Call for Papers┃African Urbanities Mobility, Creativity, and Challenges

Indiana University Graduate Students in African Studies Annual Graduate Conference
African Urbanities: Mobility, Creativity, and Challenges
Indiana University

March 24-25th, 2023

Urbanity has both a long history and a dynamic future on the African continent. Cities existed on the African continent for many centuries before colonialism. These cities were often hubs for cultural, religious, and economic exchange, which left lasting impacts on communities far beyond their immediate sphere. Today, the African continent is home to some of the world’s fastest growing cities. Nowhere on earth are urban populations increasing as quickly as in Africa. Rapid urbanization creates spaces for new forms of expression; however, these spaces also present their share of challenges. The Graduate Students in African Studies at Indiana University are seeking papers for our annual symposium.

This year, we are modeling our symposium on the African Studies Association’s 2022 conference. In this regard, the theme is African Urbanities. We invite graduate students to engage in a multidisciplinary examination of the various modalities of urbanity across Africa. Much as the ASA, “we encourage the study of cultural expressions such as music, dance, theater, neo-orality, literature, film production, popular culture, urban culture, social media, architecture, etc. These may be explored from the conceptual viewpoints of gender, memory and memorialization, toponymies, neo-toponymies, and palimpsest, for example.” Relevant themes include mobility, gender, development, digital spaces, health, education, visual arts, literature, politics, activism, climate change, urban history, economics, etc.

We encourage participants to explore innovative research, including but not limited to digital humanities and methods, especially in dialogue with research emanating from the African continent. As graduate students, your research brings important interventions and interdisciplinary methodologies to the fore. We are especially interested in how your methodologies influence your engagement with African Urbanities.

Submission Requirements:

Please submit your applications via email to gsas.iuasp@gmail.com. Applicants should submit a paper title, abstract (200-300 words), and a one-page C.V. with your name and pronouns. All submissions must be received by Dec 31st, 2022. Applicants will receive a confirmation email once we receive your submission materials.

Any and all questions should be directed to: gsas.iuasp@gmail.com