Nadia Origo’s Aurore’s Journey: A Novel about Sustainable Development by a Gabonese Geographer

The uniqueness of a novel like Aurore’s Journey cannot be understated and in getting to know its author, Nadia Origo, one understands more about how this intriguing work came to be. It is indeed rare to find a work on sustainable development by an eloquent novelist and activist who holds a doctorate in geography with an emphasis on sustainable development, environment, and health. Identifying herself as an auteure engagée or an “activist author,” Origo blends her passion for presenting her native country of Gabon and its environment with an awareness of the science behind the realities she conveys. Origo’s novel emerged from her fieldwork conducted through a grassroots organization in Gabon known as Forest-Source. Origo’s way of infusing geography and ecology into a literary work makes for a purposeful approach to the promotion of sustainable development and most importantly, Origo casts an African perspective on the subject, privileging African solutions to African problems. Aurore’s Journey is not mere travel writing but a successful project that combines science and literature, making the work attractive to a wide audience.