{"id":255,"date":"2025-04-28T07:59:58","date_gmt":"2025-04-28T07:59:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/31\/?p=255"},"modified":"2026-05-21T18:02:47","modified_gmt":"2026-05-21T18:02:47","slug":"it-is-our-fault-theatre-on-the-climate-catastrophe-in-egypt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.critical-stages.org\/31\/it-is-our-fault-theatre-on-the-climate-catastrophe-in-egypt\/","title":{"rendered":"It Is Our Fault<\/em>: Theatre on the Climate Catastrophe in Egypt"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Jillian Campana<\/strong>*<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Abstract<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

This article explores the development and performance of Da Zanbokom (It Is Your Fault)<\/font>, an ecotheatre production in Egypt designed to educate audiences about the ways in which environmental problems affect specific regions within the country. Comprising a series of ten-minute plays, each set in a different part of the country, the production serves as a call to acknowledge human responsibility for climate change. Performed outdoors at multiple locations, Da Zanbokom<\/font> debuted live at the American University in Cairo in early 2025 and was later video recorded for educational use in schools.

Keywords:<\/strong> Egypt, ecotheatre, climate education, site-specific performance, climate change activism<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Egypt is experiencing escalating environmental crises: the country is getting hotter and hotter, the Nile is drying up, rates of lung cancer are increasing, and flash flooding is disrupting growing patterns. But human behavior is slow to change, and with almost 118 million people in the country (over 23 million in Cairo) and little educational effort to combat the climate problem (Macrotrends; Mohamed), it seems that the 50-degree Celsius temperature highs of 2024 might one day seem almost cool (Watts). In response, Da Zanbokom<\/em> (It Is Our Fault<\/em>), a theatrical initiative, aims to bring about public awareness and to inspire change. From water scarcity in Aswan to flooding in Alexandria, from pollution in the Red Sea to gentrification in Port Said, the short ten-minute plays that make up the larger Da Zanbokom <\/em>piece ask audiences to come to grips with the scope of the problem and to acknowledge their contributions to it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Theatre has the unique ability to transform abstract environmental issues into tangible, lived experiences through powerful narratives, striking imagery and relatable characters who offer insights into the realities of the audience’s actions and experiences. In Egypt, where ecological challenges are becoming increasingly severe, the potential of storytelling to shed light on this issue and to perhaps make some sort of a difference in human behavior is vital. With a long tradition of theatre as a tool for education and social change, the country provides a compelling setting for the creation and performance of ecotheatre.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Da Zanbokom<\/em> consists of site-specific plays, each set in a different governorate of Egypt and each dealing with an environmental problem specific to that region. The larger work is composed of ten plays, written in either Arabic or English, five which were performed outdoors in the early spring of 2025 in the gardens of the New Cairo campus of the American University in Cairo (AUC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Founded in 1919, the University has long played a pivotal role in shaping education and, more recently, advancing environmental and sustainability practices in the region. As one of the oldest liberal arts institutions in the Middle East\u2014second only to the American University of Beirut\u2014AUC strives to make meaningful contributions to Egypt through policymaking, civic engagement, business development, technology, and the arts and humanities, all of which have the potential to mitigate human impact on climate change. While the University maintains its historic Tahrir Square campus, built around the Kahiry Pasha Palace, major operations and degree-granting programs were relocated to New Cairo in 2008. The 260-acre New Cairo campus, with a significantly larger outdoor footprint than its built structures, was designed with environmental sensitivity in mind. Its landscape\u2014featuring native trees such as orange, lemon, and grapefruit, along with climate-adapted plants\u2014was curated to suit the region\u2019s arid climate. Designed as a hospitable garden environment that offers protection against heat and sandstorms, the campus provided an ideal setting for the Da Zanbokom<\/em> plays (a short video of AUC is available here<\/a>).<\/p>\n\n\n

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AUC New Cairo. Photo: web<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n
Da Zanbokom<\/em><\/strong> as a Response to Egypt\u2019s Environmental Crisis<\/strong><\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Although Da Zanbokom <\/em>wasperformed live in early 2025, the idea for it emerged in 2022, in the aftermath of the U.N. Climate Change Conference (COP27) held in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. At COP27, I presented a piece of Forum Theatre to highlight the power of the arts in influencing human behavior. The performance, It\u2019s Just One Bag<\/em>, was well received, exploring strategies to persuade friends, family, businesses and shopkeepers to stop relying on plastic bags. Through interactive scenarios, audience members, turned \u201cspect-actors,\u201d stepped in to take the place of the protagonist and test different arguments to convince the other character to abandon plastic bag use. Before, during and after COP27, Egypt experienced a temporary surge in climate awareness. However, the excitement and policy goals failed to filter down to everyday citizens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The disconnect between human behavior and the natural and social consequences of climate change is a recurring theme in my discussions with students. Over the years, their questions and concerns have only grown. Many expressed pride in Sharm El Sheikh being selected to host COP27, yet they also observed a troubling lack of awareness within their own communities about the link between environmental degradation and human actions. In one 2023 class, on a particularly warm day, students lamented the gap between climate issues and their families\u2019 behaviors. Yet, as the discussion unfolded, several asked to turn up the air conditioning. Others quickly pointed out this contradiction, highlighting Egypt\u2019s heavy reliance on cooling systems that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions (Yee and Mekay). The conversation soon turned to the disproportionate use of air conditioning among the privileged upper class and its broader impact on climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beyond the classroom, discussions frequently revolve around Egypt\u2019s water crisis\u2014rising sea levels, desertification, and the shrinking Nile\u2014as well as the country\u2019s escalating pollution. Students often note how Cairo\u2019s urban density and lack of green spaces intensify the city\u2019s heat, making it feel even hotter than the actual temperature. When I first proposed the idea of creating plays around these issues, I hoped the subject would resonate. Their enthusiasm confirmed that it did. In our early discussions, students described climate change in Egypt as both urgent and frightening, yet admitted to feeling uninformed and frustrated by the slow pace of behavioral change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Legal, cultural and consumer shifts in Egypt occur slowly, with changes in public behavior lagging even further behind. Then, in the summer of 2024, when Aswan recorded a staggering 50.9\u00b0C (Watts), I reached out to nine playwrights from across Egypt and invited them to write a ten-minute ecotheatre play set in a specific governorate to show how climate change was affecting the lives of people in that region. I chose to contribute a play as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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