The Institute of African Studies presents

“Resource Politics and Advocacy Struggles in Zimbabwe: Encountering Power at Multiple Scales”

with

Sam Spiegel, University of Edinburgh

As the mining sector in Africa continues to expand, questions are being asked about how power relations are changing in mining economies as well as the extent to which global discourses engage with local advocacies on the ground. This talk will discuss global representations of power and politics in Zimbabwe’s gold and diamond mining sectors. Drawing on the author’s fieldwork in Zimbabwe between 2005 and 2015, it will explore gaps between the analytic focus points of global mining sector analysts and the advocacies of artisanal and small-scale miners’ associations, as economic struggles have driven large numbers of people to depend on rudimentary mineral extraction. The talk with examine how global discourses of modern order and regulation have been politically instrumentalised and how associations of artisanal and small-scale miners have sought to contest controversial national policies and rebuild livelihoods in the aftermath of widespread police crackdowns, with uneven results.

Dr. Sam Spiegel is a Lecturer in International Development at the University of Edinburgh and Director of the MSc Programme in Global Challenges and the Postgraduate Certificate Programme in Africa and International Development. His research engages multiple themes in the study of international development, human geography, environmental governance, public health and political ecology, with a focus on extractive sector issues and debates.

Saturday, May 14, 2016 – Jimmy
Doors open at 6pm
Woodroffe United Church – 207, Woodroffe Ave., Ottawa

Tickets: $60. Includes dinner, guest speaker, entertainment. For info and tickets, call 613-290-6118. This project is affiliated with the Canada-Africa Community Health Alliance (CACHA) www.cacha.ca

Guest Editors: Nduka Otiono, Institute of African Studies, Carleton University, Ottawa,
Canada, and Ogaga Okuyade, Department of English and Literary Studies, Niger Delta
University, Wilberforce Island, Nigeria

One cultural form in Africa that defines how Africans negotiate their existence and artistically reframe the burden of nationhood, social identities, and everyday existential challenges, is the Stand-up Comedy. The genre is at its core, a form of cultural criticism which bequeaths some kind of public intellection to the art of Stand-up comics. African Stand-up comedians through humour produce alternative public spheres and public opinion commentaries, share coded messages that border on: socio-political inclusion and exclusion; the individuality of experience, the often flawed way we think about ourselves as a group. Despite Africa’s parlous postcolonial experience, humour is emerging as a serious business in reorienting African publics about their chequered socio-political conditions and the need to dream. Stand-up comedy is, arguably, one of Africa’s most popular emergent cultural art forms—produced and circulated through multiple traditional and digitized media platforms. Yet, despite its popularity and centrality to contemporary life in the continent, especially in the urban centres, stand-up comedy is regrettably, among the less theorized, less analysed forms of African oral tradition and popular cultural production. In this special issue of Research on African Literature (RAL) we aim to approach the form systematically by examininghow Stand-up comics reflect on identity politics in Africa, appraise the provenance and evolution of the form and re-evaluate a long tradition of African humour merchants in a broad spectrum. The special issue will explore how this comedic genre offers insights into shifting notions of identity, gender, class, politics, the relationship between state society and the civil society, etc. Contributors are encouraged to draw from interdisciplinary theories of humour in folklore, linguistics, anthropology, and cultural/literary studies to illuminate the themes/tropes, language, discourse styles,and performative genres that characterize African humour. The issue will also explore the politics of representation that continue to engender the experiences of African humourists and their audiences in poignant ways throughout history. The editors invite close readings of stand-up comedy and comedians as well as the spin-offs on social media. Significantly, therefore, the special issue will
enable scholars/critics/artistes gain new insights into the following areas of interest: (i) comedians and their audiences as co-producers of meaning (ii) African/“urban” comedy clubs/shows as communal forums (iii) stylistic and rhetorical strategies deployed by Stand-up Comedians to articulate the African experience (iv) comedians as members of a community of neo-oral performers with shared assumptions and specific rules of engagement (v) Orality, Globalization, and the
circulation of African humour in the Diaspora.

All finished manuscripts are expected to conform to the standard RAL guidelines published in every
issue of the journal and all submissions will be subject to peer review. This special issue of RAL is scheduled for publication in the Summer of 2017. Prospective contributors should send their 300–500 word abstracts by Tuesday July 5, 2016 and expect notification of selection by Friday August 5,2016. Final papers are due by Friday, November 4, 2016. The guest editors encourage interested contributors to establish immediate contact via email throughNdukaOtiono@cunet.carleton.ca and evba25@gmail.com

December 8-10, 2016, Bukavu

We are pleased to announce that the conference on TRANSITION AND LOCAL DEVELOPMENT INEASTERN DRC will take place at the KALAMBO campus of the Catholic University of Bukavu, on 8-9December 2016, and at ISDR’s campus on 10 December.The conference will provide an overview of the current social science research on transitions andlocal developments in eastern DRC; it will bridge the policy-academic divide; and bring together ahost of research institutions.

The conference is jointly organized by four institutions – New York University Abu Dhabi (NYUAD), thePeace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), Wageningen University and Research Centre (WUR), and theUniversity of Antwerp (UA) – in collaboration with the following Congolese institutions: l’UniversitéCatholique de Bukavu (UCB) and its Expertise Centre on Mining Governance (CEGEMI), l’InstitutSupérieur de Développement Rural (ISDR), the International Center for Advanced Research andTraining (ICART), Universite Evangelique en Afrique (UEA), Panzi Hospital, and Panzi Foundation,l’Université Officiel de Bukavu (UOB), l’Université de Lubumbashi (UNILU), Research Initiatives forSocial Development (RISD), the International Institute of Tropical Agricultural (IITA), Action pour laPaix et la Concorde (APC), and Justice pour Tous (JPT). Additional funding is provided by the FlemishInter-University Council (VLIR-UOS), the Norwegian Research Council, the Secure Livelihoods Research Conosrtium (SLRC), and the Netherlands Scientific Council (NOW-WOTRO).

The conference will include academic sessions; a poster session; keynotes by prominent policymakers and academics; policy-oriented workshops; and three roundtables (on inter-university cooperation, on publication strategy, and on bridging the gap between research and policy).

For the academic sessions, we welcome presentations on transition and local development in eastern DRC, that relate to the subthemes of conflict, post-conflict reconstruction, mining, or related subthemes. We strive for a multi-disciplinary program comprising contributions with a wide range of theoretical and methodological approaches, including statistical and econometric analysis, qualitative studies, and experiments. Abstracts (150-250 words) with a tentative title and mentioning of all authors and their affiliations must be submitted by June 30, 2016, via email to bukavu2016@gmail.com. Abstract submissions as well as conference presentations can be in French or in English. South-based researchers residing outside the City of Bukavu can apply

For more information, click here →

Carleton University, Institute of African Studies

The Institute of African Studies is seeking qualified contract instructors for the 2016-17 academic session. As a general rule, the minimum qualification is a MA in the appropriate field. Terms and conditions of employment are set out in the Collective Agreement between Carleton University and CUPE Local 4600, unit 2.

Course(s) for which contract instructors are currently being sought are:

AFRI 1002 [0.5 credit] Introduction to African Studies II, Fall Term Introduction to contemporary political, economic, and social dimensions of Africa.

Lecture three hours per week

AFRI 2002 [0.5 credit]

The Horn of Africa, Winter Term

The economic, social and political challenges facing the Horn of Africa, placing them in historical and global context. These countries may be discussed: Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan.

Candidates should have a record of publications in aspects of the Horn of Africa. Having experience in teaching in a University setting is an asset.

AFRI 2006 [0.5credit] Southern Africa, Fall Term The economic, social and political challenges facing the countries of southern Africa, including the legacies of apartheid. These countries may be discussed: Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe.

Candidates should have a record of publications in aspects on Southern African, history, politics, cultures and economies. Having experience in teaching in a University setting is an asset.

AFRI 3002 [0.5 credit]

 Regions in Africa: Cultures, Society, Politics, Winter Term

Using dominant linguistic borderlines that have shaped much of the African experience in the last century, this course will look at themes cutting across culture, geography, society and politics in francophone, anglophone, lusophone and arabophone Africa.

Candidates should have expertise in two or more of the above linguistic regions, a record of publications in comparative approaches to African issues: history, politics and cultures. Having experience in teaching in a University setting is an asset.

Application Procedures and Deadlines:

All applicants must apply to the Institute Director in writing and in relation to each course for which they wish to be considered:

Professor Pius Adesanmi, Director

Institute of African Studies

Carleton University

1125 Colonel by Drive, 439 Paterson Hall

Ottawa, ON. K1S 5B6

african_studies@carleton.ca

The deadline for receipt of applications is May 29, 2016

As per Article 15.3 of the current CUPE 4600 Unit 2 Collective Agreement, applicants are required to submit an up to date CV, including a complete listing of all courses taught within the CUPE 4600 Unit 2 bargaining unit at Carleton University. Candidates who have already contacted the department and submitted a CV recently need only indicate their interest in particular courses. NOTE that when applying to courses for which they have incumbency, applicants shall not be required to (re)submit documentation beyond their updated CV.

Disclaimer: All contract instructor positions are subject to budgetary approval. Advertisement is not a guarantee that a particular course will be offered.