In 2018, the Prince Claus Fund began developing #YCreate on Instagram at @YCreate_pcf. 

Director Joumana El Zein Khoury: “The next generation is increasingly committed to global and social topics – look at the large number of young people at the climate and women’s marches for example. We want to create an online space for them to engage with stories that celebrate what connects us, not what drives us apart. We focussed on the stories first. Now, with over 20 stories published, we’re ready to share #YCreate with the world.”

#YCreate forms a kaleidoscopic view on creativity by asking creatives why they create – representing stories from South Africa to Yemen to Colombia. Photographer, visual activist and Prince Claus Laureate Zanele Muholi shares her story on the platform: she creates because she sees a need for visual representation of black LGBTQI+ people in South Africa. As she told The Guardian: “I always think to myself, if you don't see your community, you have to create it. I can't be dependent on other people to do it for us.” Zanele recently exhibited at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam and will be featured at the Tate Modern in London in 2020.

Writer Simone Zeefuik emphasizes the importance of a new platform for highlighting unheard stories: “One of the most normalized legacies of territorial colonialism are the colonial mentalities that position Western perspectives as 'the universal norm'…#YCreate is deeply invested in and contributes to amplifying voices that aren't as much new as they are ignored and erased by colonial institutes.” Simone Zeefuik is an Amsterdam based writer and organizer whose work centres on representation and inclusivity.

Drawing from the Prince Claus Fund’s network, #YCreate explores the human palette of dreams, fears, and motivations with one key question: ‘Why do you create?’ Read the stories and dive into their work by visiting @YCreate_pcf on Instagram.