From north to south, Africa braces for volatile El Nino year

Mimi Mefo Newuh

DW

06/07/2026 - 

The World Meteorological Association warns that the El Nino climate phenomenon could bring drought, floods and displacement to parts of Africa later this year. Are governments prepared?

In 2024, El Nino resulted in a prolonged drought in northern Botswana, affecting people and wildlife alike

Image: Monirul Bhuiyan/AFP/Getty Images

The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP) have appealed for over $200 million (€175 million) in funds to help protect 8.8 million people across 22 high-risk countries from the looming return the destructive El Nino weather pattern.

The support would include cash transfers, climate-resilient seeds, livestock protection and flood-control measures, as extreme weather patterns affect much of the world already.

"El Nino conditions have developed in the tropical Pacific, and are forecast to strengthen rapidly over the coming months, increasing the likelihood of extreme weather events in many parts of the world," the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) has warned.

In Africa, the countries listed as most at risk include Cameroon, Ethiopia, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda and Zimbabwe.

Severe drought in Zimbabwe threatens millions with hunger  01:37

What El Nino means across Africa

El Nino is a naturally occurring warming of sea-surface temperatures in the central and eastern Pacific Ocean, which usually happens every two to seven years.

It can last nine to 12 months. In some regions, El Nino can bring hotter and drier conditions; in others, it can increase rainfall and flooding.

"For Africa, it's not one climate story. It's actually going to be a much more varied impact," Kgaugelo Mkumbeni, a research officer in the Climate Risk and Human Security Project at the Institute for Security Studies in Pretoria, South Africa, told DW.

Southern Africa has in the past experienced "hotter and much drier conditions" during El Nino events, Mkumbeni said, which raises the risk of "drought, water shortages and general food insecurity."

The situation in Eastern Africa, however, is more complex, as El Nino can have different effects depending on the season.

Are African nations underestimating the risks of El Nino?  05:15

Global warming: Bad to worse

Bhargabi Bharadwaj, a research associate at Chatham House's Environment and Society Centre, told DW that "El Nino reshapes rainfall and temperature patterns around the world, though its impacts can vary depending on the region and which season it hits."

"Some areas will face drier conditions, which increases risk of drought and wildfire occurrence, whereas other parts of the world will have wetter conditions and face likelihood of storms and flooding," Bharadwaj said.

Scientists such as Bharadwaj say climate change does not directly cause El Nino, but it can make its effects more severe.

"We're working with warmer baseline temperatures of around 1.4 degrees (Celsius, or 2.5 F) higher than preindustrial levels. This means that, when an El Nino event does occur, then there are more extreme outcomes," Bharadwaj said.

Some experts are also concerned about the possibility of a very strong — or "super" — El Nino this year, "when your average temperature difference is around 2 degrees higher, or at least forecast to be 2 degrees higher," she said.

Acting before disaster strikes

The real challenge is whether governments and aid agencies can act quickly enough, as "science is ahead of policy," Bharadwaj said.

In northern Kenya, Abdikadir Aden Hassan, founder of Garissa Million Trees, told DW that the danger is not only the possibility of heavy rains and subsequent floods, but the fact that they may come after months of drought.

"We are in a dry spell and are headed toward drought in August and September," Hassan said. "Then, in October, November and December, we are expected to have the short rains. People may be coming out of drought and then going straight into flash floods. That means their livelihoods will be affected for a second time."

With lives and livelihoods at stake, experts say Africa's climate preparedness cannot be left to individual governments or ministries.

"It has to be embedded within agriculture, within health, within water, within energy, education and social protection," Mkumbeni said.

Droughts in Africa can often lead to hunger and even famine, especially among subsistence farmersImage: Gianluigi Guercia/AFP/Getty Images

Climate-linked displacement

Conflicts, high energy costs, debt pressures, fertilizer disruptions and cuts in international aid are already weakening the ability of many countries to respond to external shocks. Bharadwaj said this made the forecast for 2026 particularly worrying.

"The concern isn't just El Nino," Bharadwaj said. "It's that it's occurring at a time when the global system is already quite fragile. A lot of the vulnerable populations are living in regions that are highly impacted by import costs but also high debt."

Aimee-Noel Mbiyozo, a senior researcher at the Institute for Security Studies, said climate-related events were already forcing people to leave their homes.

"Cyclones and flooding have been by far and away the biggest pushers of mass displacement in Africa," Mbiyozo said. "Drought has, as well, but drought tends to do it a little bit more slowly."

"People don't want to leave home," Mbiyozo said. "Most people want to stay where they are."

Cities on the front line of climate crises

Drought and desertification are driving people increasingly toward Africa's towns and cities, which are increasingly having to absorb climate-linked migration — even as many struggle with wide-ranging issues such as a lack of housing and public services and widespread informal employment.

"The bulk of the movement that's happening, whether it's sudden or slow or general population growth, is into the cities," Mbiyozo said.

According to the World Bank, climate change alone could drive up to 86 million additional internally displaced people into African cities by 2050.
Concern for Lake Chad and southern Africa

In the fragile Lake Chad Basin, research on displacement patterns from 2008 through 2024 found that disasters displace more people than conflict and violence, Mbiyozo said. "What we're also finding is that the violence is intersecting with the disasters," she said.

Mbiyozo said the region was ripe a "perfect storm" in which borderland fragility, violent extremism, pastoralism and climate shocks all collide.

Lake Chad has been vanishing for more than half a century, driving more and more people relying on the body of water for survival into despair

Southern Africa meanwhile is another major area of concern. The region has faced repeated cycles of drought and cyclones, with countries such as Mozambique, Malawi, Zimbabwe and Madagascar repeatedly affected in recent years.

"Madagascar at this point is hit by cyclones almost every year," Mbiyozo said, and Mozambique has repeatedly faced "never-before-seen-strength cyclones" in recent years.
Are early warning mechanisms enough?

Some countries have made progress in being better prepared: Mozambique has invested in early warning systems and climate literacy in coastal communities. South Africa has passed a Climate Change Act, which experts see as a positive legislative step.

Kenya has improved coordination between government agencies and humanitarian organizations, including emergency operation centers and efforts to move people in flood-prone areas to higher ground, Hassan said.

"As a country, we are better off and much more organized right now," he said. "But the challenge is that, if we do not get external support, the national emergency funds available may not be enough."

Hassan said early warnings systems must be matched by funds that are available before disasters escalate: "Money may be allocated," he said, "but delays in releasing it can make the disaster worse."

How do El Nino and La Nina come about?   02:34

Cai Nebe Contributed to this article.
Edited by: Sertan Sanderson



Mimi Mefo Newuh Mimi is an award-winning Cameroonian-born journalist.https://x.com/mimimefo

 

France Fines and Releases Shadow Fleet Tanker Held for a Month

French forces detained the tanker for an investigation after saying it was sailing under a false flag

Published Jul 2, 2026 11:59 AM by The Maritime Executive

French prosecutors and the Maritime Court in Brest accepted a plea deal, which will fine and release the shadow fleet tanker Tagor (114,809 dwt). The vessel was boarded by French troops on May 31 as it was sailing in the Mediterranean.

The reports indicate a total fine of €1 million ($1.1 million) for the vessel and a pledge from the vessel’s owners to seek a legitimate flag for the ship. The fines for vessels have become a common tactic as part of a French campaign, which President Emmanuel Macron said would delay the vessels and disrupt their finances.

The crude oil tanker Tagor was coming from Murmansk, according to the reports, when it was boarded on suspicion of sailing without a legitimate flag. The troops inspected the vessel and ordered it to head to the French coast. The tanker had been previously sanctioned by the UK, EU, and U.S. for its involvement in the Russian oil trade.

Records show the vessel as sailing since July 2025, first claiming a flag in Guinea, then Madagascar, and now Cameroon. Each is listed as false. The owner of the vessel, which is listed as being based in Abu Dhabi, reportedly admitted guilt as part of the plea deal.

The Tagor was the fourth crude oil tanker that France has stopped since it started the efforts in September 2025. Each has ultimately been fined and released, although the French courts also tried the Chinese master of the first vessel in absentia. The others each paid fines. France is still holding a fifth shadow fleet tanker, Discover, which was interdicted last week.

Russia continues to call these interventions “piracy” and has taken steps to increase the protection of the shadow fleet. Russian warships have been seen escorting the vessels in some busy seaways such as the Baltic and the English Channel. There are also reports of armed guards on some of the ships who have a Russian military background, and pictures recently emerged showing military submachine guns above the bridge of a Russian gas carrier that was sailing in the Baltic.

The AIS signal for the Tagor shows it remains off the French coast, but it is expected to get underway. It is broadcasting a destination of Istanbul.
 

World Bank drops climate funding target, raising fears for Africa

The World Bank has abandoned its target of directing 45 percent of its financing to projects that help tackle climate change, prompting warnings that poorer countries – especially in Africa – could receive less support to adapt to a warming world.


Issued on: 02/07/2026 - RFI

Flooded streets in Katesh, Tanzania, on 3 December 2023. More than a third of the World Bank's climate lending last year went to projects in Africa. AP

The bank's five-year Climate Change Action Plan expired on Tuesday. Last year it put 48 percent of its lending – worth $51 billion – into projects with climate benefits, surpassing its original 45 percent target.

More than one-third of that funding went to Africa.

The change followed pressure from the United States, the bank's largest shareholder, despite European governments and many developing countries pushing to keep the 45 percent goal.

While that target has now been removed, the broader climate plan will now continue without an end date.

The bank's climate work "is and will remain firmly client-driven, supporting them in delivering on their own ambitions", World Bank president Ajay Banga wrote in an internal memo to staff.

From spending to 'results'

Speaking at the Hamburg Sustainability Conference on Tuesday, World Bank managing director Paschal Donohoe said the bank would now focus less on spending targets and more on the results projects deliver.

"By announcing the extension of this truly essential framework, we are now focusing on how we can ensure monitoring and report on the results achieved, rather than simply keeping track of the money spent," Donohoe said.

Climate action is now an integral part of the World Bank's work, a source familiar with the matter told RFI.

Fears for Africa

However, several observers expressed concern over the decision to remove the 45 percent target.

"It is extremely concerning to see that this numerical target has not been renewed," Selma Huart, an advocacy officer at the anti-poverty charity Oxfam, told RFI.

"The risk is that projects which worsen the climate crisis in Africa could be financed, while failing to protect the most vulnerable populations.

"The World Bank risks no longer helping African countries adapt to climate change at all, even though this is extremely necessary. Africa is one of the continents most affected by climate change today."

In recent years, the World Bank's climate plan has helped pay for electricity, sustainable transport and water projects in Madagascar, Tanzania and Niger.

 

Climate-anxious youth from poorer countries “unheard” due to digital disconnection

As rising temperatures around the world trigger climate-related anxiety, new research shows that those most in need of mental health support may be cut off from it.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

Queen Mary University of London

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Huts in the Androy region of Southern Madagascar offer little protection from extreme heat

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Credit: Queen Mary University of London

Young people from the lower-income countries most vulnerable to the effects of the climate crisis, including the toll it takes on their mental health, are being “overlooked” because their lack of internet access prevents them from taking part in research and accessing online support, a new study has found. 

The study, published in the BMJ Mental Health, builds on a paper published last year highlighting high rates of climate-related anxiety and depression among young people in Southern Madagascar. The researchers found adolescents were struggling with uncertainty about the future, the loss of household resources and disruption to their coping mechanisms. 

One young person from the Bongolava region told the researchers: "If there’s extreme heat… people get worried because their yearly harvest determines their future. And if that’s compromised, your future is too, because you haven’t produced enough, and that leads to a lack of means to prepare for the next year. It breaks your heart because you realise the climate is changing." 

Now, the new paper shows that the voices of these young people risk not being heard. The researchers found that the communities most harmed by climate change are the least able to participate in the online research designed to study that harm, because they tend to lack reliable electricity supplies and internet connectivity. 

Isabelle Mareschal, Professor in Visual Cognition at Queen Mary University of London, who worked on the paper, said:  

“Since the Covid-19 pandemic, so much has moved online. That includes a great deal of mental health research and support.  

“Analysing publicly available data on climate vulnerability and internet access, we show that the most climate-vulnerable populations also have the least access to the internet. Not only does that make it more difficult for them to access mental health support online, but it also means they may be excluded from the very research that seeks to understand their situation. This means that the evidence base used to develop policy or interventions may not be adequately developed for the people who need the most help.” 

Dr Nambinina Rasolomalala from the Catholic University of Madagascar added: 

“Climate and mental health is just one, particularly timely, example of this problem. Whilst online testing has undoubtedly been advantageous in extending the range of groups and populations taking part in research, this trend has an equity cost as well, skewing the evidence towards richer, better-connected populations.” 

ENDS 

 

People and cattle seek shade together under a tree in Southern Madagascar

Credit

Queen Mary University of London

---

Journal

BMJ Mental Health

DOI

10.1136/bmjment-2025-302344 

Article Title

Unheard voices: the overlooked mental health toll of climate change in vulnerable communities

Article Publication Date

22-Jun-2026

The Challenges and Opportunities of Living in the Inbetween Time

Ann Mallen

 June 24, 2026

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In late October, I published an interview with political scientist, Dr. Benjamin Peters, whose work focuses on peace (full bio at the end). Eight months later, the systematic destruction of our democracy continues unabated. In March, the V-Dem Institute at the University of Gothenburg reported that “Democracy in the USA is deteriorating at unprecedented speed.” So, we continue to need experts like Dr. Peters. He graciously agreed to collaborate once again.

AM: In the last interview, you gave us some ideas for personal peacemaking. (link here) Yet many of us are witnessing (either firsthand or by videos) violence, war, and absolute denial of due process rights by ICE agents. How do we remain peaceful in these scenarios?

BP: There are very good reasons – both moral and strategic – to choose peaceful, nonviolent approaches.

Many traditions valorize nonviolence as morally superior to violence. The Sanskrit term ahimsa means “without a desire to kill” (non-injury), and is a core ethical principle in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. Ahimsa was a guiding value for Gandhi who considered it the source of nonviolence’s power. As he put it, “Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.”

Gandhi had an influence on Martin Luther King, Jr. who confirmed the moral superiority and practical power of nonviolence. Like Gandhi, King believed that ends must be pre-existent in the means. In other words, you must practice the values you are trying to bring into the world. If your goal is a world free of violence, you must bring it into being through nonviolent means.

King’s idea of the Beloved Community provided a regulative norm or a moral guide for action that always centered the commitment to achieving justice nonviolently above the desire to exact revenge or to dehumanize the perpetrators of an evil system. He knew that meeting violence with violence would, at worst, cause an endless cycle of harmful retribution and, at best, prevent the conditions for reconciliation even if violence subsided.

As for the pure practicality of nonviolence, there are two things to consider. First, because the government maintains permanent, organized forces trained to use violence (i.e., the military, the police, ICE, etc.), a violent opposition is always at a disadvantage in terms of resources, training, and experience. Second, there’s compelling evidence that nonviolent opposition movements have been more successful than violent movements. Perhaps the best known statement of that argument is Erica Chenoweth’s TEDTalk on “The Success of Nonviolent Civil Resistance”.

To help us maintain a commitment to nonviolence, we can draw inspiration from the many examples of nonviolent movements that are achieving results right now. I recommend signing up for the newsletters of Waging Nonviolence and Nonviolence News. They report on successful nonviolent actions and often include resources and know-how that can be put into practice whatever your preferred form of organizing, protest, or civic action. Plus, it’s very encouraging to learn about people around the country and around the world who are making change happen every day.

AM: You’ve written extensively about Costa Rica, and my husband and I traveled there in February. It was an item on my bucket list, as I’m fascinated with the abolition of their military in 1948. I was deeply moved by the peaceful lifestyle. We left the resort to drive into the surrounding towns and speak to the locals. My husband is fluent in Spanish, and I can hold my own in easy dialogue. Everywhere we went, the people embraced their “pura vida” lifestyle. Yet, I can’t help worrying about them. While the U.S. is obligated to help in the event of an invasion (Rio Treaty of 1947), I’m not sure it would do so with this current administration. Your thoughts?

BP: Costa Rica is an exemplar of security through peacemaking, and the good news is that the bold and innovative approaches it has taken over the years now make an invasion extremely unlikely.

Twice after it abolished its army, exiles launched invasions (1948 and 1955) with the intent of overthrowing the government. Although Costa Rica invoked the Rio Treaty each time, the invasions were quickly put down by its civilian security force and without armed intervention by other countries. A key outcome was a treaty with Nicaragua, its neighbor to the north, pledging to prevent insurgents from operating in their territories or from crossing their shared border. No invasions have occurred since then.

It made two more breakthroughs in peacemaking in the 1980s. First, in order to avoid U.S. pressure to support its efforts to violently overthrow the Nicaraguan government, Costa Rica announced a policy of Perpetual Unarmed Neutrality in 1983. It then denied the U.S. Navy permission to operate within its territorial waters along its border with Nicaragua and shut down Contra rebel bases and U.S. covert operations in Costa Rican territory. These moves showed that even without an army, Costa Rica could defend its interests and protect its sovereignty.

Second, the declaration of neutrality established a moral high ground that prepared Costa Rica for a role as a trusted and neutral broker for peace in the region. President Óscar Arias used this status coupled with active diplomacy to get the leaders of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua to end their conflicts and civil wars. The outcome was the Esquipulas Peace Agreement, an unprecedented peace treaty achieved by the countries themselves without outside mediation and despite U.S. interference in the process.

For these efforts, Óscar Arias won the Nobel Peace Prize, and the Esquipulas treaty, which is still in effect, continues to make the possibility of an invasion highly unlikely. To top it all off, Óscar Arias convinced Panama, Costa Rica’s neighbor to the south, to abolish its army in 1990, further shoring up Costa Rica’s security. Talk about waging peace!

But let me get back to your question, which was also about the U.S. Unfortunately, the U.S. has done more than any other country to destabilize the region around Costa Rica. It has launched strikes against civilian vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific, invaded Venezuela to kidnap its president, threatened to reclaim the Panama Canal, threatened to invade Cuba, and threatened to launch strikes inside Mexican territory.

Although there is no sign that the U.S. poses a direct threat to Costa Rica, there’s an argument to be made that its belligerent actions are the biggest threat to peace and international law in the region.

AM: It seems there are signs that more people, here in the States (Trump’s approval polls and No Kings rallies) and worldwide (the Orban upset), are becoming disillusioned with authoritarianism. Do you agree? Can you see a shift happening? (please oh please, say yes)

BP: Well, I hope you’re right! What I can say is that we seem to be at a moment in history that only comes along every so many generations, and that is a moment when things can actually change in significant ways for better or for worse. It’s a time when people of good will working and organizing together can – and must – affect the outcome.

Gramsci called this kind of moment an interregnum, the term for the inbetween time when one era is coming to an end and there’s uncertainty about what will replace it. As he put it, “The crisis consists precisely in the fact that the old is dying and the new cannot be born; in this interregnum a great variety of morbid symptoms appear.” I think we see the old order under assault and morbid symptoms all around us, but it’s important to remember that the inbetween time is an opening for new possibilities, a chance to change things for the better in significant ways.

We can probably trace the full-blown onset of the interregnum to the 2008 Great Recession. Since then, we’ve seen movement after movement demand change. Here in the U.S. that has included Occupy Wall Street, Black Lives Matter, the Women’s March, #MeToo, Fridays for Future, the Sunrise Movement, March for our Lives, No Kings, and many others. Of course, something similar has been happening around the world from the Arab Spring through recent “GenZ protests” in countries including Bangladesh, Nepal, Chile, Madagascar, Bulgaria, Morocco, Peru, and others. These movements are demanding solutions to the problems the old order created but that it cannot, or will not, solve.

Here in the U.S., the starkest contrast in the search for new political solutions is between Trump and his dwindling MAGA base on the right and politicians like Sanders, AOC, and Mamdani on the left. The interregnum opened up the “political opportunity structure” that brought both of these political expressions to the national stage in a way that wouldn’t have been possible before 2008.

AM: Considering online and IRL cruelty on one hand and existential threats to peace – including from our own government, like the president’s threat of genocide against Iran – on the other, how can we keep fear in check and continue the work of peacemaking and social change?

BP: Well, we must accept that risks come with being public about what we believe and putting those beliefs into action. At the same time, we must remember that many others share those beliefs and are also willing to work together for change. There really is strength in numbers! There’s also strength in a common vision for change and a shared commitment to doing what each of us can to make change happen.

We have an opportunity to ground a vision for change in the shared values of a government that really represents the people rather than special interests. For example, many Americans support policies like single payer healthcare, national paid family leave, and free higher education. Right now, the political system has too many “veto points” where a small, powerful minority can block what the majority wants, and too many entrenched interests that financially back that minority.

This is a “system failure”, and the consequences are not abstract. People feel them every day in their own lives and in their communities. Many people have a sense that the system is rigged, that it is built to protect the profits and priorities of a few at the expense of the rest of us. This is especially acute with the financial strain people are under. It’s this sense of frustration coupled with vulnerability that is fertile ground for authoritarianism.

The good news is that because the system was built by real people, it can be changed for the better by real people, and people of good will organizing for change tips the balance toward renewed faith in democracy. This requires, for example, working to get big money out of politics, supporting candidates who will give us real choices and force a genuine debate about our national priorities, and pushing for more accountable, more representative government in general. The more we can organize for changes like these, the sooner we bring the interregnum to an end on our terms and reclaim the democratic promise of America.

AM: Many of my friends, family, and acquaintances have expressed real concerns about their physical safety regarding speaking up, protesting, and defending democracy. Thankfully, we’re not in a civil war in this country. Yet, we learn about more human rights abuses every day. Hundreds of people are participating in hunger strikes to protest inhumane conditions, for example, Delaney Hall in NJ comes to mind. (another reason to call our senators and representatives). Asylum seekers are being deported to dangerous countries. American citizens are attacked by ICE. It doesn’t take a deep thinker to imagine things getting much worse, particularly with the massive funding for ICE. Your specific goals: “working to get big money out of politics” and “pushing for more accountable representative government” and the others listed above are so important. Thankfully, there are good candidates running in the midterms.

So, one last question…During this 250th anniversary of our democracy, how do we encourage more people, specifically those who have remained on the sidelines, to vote, help others vote, and get involved in whatever way they can when conditions are legitimately overwhelming and so often scary?

BP: It’s a good question. The history of the past 250 years is the story of struggle after struggle to expand democracy. Given the very real forces working to undermine what’s been won, it can feel a bit overwhelming to see any chance of change. When a majority of people feel like the system is rigged and that it’s risky to take public action in defense of democracy, it’s no wonder so many people stay on the sidelines.

But here’s one thing that can help get folks back in the game: stop telling them to defend a status quo that isn’t working for them. Instead, we need to emphasize that taking action, including voting, is the essence of self-government – the simple, radical idea that we, the people, should actually be the ones in charge.

The reason things feel so overwhelming isn’t because we’re apathetic, polarized, or even scared, it’s because characteristics of our political system that were designed to limit democracy are being exploited to block the changes most of us want. When your rent spikes or you’re rationing prescriptions or you’re living paycheck to paycheck even though you have a middle-class job, that’s not a mystery – that’s a system built over time to benefit the powerful few while ignoring most people’s daily struggles.

To move past the fear, we must remember that democracy isn’t what we have; it’s what we’re fighting for. We aren’t just “voting”; we’re reclaiming our right to have a say in the decisions that affect our communities and our everyday lives. We encourage people by offering solutions at the scale of our problems, like getting big money out of politics, fighting for health care and education as fundamental rights, and shifting spending from militarism to rebuilding public infrastructure and bolstering programs of social uplift.

It’s easy to identify “bad leaders”, but we must start seeing the system as a set of institutions and policies that we can update and use to solve public problems. When we do that, that’s when the overwhelm turns into a plan. Let’s use this anniversary to demand changes to politics so that our elected officials actually answer to us and work on our behalf. Our strength lies in the power of numbers, so getting as many people out to vote and involved in campaigns for change is key.

AM: Many thanks for this! You’ve given us a solid rationale and a strong motivation to talk to as many friends, family, and neighbors as possible to encourage and help them vote with the intent to better our everyday lives.

Benjamin A. Peters, PhD, is the Director of the Global Scholars Program and a faculty member at the University of Michigan. Prior to that, he worked in Japan for fourteen years, where he was a Professor of Political Science, Dean of the School of International Liberal Arts, and Vice President of Miyazaki International University. His teaching and research are in the areas of the human right to peace and cultures of peace, Japanese and Costa Rican politics, and constitutional antimilitarism.

This piece first appeared on Ann’s Substack.

Ann Mallen is a former teacher and current writer of both fiction and nonfiction. Her work has appeared in a variety of literary journals and online periodicals including The Washington Post and HuffPost Personal. She is a cancer survivor and lives with lupus and autoimmune hemolytic anemia. She was also the founder and director for nine years of The Cream Literary Alliance, a 501c3 nonprofit. She advocates for patients with AIHA and has been invited to present for awareness days, to attend professional summits and conferences, and to teach at a patient conference. She also writes the Substack publication: Staying Power. Website: annmallen.com