By Christopher Jones

Copyright walesonline

Artists from Black communities in Wales are contributing their vision and talent to a new campaign designed to heighten awareness of the climate crisis.

The Good Ancestor Project was founded in June 2025 by the Cardiff-based Sub-Sahara Advisory Panel (SSAP), with funding from the Arts Council for Wales.

It’s a Black-led artist club that gives activists from African, Welsh and diaspora backgrounds a platform to speak up about climate justice, to spread the word in their communities, and to examine the climate and nature emergency through an international lens.

The project board includes Keep Wales Tidy, RSPB Cymru and Natural Resources Wales. Creative partners are Mukuru Art Collective based in Kenya and Watch Africa CIC.

Cardiff artist Paskaline Maiyo (Cheb Arts) partnered with RSPB Cymru. Her art has featured across the city as part of ad campaigns to encourage people to think about their role in the climate crisis.

Paskaline uses the body as a canvas, creating striking designs using body paints and makeup palettes, turning everything she creates into a powerful expression of identity, storytelling, and culture.

Paskaline said: “In the art I am talking about the earth, it’s in the middle of the painting, it represents our climate and we need to protect it”.

Bangor artist Mfikela Jean Samuel partnered with Keep Wales Tidy and created his painting ‘The Common People against Climate Change/Global Warming’, a fusion of Wales and Africa that shows how we play a crucial role in adopting greener personal habits in battling climate change.

He said: “As an artist, I feel I can use my talent to spread awareness of the climate emergency. Every human, no matter where they are, can contribute something to mitigate the effects of climate change”.

Mfikela Jean Samuel also painted with the local diaspora community in Bangor to respond to climate change by creating a mural in the office of the North Wales Africa Society.

Next month, he will attend the Keep Wales Tidy National Awards in Llandudno to present his artwork and The Good Ancestor project.

Fadhili Maghiya, CEO of SSAP said: “Black communities are the most affected by climate change and least contributors to the problem, but they don’t get seen or heard.

“The project has allowed us to develop these campaigns and instigate conversations about climate change within Black communities in Wales and initiate conversations and actions”.

Look out for campaign ads across Cardiff – you will spot them opposite the Capitol Centre, on Newport Road, and by Utilita Arena, among other locations.

Find out more about the project by visiting The Good Ancestor’s website. You can watch videos from the behind the scenes of the project, enquire about loaning the artwork or invite the artists to speak at your workplace or event.