Renowned Nigerian artist and social innovator, Adetunwase Adenle, a four-time Guinness World Record holder, has unveiled an art-driven climate and social impact initiative honouring 222 journalists and anchors of CNN for their role in exposing modern-day slavery, human trafficking and human rights abuses across the world.
The initiative, unveiled in Lagos to mark this year’s My Freedom Day, is being delivered through the Slum Art Foundation with the support of the Lagos State Government and private sector partners. It features 222 hand-crafted collage portraits produced entirely from discarded magazines, using waste materials to tell stories of freedom, accountability and resistance against exploitation.
According to Adenle, the project is a tribute to CNN journalists whose investigative reporting and frontline coverage have kept global attention on forced labour, conflict, displacement and human trafficking for more than a decade.
Among those honoured are Christiane Amanpour, Anderson Cooper, Clarissa Ward, Don Lemon and Jake Tapper, whose work has featured prominently in My Freedom Day coverage and broader human rights reporting.
Adenle said the journalists’ commitment to truth and accountability aligns with the core mission of Slum Art Foundation, which uses creativity, education and environmental responsibility to confront injustice.
“This artwork is a heartfelt thank you to every reporter and anchor who continues to stand on the frontlines in the fight against modern-day slavery,” he said. “Through courageous storytelling and relentless reporting, they give a voice to the voiceless and shine a global light on injustice.”
Beyond symbolism, the project is designed as a practical intervention. Proceeds and partnerships linked to the 222 collage portraits will be channeled into the construction of a new PET Bottle School and Nigeria’s first community-based AI animation studio, currently under development in Ijora Badia, Lagos.
The facilities are intended to provide free education and digital skills training for children from underserved communities, with the aim of removing them from the streets and equipping them with future-ready creative and technological skills. The school, organisers said, will offer 100 per cent free education.
Slum Art Foundation has previously operated a PET Bottle School model that replaced school fees with environmental responsibility. Under the system, pupils contributed five PET bottles daily in lieu of tuition, reinforcing waste recycling while guaranteeing access to education.
The foundation is now expanding the model to include structured waste management systems, carbon credit frameworks and environmental governance mechanisms as alternatives to traditional school fees The approach embeds Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles directly into grassroots education.
Under the expanded framework, waste collection is treated as measurable environmental value, carbon credits help finance education, and climate action becomes a direct funding mechanism for learning opportunities.
“Education should never cost a child their freedom,” Adenle said. “By turning waste and carbon impact into school fees, we are building a system where sustainability pays for education.”
The initiative is also projected to create jobs across several sectors, including art, recycling, construction, education, waste management and digital production. Organisers say this demonstrates how climate action can drive economic inclusion while addressing vulnerabilities that often lead to exploitation.
My Freedom Day is an international observance highlighting the fight against forced labour and human trafficking. For the Slum Art Foundation, Adenle said, freedom begins with access to education, climate justice and the right of every child to be heard.
“I use art to give children a voice,” he said. “When a child learns in a school built from waste and creativity, they understand from day one that their life, their story and their future matter.”
The foundation has called on governments, private organisations, climate partners, ESG leaders and members of the global creative community to support the completion of the PET Bottle School and AI animation studio, back waste-to-education and carbon credit programmes, and promote education and climate justice through responsible storytelling.
Founded in 2018, Slum Art Foundation is a social impact organisation that uses art to advance education, environmental sustainability and human rights advocacy, transforming waste into classrooms and creativity into opportunity.