African Studies News and Events
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Upcoming Events
“Bottom-up Change in a Top-down Government: Changing Policy and Law in Ethiopia”
with
Logan Cochrane
Banting Fellow, Global and International Studies
Date: Wednesday, November 14, 2018 | 1:00pm to 2:30pm
Location: Discovery Centre, MacOdrum Library, Carleton University.
See more details here
In 2001 Africa was declared “a scar on the conscience of the world”. When The Economist declared Africa a “Hopeless Continent” the writer observed that African societies were “for reasons buried in their cultures especially susceptible to brutality, despotism and corruption”. A decade later, The Economist decided Africa was both Hopeful and Rising. Partly because shops were stacked with goods and China was on the continent. Now Africa Rising is being questioned. What do we really know about the continent?
Dr. Alex Awiti is the Interim Vice Provost, East Africa and the founding Director of the East African Institute (EAI) of Aga Khan University, Nairobi Kenya. Mr. Awiti holds a PhD in Ecosystems Ecology from University of Nairobi and is an alumnus of the prestigious Earth Institute post-doctoral fellowship at Columbia University in New York. He was a postdoctoral fellow at the Earth Institute at Columbia University in New York and was also an adjunct assistant professor at Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs. He worked under the mentorship of Jeffery D. Sachs, world-renowned professor of Sustainable Development and Health Policy and Management.
Date: Friday, November 23, 2018 | 1:00pm to 3:00pm
Location: Discovery Centre, MacOdrum Library, Carleton University.
See more details here
TRACES
Professors Erin Baines and Pilar Riaño-Alcalá (The University of British Columbia The Liu Institute for Global Issues and The Peter Wall Institute for Advanced Studies).
We speak of traces as the affective imprints of the missing on the social fabric; the sense/feeling disappearance generates; an imprint that is imperceptible but compels. Traces are haunting, hopeful, and coextensive: imbrications of the absent and present. What does it mean to write of, and with, traces? Pilar reflects on exhumations of the victims of a massacre, of lives mourned and relationships restored through the identification of bones and ceremonial protocols of burial. Erin reflects on the reappearance of persons who went missing during the war in northern Uganda, and the violent fragments that bond them to one another, and to persons they have never before seen or met. In this talk, we take a pause from international investigations, trials,
When: Thursday November 22, 2018 | 4:30 pm – 6:00 pm
Where: Room 2017 Dunton Tower, Carleton University
To Register and for further Information Email: bgins@carleton.ca
“A Family Matter: Citizenship, Conjugal Relationships, and Canadian Immigration Policy”
About the Book
A Family Matter: Citizenship, Conjugal Relationships, and Canadian Immigration Policy offers an interdisciplinary examination of the role family formation plays in both the granting and refusal of Canadian citizenship. In analyzing three different areas of Canada’s immigration law and policy, the book argues that governments have adopted a strict definition of family not only to protect our borders from external threat, but also to reinforce gendered, racialized and sexualized assumptions about the ideal “Canadian family”. In doing so, migrant families are limited in their ability to develop chosen familial networks, a privilege enjoyed by most Canadian-born citizens.
About the Author
Megan Gaucher is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Law and Legal Studies at Carleton University. Her research interests focus on the intersections between citizenship, family, gender, sexuality, and race in Canadian immigration and refugee law and policy.
Date: Thursday, November 15, 2018 | 5:30pm to 7:00pm
Location: Irene’s Pub (885 Bank Street).
See more details here
“Supporting African Innovation: Stories and Lessons Learned from Grand Challenges Canada“
Grand Challenges Canada is a not-for-profit organization, funded by the Government of Canada and other donors, that is dedicated to saving and improving the lives of the most vulnerable. It funds innovators in low- and middle-income countries and Canada. The bold ideas Grand Challenges Canada supports integrate science and technology, social and business innovation. Heath sector investments have been a particular focus of the ideas supported by the organization.
David Brook is the Chief Strategy Officer of Grand Challenges Canada. He played a significant role in launching Grand Challenges Canada and building its business and strategic plans, as well as a lead role in developing and implementing its performance reporting and impact measurement systems. Before working with Grand Challenges Canada, David worked as a consultant specializing in innovation, health and environmental policy, commercialization, and citizen engagement. David is also a lead investor and strategic advisor to several small- and medium-sized enterprises in Ottawa. He has an Honours Degree in Interdisciplinary Studies (International Development) and a Masters Degree in Political Economy from Carleton University and a Graduate Certificate in Dialogue, Deliberation and Public Engagement from Fielding Graduate University.
When: Thursday November 15, 2018 | 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Where: Honeywell Room, Ottawa City Hall, 110 Laurier Av West, Ottawa
Extractive Industries, Governance and Indigenous Rights: Spaces of Struggle and Social innovation
International Conference-Workshop
University of Ottawa, November 29 – 30, 2018
Fully engaged in national and international debates on the natural resource extraction industry, the Interdisciplinary Research Group on the Territories of Extractivism (GRITE) includes 12 researchers and more than 20 graduate students from various units in the University of Ottawa’s Faculty of Social Sciences (International Development and Global Studies, Political Studies, Sociology, and Anthropology) and Faculty of Law (Civil Law and Common Law). The primary objective of GRITE is to stimulate the exchange of critical knowledge between various sectors on the many issues that the growth of the extractive industry raises, both in Canada and abroad.
The GRITE 29-30 November 2018 international conference-workshop has two key objectives: 1) an in-depth analysis of the nature of the socio-environmental conflicts and governance challenges that the extractive industry raises, and of the strategies and practices that impacted communities have developed to face them; and 2) the formulation of policy recommendations to address these conflicts. It will bring together world-renowned academic experts on indigenous rights in extractive contexts, governmental and civil society representatives, and Indigenous leaders.
When: Thursday November 29 – Friday November 30, 2018
Where: Room 4007, Social Sciences Building, 120 University Private
See more details here
Call for Paper/Panels | Annual Conference of the Canadian Association of African Studies (CAAS) 2019
University of Quebec, Montreal
May 16 – 19, 2019
We are excited to announce that the Call for Papers for the Annual Conference of the Canadian Association of African Studies (CAAS) 2019 is well underway. Our conference is scheduled to take place from May 16th– 19th* 2019 at the University of Quebec in Montreal. The title of this year’s conference is “Thinking Africa-World: Originality and Innovative Practices.” From an open and multidisciplinary perspective, the 2019 CAAS conference invites reflection on the question of originality and innovation, in relation to Africa’s relationship with the rest of the world. This call is for panel, paper, roundtable and poster proposals that question the Africa-World relationship by considering the concepts of originality and innovation.
Submissions of abstracts of no more than 200 words for paper proposals, and abstracts of no more than 300-600 words for panel and roundtable proposals are due by December 1st, 2018 and should be submitted via the following link: https://caas.
Call for Papers | Memory in Africa: Transcultural Dimensions, Pretoria
October 17 – 19, 2019
Within Memory Studies, a rapidly growing, interdisciplinary field of research internationally, the African continent, its people, diaspora and global linkages constitute neglected areas of research. This is despite the efforts of selected individual scholars and the International Memory Studies Association’s explicit mission to move beyond the Euro/Anglo centrism that has defined the early development of the field. This conference aims to provide a platform for academic researchers in Africa and international scholars interested in Africa to network, share their research and begin developing an Afrocentric approach to memory studies.
We invite participation from established researchers and postgraduate students in a wide range of disciplines from anthropology, cultural studies, diaspora studies, geography, health, history, mobility studies, political science, psychology, religion, sociology and other relevant fields. Practitioners in museums, memorial institutions, archives, the arts and performance fields, as well as researchers working for NGOs and government organizations are also welcome to contribute insights from their field of expertise. While the majority of contributions will be formal academic papers, alternative forms of presenting research, e.g. in videos, visual art or performances will be possible in specially arranged sessions.
This conference is hosted Atabongwoung Gallous (University of Pretoria) and Sabine Marschall (University of KwaZulul-Natal) and will be hosted on the campus of the University of Pretoria. Send an abstract of 150 words for a 20 minute presentation, including affiliation and full contact details by 31 January 2019 to memoryinafricaconference@
Website: https://sss.ukzn.ac.za/
Call for Panels | Africa: Connections and Disruptions
Edinburgh, June 12-14 2019
The 8th European Conference on African Studies (ECAS 2019) invites the submission of panel proposals addressing the theme of Africa: Connections and Disruptions. We welcome panels and papers representing all disciplines and methodological approaches of the social Sciences and humanities. First priority shall be given to proposals explicitly concerned with the conference theme, but the scientific committee will also consider panels on other topics.
Africa has witnessed substantial continuities, and acute ruptures. The continent is home to processes that have prevailed for millennia, and other movements that are in a state of flux. Africa’s connections and disruptions are both enduring and novel. Moreover, the relative weight attached to each element, and the perceived relationship between them varies greatly depending on the observer: from the colonial administrator, to the African farmer, to the entrepreneur, to the nurse, to the politician, to the preacher, to the civil servant, to the LGBTQ campaigner, to the aid worker.
Deadline for submission is 14 November 2018. All panels have to be proposed online via the link below. We do not accept proposals made via email! Please read the instructions carefully and then proceed to make your panel proposal.
All panel proposals must consist of:
- a panel title
- names and email addresses of the panel convenor(s)*
- a short abstract of less than 300 characters
- a long abstract of less than 250 words
Propose a panel here
All correspondences should be sent to: admin@ecasconference.org
Call for Applications: Sassoon Visiting Fellowships in South Asian and Black History, 2019-20
The Bodleian’s collections reflect the fact of Britain’s imperial and colonial past and the role that the University of Oxford played in that history. These Fellowships encourage researchers to come to Oxford and use the resources collected by the Libraries to research the histories of South Asia, Africa, and the Caribbean, as well as their diasporas broadly defined. The research may relate to any period of time. In addition to the partial list below, all of the materials within Bodleian Special Collections are open to examination by holders of these Fellowships. Fellowships may be awarded for a period of up to 3 months.
General information about the Bodleian Visiting Fellowships programme can be found at: https://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/
Call for Applications: Junior/Senior Fellowships on “Parliaments and Democracy in Africa” from September to December 2019
The Maria Sibylla Merian Institute for Advanced Studies in Africa (MIASA) is dedicated to the topic of ‘Sustainable Governance’. MIASA’s three research foci are: sustainable environmental transformation, sustainable conflict management, and sustainable democracy.
In its first call for short-term fellowships MIASA welcomes applications from excellent researchers to join the interdisciplinary fellow group (IFG) “Parliaments and Democracy in Africa” from September to December 2019. Fellowships are awarded for a period of 4 months. General application information can be found at: https://www.mias-africa.org/
Vacancy: Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology (Tenure Track) Arts, Sociology
The Department of Sociology invites applications for a tenure-stream appointment at the rank of Assistant Professor. The position will commence July 1, 2019 and is subject to final budgetary approval. The area of specialization is popular culture with an emphasis on Caribbean cultures. The successful candidate will have expertise in theories of popular culture and media representation, a rich analysis of popular culture through an equity lens, and a program of research focused on Caribbean cultural forms, current issues affecting Caribbean communities and popular cultures (both in the region and the diaspora), and a commitment to representation of the Caribbean in all its diversity and complexity. Preference will be given to candidates with a record of collaboration with Caribbean communities and organizations. The successful candidate will be able to apply research and scholarship on Caribbean cultural expression to their teaching in the area of popular culture, in order to teach in the Sociology Program and Liberal Studies courses at the undergraduate level.
Applicants are asked to submit their application online via the Faculty Recruitment Portal by November 30, 2018. The application must contain the following:
- A letter of application and curriculum vitae
- Three (3) recent research publications in accordance with suggestions in “Qualifications” paragraph above
- Evidence of teaching skills, experience and achievement in accordance with suggestions in Qualifications paragraph above
- Results of teaching evaluations (or equivalent evidence, such as a teaching dossier). The names of at least 3 individuals who may be contacted for reference letters, including one referee who can address the candidate’s connections to Caribbean communities and organizations.
Confidential inquiries can be directed to the Department Hiring Committee Chair Alan Sears at asears@ryerson.ca
Any inquiries regarding accessing the Faculty Recruitment Portal can be sent to Ms. Davina Chan, Senior HR Consultant at davina.chan@ryerson.ca
See website for more information.
CanUgan’s 7th Annual Evening of Celebration
Come join us for an evening of live music and entertainment featuring Ugandan dancers and Lilly Obina as emcee! You have to check out our Ugandan crafts for sale, our Zulu Nyala safari package, and our raffle baskets. Food and alcohol will be available for purchase.
CanUgan is a registered charity based in Ottawa. Through our fundraising in Ottawa, since 2010 we have provided assistive devices to hundreds of adults and children in Western Uganda. Devices such as locally made tricycles, and locally purchased hearing aids, orthotic boots and white canes. As a result, children with disabilities have been given the opportunity to attend school, and parents have become able to support their families and participate within their community.
Get your tickets in advance to save a few dollars – they will be $20 at the door!
All proceeds go directly towards people living with disabilities in Kasese, Uganda.
Date and Time: Friday November 9, 2018 7:00 PM – 11:00 PM EST
Location: St Giles Presbyterian Church 729 Bank Street Ottawa, ON K1P 6M6
Tickets can be purchased here – Eventbrite.
Patterns in Time
Come join us for a Concert with Traditional drum & dance music from Ghana, and percussion compositions from Steve Reich and Bob Becker
Featuring Baobab Youth Performers , Carleton University West African Rhythm Ensemble and the Laurier University Percussion Ensemble
with special guest Nani Agbeli Director of West African Arts, Cal Arts USA
Date and Time: Saturday November 24, 2018 7:30 PM
Location: Kailash Mital Theatre, Carleton University
Admission at the door: $20 Students and Seniors $10
