AMPLIFYING AFRICAN VOICES IN PEACEKEEPING AND STATEBUILDING

This writing workshop builds on the successful ‘Amplifying African Voices in Peacekeeping and Statebuilding’ writing workshop held in January 2022. It follows the objective of developing the academic writing capacities of early-career researchers (ECRs) at African universities and improving the representation of African scholars in peacekeeping and statebuilding research. Building on the publication success of previous workshop participants, the workshop aims to further enhance the academic writing skills of ECRs and deepen their knowledge of the publication process. The workshop will facilitate a reflection on individual and structural barriers to writing and strengthen peer review and peer support networks. The workshop organizers - the School of Government and International Affairs in Durham, UK, and the Rift Valley Institute (RVI) in Nairobi, Kenya, are inviting the ‘African Voices’ workshop alumni, the RVI alumni and other interested ECRs to participate in the follow-up writing workshop that aims at strengthening the academic writing capacities of ECRs in East and Central Africa.

The workshop is supported by the British Academy and will take place from 31 January-2 February 2024 at the Rift Valley Institute in Nairobi, Kenya. The workshop organizers will meet the transport, accommodation and subsistence costs of successful applicants.

WORKSHOP OBJECTIVE AND OUTLINE

The workshop will entail an expanded mentoring and cooperation scheme in line with a sustained engagement with the ‘African Voices Peacekeeping and Statebuilding’ project as well as with the RVI alumni and other ECRs in East and Central Africa. This workshop will specifically focus on exploring the structure of an academic article, the development of a theoretical framework, and how the chosen theoretical approach shapes the presentation of research findings. A parallel emphasis of the workshop will be on strengthening self-reflection capacities and practice of participants with the use of writing diaries.

WORKSHOP APPLICATION PROCESS

The ‘African Voices in Peacekeeping and Statebuilding’ workshop alumni, the RVI alumni and other interested ECRs in East and Central Africa are invited to submit papers across the social sciences and humanities that focus on peacekeeping and statebuilding. The papers should be ‘work in progress’, and should have a different focus from any previously submitted drafts. Interested applicants should submit a 800-word outline of their paper, and a max. two-page Curriculum Vitae (CV) to jutta.bakonyi@durham.ac.uk and geoffrey.lugano@riftvalley.net by 5th October 2023. Applicants will be informed by 10th October 2023 if they were selected.

Successful applicants will be required to submit draft papers of 3,000-5,000 words by 5th January 2024 in order to give sufficient time for peer review and circulation of the papers within the ‘Africa Voices’ network.