-central Africa that stretches from Senegal to Sudan. 3Because 80 percent of the region's economy is from agriculture, farmers in the Sahel are suffering from the severity of climate change. 4Art Melody is a musician in the nation of Burkina Faso, which sits in the Sahel. By day, he is a farmer. By night, he raps in the local Djula and Moore languages. As a farmer, he knows from experience what is happening to the crops. His songs express the fear and emotion felt by millions of people across the region because of climate change. 5Art Melody says his grandparents have told him the rainy season used to start in April. But now, it can start as late as July, so there is less rain and more heat. 6The Sahel has been experiencing both desertification and drought. Desertification is a process by which dry land turns to desert as its quality declines over time. Drought is a long period of time during which there is little or no rain. 7The U.N. says the effects of desertification and drought on farmers is partly to blame for the Sahel conflict, which involves the nations of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. Combatants include terror groups linked to the Islamic State and al-Qaida. 8More than two million people have been displaced because of the fighting. And more than 20,000 people have been killed since 2012. That information was gathered by a nonprofit group called the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project. 9"When there's a drought, it's a disaster, it's hell," said Ibrahim Thiaw. He is executive secretary of the U.N. Convention to Combat Desertification. "When that situation happens, you have two options - flight or fight. Either you flee because there is no way you can produce anymore, or you fight with your neighbors for the limited resources that are still there." 10Conflicts often arise between ethnic groups that traditionally grow crops and those that raise farm animals. That is because the land usually cannot be used for both purposes. 11While that is a major barrier, new methods and technologies can help combine agricultural production with animal farming, says Marc Gansonre. He is a representative of a Burkinabe farmers' union. 12As for Art Melody, his songs attempt to raise awareness of the difficulties the farmers are experiencing. He says if people's eyes are closed, they will always end up destroying everything, whether it is plants or human relationships. 13Melody has been spreading his message around the world through his music since the early 2000s. He released his latest record last month. He has appeared at performances with world famous Benin-born singer Angelique Kidjo and Nigerian musician Seun Kuti, son of Fela Kuti. 14I'm Alice Bryant. 15VOA News reported this story. Alice Bryant adapted it for Learning English. Susan Shand was the editor. 16______________________________________________________________ 17Words in This Story 18region - n. a part of a country or of the world that is different or separate from other parts in some way 19rap - v. to perform a spoken musical form that uses rhymed lyrics 20grandparent - n. a parent of your father or mother 21option - n. something that can be chosen 22union - n. an organization of workers formed to protect the rights and interests of its members 23awareness - n. the act of knowing that something (such as a situation, condition, or problem) exists