From the war-scarred landscapes of Darfur to the global stage of UN assemblies and climate summits, Emtithal “Emi” Mahmoud has emerged as a poetic force of conscience—melding art with activism in ways that shift perspectives and spark change.
Born in Darfur around 1992, Emi spent her earliest years in Yemen before moving to the United States with her family in 1998.
A brief return to Sudan at age seven, during her parents’ protest against unpaid teachers, underscored the value of education and the urgency of justice in her young mind .
Emi’s path as a spoken-word artist took flight at Yale University, where she studied anthropology and molecular biology and joined the slam poetry circuit.
In 2015, her poignant poem “Mama”, written in tribute to her mother, won the Individual World Poetry Slam championship, earning a standing ovation and perfect score.
She went on to become co-champion of the Women of the World Poetry Slam in 2016 and was named one of the BBC’s 100 Most Inspirational Women that same year.
Poetry became Emi’s platform for activism.
In 2016, she was appointed a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador, using her voice to advocate for refugees and displaced peoples.
She has visited camps in Kenya, Greece, Jordan, Uganda, and Cameroon—everywhere from Lesvos, where her poem “Bird Watching on Lesvos Island” was inspired by Syrian refugees, to reforestation efforts tied to climate justice .
Her impact at the nexus of climate and displacement issues resonates through works like “Di Baladna” (“Our Land”), a stirring piece born from conversations with refugees in locations including Bangladesh and Cameroon. Performed at COP26 and COP27, the poem drew international attention to the climate refugee crisis.
Emi’s activism is as tangible as it is lyrical.
In 2017, she hosted the first fully inclusive civilian peace talks across Sudan.
The following year, she embarked on a 1,000 km walk for peace from Darfur to Khartoum—known as the One Girl Walk—mobilizing thousands, and later served as an independent advisor during Darfur peace negotiations .
Her debut poetry collection, Sisters’ Entrance (2018), interweaves the personal and political—from the experiences of growing up as a Black Muslim woman in the U.S. to confronting genocide, Islamophobia, and systemic injustice .
Emi’s stage presence has touched countless events—from the UN General Assembly, COP summits, and the World Economic Forum in Davos, to intimate poetry town halls, the TEDx stage in Kakuma Refugee Camp, and the inauguration of the Yale Class Day in 2016 .
Her recent work continues to blend advocacy with art.
In 2023, she recited “Sudan Balady” to spotlight the war in Sudan and visited Nairobi to raise funds for UNHCR’s emergency relief—while also opening the Africa Forum on Displacement in Accra with lyrical urgency.
Just this year, she explored collaborations with the Africa Institute at Global Studies University, bridging creative activism and academic partnership .
Emi Mahmoud is more than a poet—she is a bridge between worlds: articulating trauma and hope, grounding global crises in personal narratives, and proving that words can be pathways to peace.
Her work reminds us that in bearing witness through art, we reclaim our humanity, and in speaking truth with grace, we transform the world.
