Almost a year ago, I decided to start a documentary project about mental health in Senegal. What I did not know at that time was that this would start my own journey with learning and acknowledging the importance of mental wellbeing. I was born in Senegal and spent the first fourteen years of my life in Dakar. There was always a history of mood disorders on both sides of my family, mostly depression yet, we never spoke about it. Ever. Not a mention, not a “let’s sit down and talk about what this is and how it affects your life”. This isn’t abnormal in Senegalese families, in Senegalese culture...

Sobel Ngom is the Founder and Executive Director of Social Change Factory, an NGO redefining civic participation, leadership and entrepreneurship. It includes the highly successful reality-TV show, Voix des Jeunes, which has been scaled to seven West African countries, reaching 15 million. What is your number one passion? Seeing people happy. And I believe this can be done by helping people access opportunities that can make them happy. The first time I learned this was when I was 18. In my village, it was common for students to fail the high school graduating exam. This was my year to take it...