📣New vacancy at the ASCL for a Communications and Events Officer! We are looking for a communications expert to organise events and help share our research, education, and publications with the world. ⌛Deadline: 26 October More info and application 👇🏾 www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/vacancies...

🎉Congratulations to Mayke Kaag! We celebrated her inaugural lecture as Professor of the Anthropology of Politics and Governance in Africa at Leiden University, titled 'Reflections on power, knowledge, and trust. Political dynamics in Africa and beyond'. www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/news/2025...

📝 Are you considering doing a master's degree to further specialise and prepare for a successful career? Find out more about African Studies at the Master's Online Open Day. 🗓 9 October 2025 ⏰14:15-15:00 📍Online More information and registration here: ascleiden.nl/news/masters...

Check out the latest acquisition at the #AfricanLibrary - the British Online Archives’ Colonial Africa in Official Statistics! catalogue.leidenuniv.nl/permalink/31... Now available through the #AfricanLibrary to the entire Leiden University. @Universitaire Bibliotheken Leiden @Leiden University

📣 Join us in the next seminar on 'Communicating science - challenges and solutions for effective communication around antimicrobial resistance (AMR)'. 🗓 25 September 2025 ⏰ 13:00-14:30 📍 Room 0.12, Herta Mohr Building 🎤 Marina Joubert 🔗 More info & registration here: ascleiden.nl/news/crg-sem...

📢 Panel discussion 9 October: Increasing media attention for wars in Africa. Focus: Sudan and DR Congo. Join us for an urgent panel discussion about why these conflicts in Africa receive so little attention, and what the media, academia & NGOs can do. Registration: ascleiden.nl/news/increas...

❓ How do we really understand colonialism, not just as historical episodes, but as processes that continue to shape how Africa is seen, , and how people across the continent think, know, and act in diverse ways?

"This library is not just full of books, it is full of care, knowledge, and comfort. It reminds me that even though I am far away, I still belong. I am truly thankful for this space and the people who make it so welcoming. The African Library doesn’t just support my studies, it supports my heart"

The Research Master African Studies at @unileiden.bsky.social (2006-2027) is coming to an end. Following national budget cuts, the programme will be discontinued after this year's final intake of ResMAAS students.

💐Celebrating 20 years of Research Master’s African Studies - buff.ly/WQ7og5G This September marks the start of the final cohort of the Research Master’s African Studies at @unileiden.bsky.social, as the programme will be discontinued in the coming years due to nationwide budget cuts.

🎉We are proud to share that Carlien Donkor, PhD candidate at the African Studies Centre Leiden, has been awarded a prestigious grant from the British Museum's Endangered Material Knowledge Programme for her project “A Stick in Time.” buff.ly/Who5pNq

📣 ASCL Seminar reminder - buff.ly/3XzB4gh Join us on 11 September 2025 in Leiden or online for "Democracy and Corruption in Malawi – Between Resilience and Backsliding" with Dr Gerhard Anders (The University of Edinburgh).

⏰ The deadline for the Africa Thesis Award is approaching fast – submit your Africa-related thesis by 30 September! More information ➡️ www.ascleiden.nl/content/afri...

🔎 Searching for the African Clausewitz - buff.ly/Q6KMPK4 Strategic studies has long relied on a Eurocentric canon built around thinkers like Carl von Clausewitz, but is entirely devoid of African thinkers and case studies.

🔍 Keep Eyes on #Sudan Since violence broke out in Sudan in April 2023, over 150,000 lives have been lost and more than 12,000 displaced, yet media coverage remains limited. The #AfricanLibrary is tracking key resources to help you stay informed. 👉 Explore the web resources: buff.ly/XNUrnxP

Research Master student Christiana Banja calls for a new way of thinking about health on the continent, one that is just, inclusive, and rooted in respect. Drawing on course insights and a visit to #Micropia museum, she explores how science and lived experience can shape a fairer future.

🎉 Congratulations to Dr Tanja Hendriks on being awarded a Veni grant from the NWO (Dutch Research Council)! Tanja, a former African Studies research master student at @unileiden.bsky.social, is among 18 Leiden University researchers to receive this prestigious award.

New Publication from ASCL! Windvogel en Cupido delves into the origins of Dutch-sounding Khoisan surnames in South Africa. What do names like these reveal about identity, history, and shared cultural heritage between South Africa and the Netherlands?

❓ Is democracy in Malawi thriving—or under threat? ascleiden.nl/news/ascl-se... Join us on 11 September for the next ASCL Seminar: Democracy and Corruption in Malawi – Between Resilience and Backsliding with expert Gerhard Anders.

Beluister het interview met Mirjam de Bruijn @unileiden.bsky.social over de rol van sociale media bij terreuraanslagen in de Sahel: npo.nl/luister/podc... (vanaf 10:54) #Sahel #socialmedia #Russia

World Kiswahili Language Day celebrates the significance of #Kiswahili, recognising it as a global language of communication and cultural diversity. It has grown into a pan-African language across the continent that fosters unity, identity and intercultural exchange 👉 ascleiden.nl/content/libr...

📚 New book release | The struggle for liberation: a history of the Rwandan Civil War, 1990–1994, by John Kegel The story of the Rwandan Genocide has been told many times. But how does the civil war that preceded and ended the genocide shape our understanding of those tragic events?

📢 Seminar | 8 July | The operations of multinational businesses in conflict areas - towards the development of a conceptual operational framework, the LEIDEN Protocol How can multinational companies operate responsibly in conflict zones?

When we do research, whose stories are we stepping into, and from where? In a panel on the last day of #ECAS2025 about identity & belonging in African fieldwork encounters Esma Karadag, Rishuai Chen, Mayke Kaag & Chong Zhang explored with the participants the emotional & ethical layers of fieldwork

'#ECAS2025 brings together such a vibrant mix of people and ideas. It’s not just about presenting research, it’s about the unexpected connections and fresh insights that happen along the way,' says @eric-cezne.bsky.social, ASCL researcher.

At #ECAS2025, Lidewyde Berckmoes @unileiden.bsky.social just presented the book 'Traces'. Her witnessing of the political crisis in Burundi April 2015 led to a special photo-ethnographic project with photographer Marieke Maagdenberg. Check afterlives.nl #Traces #Burundi #conflict #photoethnography

Mirjam de Bruijn @UniLeiden.bsky.social talks at #ECAS about the New Scramble for Africa, referring to #ICTs as a resource in itself. 'It's the new gold'. Researching conflicts in #Sahel, she sees correlation between conflicts and clicks, 'social media thrive on conflicts'.

Jelena Prokic and Matthew Sung of @unileiden.bsky.social University @lucdh.bsky.social present their research using computational approaches and ethnography, looking into the relationship between connectivity, social media and violence in the Sahel region. At #ECAS2025 #violence #socialmedia #Sahel

Correction: Hall 209!

Join us for the book launch of 'Trust and Trust-making in Africa's global connections' with @degruyterbrill.bsky.social, and meet the editors Mayke Kaag, Alena Thiel, Istvan Tarrosy as well as some of the authors! At 13.15, room 201, FA #ECAS2025!

What is the link between demographics and politics? Jon Abbink spoke about the link between politics and imbalanced strong youthful age structures in #Ethiopia and #Sudan, while Akinyinka Akinyoade focused on the (always contested) census in #Nigeria, and what that means for the future. At #ECAS2025

#ECAS2025 in Prague has taken off! @Eric-cezne.bsky.social of @UniLeiden.bsky.social presenting about how the establishment of a green hydrogen (#GH2) landscape impacts socio-economic development and #energy #justice in Limpopo #SouthAfrica. With Susanne Nicholaysen of @UtrechtUniversity.bsky.social

Yesterday at the ELIAS 2025 meeting, Ashleigh Harris and Ursula Oberst presented the African Literary Metadata project (ALMEDA) — an ambitious initiative to make African oral and informal literatures accessible through a multilingual, linked open data platform.

📣 Heading to #ECAS2025 next week? Make sure to stop by our colleagues' panel talks and the ASCL bookstand from 25–28 June ➡️ buff.ly/CLZSbhA Also, ASCL Library colleagues participate in the ELIAS meeting, where Ursula Oberst speaks about the exciting African Literary Metadata (ALMEDA) project

🌍 Meet the people bringing fresh perspectives to #AfricanStudies at #ASCL! Our current #VisitingFellows are conducting fascinating research that spans education, art, memory, and post-conflict narratives.👉 Read about them here: ascleiden.nl/news/visitin... #ResearchExchange #AcademicCommunity

🕊️ Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o: Farewell to the African giant who gave mother tongue literature the right to speak. Read ASCL’s tribute: buff.ly/n78XaPI #NgugiWaThiongo #AfricanLiterature #LanguageJustice #MotherTongue #DecolonizingTheMind #ASCL

🎤 Prof. Mayke Kaag spoke at the UN Headquarters in New York, speaking on “Trust and Trust-Making in African Politics and Governance”. The event, organised by the UN Security Sector Reform & Governance Unit, also featured economist Sir Paul Collier. 📺 Watch the session here

Heading to International ConFest: Africa–Asia, A New Axis of Knowledge in Dakar on 11–14 June? Don’t miss the chance to connect with the African Studies Centre Leiden! 📚 Visit our stand to browse and buy ASCL publications, and🎙️ join our panel sessions!

Did you write a master’s thesis on Africa? Here’s why you should submit it to the Africa Thesis Award 👇 📅 Deadline 30 September ℹ️ buff.ly/y1hF0Gs Check out the Jury Report, just published for ATA2024: buff.ly/8IILUSY #StudentAward#AfricaResearch#AcademicRecognition

Two impactful events at ASCL on Friday 6 June! Conference: Fifty Years of the OCAPS 🔗 buff.ly/tHZLee6 CRG Symposium: Narratives of Conflict & Continuities 🔗 buff.ly/Eio6X6M Join us for one (or both) of these events exploring history, identity, and international cooperation.

Heading to #ECAS2025 in Prague? So are we! buff.ly/vd72uki Come join our researchers at their panel talks, and paper and book presentations, or say hello at our ASCL book stand! Whether you’re a scholar, student, or simply curious about #Africanstudies, we’d love to connect with you!

🎉 Congratulations to De Africast on their 100th episode! During this episode ASCL's Mayke Kaag, Max Koffi, and Alphonse Muambi discuss Africa’s role in a multipolar world, as the continent is gaining room to maneuver, and nations are asserting themselves as equal trade partners. buff.ly/06J89Ow

Honouring Koyo Kouoh's life, work, and legacy - buff.ly/44pe4cR On 10 May 2025, the world lost an extraordinary cultural force. Koyo Kouoh passed away unexpectedly at the age of 57. More than a visionary curator, she was a guide and advocate for countless artists, especially from the Global South.

🏆 We are thrilled to announce that the Africa Thesis Award 2024 has been awarded to Baleseng Maeneche! 🎉 Her excellent thesis critically examines how media narratives shape perceptions of male violence in South Africa. Read more about Baleseng’s thesis: buff.ly/lM3C8pH

Africa in the #Polycrisis: Vulnerability and Resilience | buff.ly/C2mwhan 📅 Wednesday May | 15:30–17:00 CEST 📍 In Leiden & online In a world shaped by overlapping crises — climate change, conflict, economic volatility — how are African societies navigating vulnerability and building resilience?

❓Who gets to be African? 10 years after #RhodesMustFall, Esma Karadağ @esmakaradag.bsky.social examines how Pan-Africanism shapes #identity in #SouthAfrica schools, and explores tensions between history and current realities, both in classrooms and online. ➡️https://buff.ly/4Vnxd1b #PanAfricanism

I gave a talk using a poem and sketches :) on "subjective peace- and statebuilding in Africa". Have a look & share: youtu.be/hMlbUC5vZSA?... #SciComm #Afripolsky #Security @abi-freiburg.bsky.social @ascleiden.bsky.social @leidenglobal.bsky.social

📢 Are you looking for a master's that offers in-depth knowledge of African realities? Read research master student Ivan Anderegg's story about his research semester in Ghana about gaming culture! buff.ly/fLZBKqc #Master #ResearchMaster #AfricanStudies #LeidenUniversity #Gamingculture #Ghana

🎓 Curious about choosing a minor? Join us for the online event on 8 May: buff.ly/lNfZEv4 Two exciting Leiden-Delft-Erasmus minors to explore: ✅ African Dynamics ✅ Frugal Innovation for Sustainable Futures @unileiden.bsky.social

🚨We’re proud to announce the release of "Trust and Trust-Making in Africa’s Global Connections," a thought-provoking volume exploring how #trust shapes Africans’ global encounters. Mayke Kaag will present the book at #ECAS2025 in Prague. Come say hi! Order your copy at @egruyterbrill.bsky.social!