In Tunisian Arabic dialect, boubli refers to the sounds of people arguing or disagreeing. When young Tunisians “make a boubli,” they challenge social norms and disrupt public debates from which they traditionally are excluded.
It makes sense then, that the new kid on the block in Tunisia’s media landscape chose this as its name. Boubli is a youth-led media platform founded in 2019 that provides a space for the stories that you do not hear in the regular news. It does so in the language of the street, and it does so successfully, with some of its videos having received over four million views.
Punishment from God
The video below is part of a series produced by Boubli with assistance from Hivos and Youth Impact, our partner in the Voices for Just Climate Action (VCA) program. It addresses the fact that not everyone in Tunisia believes in climate change. Droughts and floods are thought by some to be punishments from God. Boubli starts the conversation with this, and it does so in a witty and accessible way.
VCA and youth
The digital space provides an important avenue for youth to have their voices heard. Young people are hit disproportionately hard by the climate crisis, yet their influence in the public debate remains negligible. Hivos works with local communities across the world to help give young people and other disadvantaged groups a platform.
