Goma: Living with the risk of Nyiragongo's eruptions

Goma: Living with the risk of Nyiragongo's eruptions takes you inside the daily reality of residents of Goma, a city built on lava, shaken by wars and earthquakes, yet full of life and resilience. Through their testimonies, we revisit the memories of past eruptions: 1977, 2002, and the sudden 2021 event that displaced thousands of people.

In this 30-minute documentary, families describe the fear of fleeing within minutes, the pain of losing their homes and loved ones, and the immense courage required to start over again and again. The documentary also explores the ongoing challenges of rebuilding their houses and livelihoods in a landscape scarred by lava, while highlighting how risk preparedness and scientific knowledge intertwine with the deep attachment of people to their city and land, and their determination to keep looking forward. 

With its powerful stories and striking images, Goma: Living with the Risk of Nyiragongo's Eruptions is more than a documentary, it is a moving portrait of a community living with risk every day yet refusing to surrender its hope and its future.

A documentary written and directed by Blaise Mafuko Nyandwi (University of Goma, DR Congo), in collaboration with Matthieu Kervyn (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium), Caroline Michellier (AfricaMuseum/UCLouvain, Belgium) and Benoît Smets (AfricaMuseum/VUB, Belgium). 
 

Trailer

Panel discussion

Valérie Cayol

Valérie Cayol is Director of Research at the CNRS Magmas and Volcanoes Laboratory at Clermont Auvergne University. Her work focuses on magma transfer and storage, as well as the flank movements of volcanic edifices. To this end, she uses geophysical data (deformations observed by satellite and on the ground, seismicity, gravimetry) and numerical simulations. She thus contributes to our understanding of how volcanoes such as Piton de la Fournaise and Nyiragongo work.     

Adalbert Muhindo Syavulisembo

Adalbert Muhindo Syavulisembo is a volcanologist, Doctor of Science at the Free University of Brussels and lecturer-researcher at the University of Goma (UNIGOM), affiliated with the Goma Volcanological Observatory (OVG) and the ULB. His research focuses on integrated volcanic risk analysis in urban areas, spatio-temporal modelling of vulnerability and accessibility to vital resources for populations exposed to volcanic hazards. A specialist in active volcanism in the Great Lakes region, he has contributed to numerous international projects and published reference works on risk management in Goma. As Director General of the OVG during the 2021 Nyiragongo eruption, he played a key role in scientific coordination, data communication, and collaboration with the authorities. At UNIGOM, where he is an associate professor, he trains future scientists and supervises research in geosciences, with a strong commitment to issues of resilience and risk governance in Central Africa.

Christian Chiza Kashurha 

Christian Chiza Kashurha holds a PhD in History from UCLouvain, specialising in environmental issues and history teaching. He teaches in the History Department of the Higher Pedagogical Institute of Bukavu (ISP-Bukavu) and is a researcher at the Centre for Research on Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law (CERDHO) at the Catholic University of Bukavu (UCB). His work takes a socio-anthropological and interdisciplinary approach to analysing conflicts and human security issues. He also contributes to the activities of the Study Group on Conflicts and Human Security (GEC-SH) at ISP-Bukavu and collaborates with various research centres in Africa and Europe. A consultant for several Belgian NGOs on global citizenship and solidarity education, he has also been a research associate at UCLouvain within the Rosa Parks Legal Clinic since September 2026.

Katrien Vanderschoot

Katrien Vanderschoot is a senior journalist with the international service of VRTNWS, the news channel of Belgium's national public broadcaster, based in Brussels. A specialist on Africa and the United Kingdom, she has been covering the political and social dynamics of the Great Lakes region since 1994 and has reported from more than thirty African countries. She also follows major international conflicts for the Foreign News Desk. Previously a regular correspondent in the United Kingdom, she has covered historic events such as the Pinochet affair, the Brexit referendum and the funeral of Queen Elizabeth. Katrien works for radio, television and the web, produces podcasts, moderates debates and is a public speaker. She is the author of Graven in Rwanda (1998) and De kinderen van de kolonie (2022).

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