African Studies Department Newsletter
March 6 - 12, 2006
If you have information that you would like to be sent out in the newsletter please email
MsiaKibonaClark@hotmail.com. Please try to send all requests by no later than Monday
at 8am. Use the above address if you have names to add or remove.
African Studies Graduate Student Association
April 10-16, 2006 - Pan Africa Week
More details will follow on the week's events. One of the events includes a fair on
Sunday, April 16. ASGSA plans to have tables representing the countries of Africa and
the Diaspora. ASGSA is looking for volunteers to host a table. So if you’re from Nevis,
Ghana, Brazil or anywhere in the African world, we need you to come and share a bit of
your country's culture and history. If you need more information contact either Angela
(Zhai3601@yahoo.com / 202-321-8832) or Msia (MsiaKibonaClark@hotmail.com / 202486-9536)
Department/University News and Events
Wednesday, March 8, 2006 - Vote for Undergraduate and Graduate Trustees on Bison
Web
Tuesday, March 7, 2006 – Uniting the African Diaspora – Blackburn Center
6:30 – 8:30pm in Blackburn Center, West Ballroom
Howard University students building the Western Hemisphere African Diaspora Network
The Western Hemisphere African Diaspora Network (WHADN) was created to
implement Article 3 (q) (amended) of the Constitutive Act of the African Union (AU)
which states: [The African Union shall] invite and encourage the full participation of the
African Diaspora as an important part of our continent, in the building of the African
Union."
Hosted by Ubiquity Inc, African Student’s Association, Nsaa Dance Ensemble, and
United National Association of the national Capital Area, YPIC-African Committee
Friday, March 31, 2006 & Saturday April 1, 2006 - TransAfrica Forum Annual Foreign
Policy Weekend Conference & Luncheon - Howard University Blackburn Center
Online Registration Now Available! For The 2006 TransAfrica Forum Conference!
Don’t Miss Out On Being A Part Of This Historic Event On March 31st and April 1st!
RETURN TO THE SOURCE: A view of Africa and the African Diaspora through the
lens of civil society in Africa, the Caribbean, Europe, Latin America and the United
States
Visit http://www.transafricaforum.org/conference.html to register online. This conference
promises to be an exciting opportunity to engage in dynamic sessions for:
* Organizing the U.S. Diaspora
* Developing strategies and tactics for connecting international issues and movements to
a broader and more progressive sector here in the U.S.
* Identifying and addressing the challenges to Diasporan organizing here in the U.S.
* Determining how we maintain dynamic ties across national boundaries
On Friday, March 31st at the Foreign Policy Luncheon, we will honor the legendary
entertainer and political activist Harry Belafonte for his lifetime commitment to Africa’s
children throughout the world. Mr. Belafonte will be presented with the Amilcar Cabral
International Freedom Award. The award is named for the African freedom fighter
Amilcar Cabral who organized farmers and common people to overthrow the Portuguese
government’s colonial rule in Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau in the 1960’s. The theme of
the conference, RETURN TO THE SOURCE, is from Cabral’s written work. Mr.
Belafonte will deliver the keynote address at the Foreign Policy Luncheon.
Seating is limited, so please make your reservations now for this a not-to-be-missed
event.
Some of the Panelists are: Actor-Activist Harry Belafonte; Raenaldo Bolivar, Venezuelan
Vice Minister for Africa; Actor-Activist Danny Glover; Bolaji Aluko Treasurer of Africa
Action's Board of Directors; Brima Conteh of Diaspora Afrique (Paris); Sameer Dossani
of 50 Years is Enough; James Early, TransAfrica Forum Board Member; Zeinab Eyega
of Sauti Yetu Center for African Women; Chucho Garcia of Afro-Venezuelan Network;
Gathoni Kamau of African Immigration and Refugee Foundation; Malia Lazu of
Progressive Majority; Julianne Malveaux TransAfrica Forum Board Member; Zenaida
Mendez of NOW; Luis Murillo of Lutheran World Relief; Maya Rockeymoore of Global
Policy Solutions; Damu Smith of National Black Environmental Justice Network; and
Emira Woods of Foreign Policy In Focus.
Preliminary Conference Program
Friday, March 31, 2006
8 am – 4 pm Registration
9 am – 10:30 Opening Plenary: Tell No Lies: Presentations and Facilitated Q&A
10:45-12:15 Back to the Source: The Pan-African Movement 2006: A strategic collection
of informational sessions chosen to illuminate issues, dynamics, and realities in and
among the nations of the African Diaspora.
1. Migration, Immigration and Underdevelopment: Movement of African and Diasporan
Peoples: This panel will look at the complicated realities of migration: its root causes, the
challenges of African peoples in motion, the nations and policies that meet them at their
borders, and the political and economic dynamics nurturing these new and changing
diasporas.
2. Getting to Genuine Equality: Women, Oppression, and Movements: Women and
women’s movements have shaped society and history throughout time. Women play a
vital role in shaping progressive democracies and fighting for economic
empowerment. Yet, women still bear unique oppression locally, nationally and globally
within very differing political and economic systems. This panel will offer a glimpse into
the struggles women activists still face and how those activists are working to change the
current paradigm.
3. U.S. Intervention in Africa and the Diaspora: Foreign Policy Tailspin? The United
States has paid no more than lip service to honest engagement in Africa and Latin
America and the Caribbean. This panel will review recent patterns of U.S. foreign policy
in critical parts of the globe, and alternative strategies from within and without the U.S.
4. Alternatives to Neo-liberalism: Empire's End? African and African Diasporan
countries and communities, especially in Latin America, are actively seeking economic
and governance alternatives to the neoliberal policies of deregulation, privatization, and
abandonment of the poor. Campaigns by civil society and governments against national
debt in developing countries; the stringent policies of the world trade organization; and
the electoral turn towards participatory democracy and new leaders hold possibilities for
new economic and political paradigms.
5. Sovereignty, Natural Resources and Environmental Justice: Oil, water, forests, plant
life, and minerals are critical resources in jeopardy as a result of wasteful consumption,
dwindling natural resources, exploitative economic policy, violent land theft, and foreign
militarization of Africa and Diasporan countries and communities. This panel will
explore the interplay between politics, economics, the ongoing exploitation of natural
resources in African and Diasporan countries and the misuse and destruction of land and
environment in global black communities.
12:30 – 2:15: Luncheon: Amilcar Cabral International Freedom Award Luncheon Guest
of Honor and Awardee: Harry Belafonte
2:30 – 4:30: All Friday A.M. Sessions will be repeated Friday P.M. from 2:30 to 4:30.
Saturday, April 1, 2006
8:00 – 10:00 Registration
9:30 – 11:30 Saturday Plenary: Reports from the Breakouts/Moving the U.S. Diaspora A
report and Q&A session between groups, followed by respondents addressing the
intersection of the international community and the U.S., looking at potential, current
dynamics in the various movements’ synergy.
12:00 to 1:30: Special Luncheon Plenary - Haiti: A Debacle of Human Rights and
Foreign Policy. Special Guest Speaker
1:30 – 3:00: Session: " Cultural Democracy: Youth Rising!" This special session will
review the role of youth culture in politics today, prospects and challenges, and global
connections in Africa and the African Diaspora. Hosted by Harry Belafonte, Malia Lazu
and Shani O’Neal
3:30 – 5:00: Facilitated dialogue- selected commentary from participants/ Closing
remarks
CHECK FOR REGULAR PROGRAM UPDATES AT
WWW.TRANSAFRICAFORUM.ORG
Events
Monday, March 6, 2006 - HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean - SAIS
12:30 to 2 p.m. – Rome Building, room 806. 1619 Massachusetts Ave., N.W
George A.O. Alleyne, United Nations special envoy on HIV/AIDS to the Caribbean and
chancellor of the University of the West Indies, will discuss this topic. This event is open
to the SAIS community only. For more information and to RSVP, contact Cristina
Benitez at sbenite1@jhu.edu.
Monday, March 6, 2006 - Population, Environment, and Development in Ethiopia Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. @ Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, 5th Floor
Conference Room. 1300 Pennsylvania Ave., NW. "Federal Triangle" station on blue or
orange line.
Please join the Environmental Change and Security Program and Africa Program for a
discussion featuring
Sahlu Haile, Senior Program Advisor and Ethiopia Country Representative,
David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and Winner of the Global Media Award for
Population-Environment Reporting
David H. Shinn, Adjunct Professor of International Affairs, Elliott School of International
Affairs at George Washington University; and Former United States Ambassador to
Ethiopia
Global Media Award presented to Sahlu Haile by Lawrence Smith, President, Population
Institute
Global Media Award-winner Sahlu Haile of the Packard Foundation to discuss how
Ethiopia’s growing population and declining natural resources are undermining its health
systems and development. Mr. Haile’s winning piece, “Population, Development, and
Environment in Ethiopia,” published in the 2004 Environmental Change and Security
Project Report, argues that Ethiopia’s population growth has contributed to unsustainable
farming and deforestation, thus degrading the environment and hindering development.
Building on his 2004 appearance at the Wilson Center, Mr. Haile will provide an update
on current population and environmental conditions on the ground and in the policy
arena. Are population policy efforts still falling short of their potential because of the
“inaction, disinterest, and ambivalence by senior officials” that Mr. Haile identified in his
award-winning article?
David Shinn, adjunct professor of International Affairs at George Washington
University’s Elliott School and former U.S. ambassador to Ethiopia, will situate these
development efforts within larger political developments in Ethiopia. Lawrence Smith,
the new president of the Population Institute, will present Mr. Haile with the Global
Media Award for Best Population-Environment Reporting.
Reception to follow.
Monday, March 6, 2006 - The Cabral/Truth Circle Film/Book Discussion on Africa and
the African Diaspora - Busboys and Poets
5:30-7:30pm @ Busboys and Poets, 14th and V Streets, N.W.
TransAfrica Forum at Busboys and Poets/202-223-1960 ext 137
The Cabral/Truth Circle is a combination of a great film festival and an exciting book
club that focuses on the history and political movements of Africa and the African
Diaspora. Every other month TransAfrica Forum will show a short documentary and host
a discussion linking history and current affairs, and encouraging individual and collective
activism.
The selection for March will be on the brutal history of the Congo. The presentation will
be based on both a book and a film. The film will be shown during the program.
King Leopold’s Ghost By author Adam Hochschild
Congo: White King, Red Rubber, Black Death By Producer/Director Pete Bate
The evening also includes a spoken-word performance by Omekongo
The Cabral/Truth Circle is named in honor of Amilcar Cabral and Sojourner Truth.
Admission is free. We encourage you to have dinner with us and change the world.
Tuesday, March 7, 2006 - Chinese Influence: Expanding in Both Africa and Latin
America - The Heritage Foundation
10:30 a. m. - 12:00 Noon @ The Heritage Foundation's Lehrman Auditorium. 214
Massachusetts Ave NE
Speaker(s): Josh Eisenman: Fellow in Asia Studies, American Foreign Policy Council
Dr. R. Evan Ellis: Associate, Booz Allen Hamilton
Stephen Johnson: Senior Policy Analyst, Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for
International Studies, The Heritage Foundation
Brett D. Schaefer: Jay Kingham Fellow in International Regulatory Affairs, Margaret
Thatcher Center for Freedom, The Heritage Foundation
Host(s): Ambassador Harvey Feldman: Distinguished Fellow in China Policy, Asian
Studies Center, The Heritage Foundation
China is spreading its influence in both Africa and Latin America. Its companies – many
of them state-owned – are investing where western businesses fear to tread. It assists
some of the more dictatorial, kleptocratic, and/or anti-American states such as Sudan’s
genocidal regime, the Mugabe dictatorship in Zimbabwe, Hugo Chavez in Venezuela,
and Evo Morales in Bolivia. Meanwhile it extracts raw materials such as oil from Angola
and Venezuela, platinum from Zimbabwe, copper from Chile and Zambia, iron ore from
South Africa and Brazil. Driving this outreach are strategic shopping and investment lists,
as China tries hard to insure the natural resources to feed its industrial engine. Should the
United States be concerned, and if so precisely what can it do? A group of Heritage
Foundation and outside experts will examine the issues and the possibilities.
Thursday, March 9, 2006 - Dialogue Invitation: Inter-American Convention Against
Racism - Global Rights
2:00 PM - 5:00 PM @ Global Rights, 1200 18th Street, NW, Suite 602 (Metro Stops:
Farragut North or Dupont Circle)
Presented by Global Rights and B'nai B'rith International
Global Rights: Partners for Justice and B’nai B’rith International Invite you to join Mr.
Silvio Albuquerque, the First Secretary of the Brazilian Mission to the Organization of
American States and President of the Working Group in charge of drafting an InterAmerican Convention against Racial Discrimination, in a dialogue with civil society
organizations about
the Inter-American Convention Against Racism and All Forms of Discrimination and
Intolerance. This presentation will be in Spanish with simultaneous interpretation into
English.
(light refreshments will be available)
SPACE IS LIMITED
Please RSVP by Monday, March 7th to Amy Freeman at AmyF@GlobalRights.org (202
822-4600 x137).
Click here for more information on Global Rights' programs in Latin America:
http://www.globalrights.org/site/R?i=oVUgieXFK5XN9UfNT6nUnw, and here for more
information on Global Rights’ U.S Racial Discrimination Program:
http://www.globalrights.org/site/R?i=HqIgy5QkuYj2F803HR3_dw.
Click here for more information on B'nai Brith:
http://www.globalrights.org/site/R?i=Ky1P60paMWfr_fEkiiN2LA.
Thursday, March 9, 2006 – Global Fund for Women Fundraiser – Bossa Bistro & Lounge
7-10pm @ Bossa Bistro & Lounge, 2463 18th Street, NW (Adams Morgan)
$10 minimum suggested donation, includes free appetizers from 7-8pm. Drink specials
all night.
Featuring DJ Stylus “The Vibe Conductor”
Friday, March 10, 2006 - Birthing Scars, Healing Wounds: Overcoming Obstetric Fistula
in Africa - SAIS
12:30 to 1:30 p.m. - Rome Building, room 200. 1619 Massachusetts Ave., N.W
Sarah Craven, Washington representative of the United Nations Population Fund, will
discuss this topic. For more information, contact Reyna Truscott at 202.663.5929.
Monday, March 13, 2006 - Gender and Economic Growth in Uganda - World Bank
12 noon to 2:00 pm @ World Bank InfoShop Book Launch. World Bank J building, (701
18th St.,) Room J1-050 (auditorium to the left of the lobby).
Book Launch: "Gender and Economic Growth in Uganda". E-mail:
infoshopevents@worldbank.org. Phone: 202 458-4500. For more information, please
contact: Patricia Springer, or call 202 473-9510
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 - African Community Stakeholders Meeting presented by the
African-PAC - Lee Conference Center
6:30 PM - 9:00 PM @ Lee Conference Center, 1108 Jefferson Street, Alexandria, VA
22314
703.838.4343
Please join African PAC at the next meeting of African Peoples...to discuss strategies and
issues affecting African immigrants and refugees in the MD, DC, and VA areas. (light
refreshments served)
Key Agenda Highlight: Follow up on recent Immigration activities on Capitol Hill and in
the diaspora community. Come and find out what other immigrant communities,
businesses, faith-based organizations are doing; and how you can take action now.
Final agenda will be posted on our website a few days before the
meeting: www.orgsites.com/va/african-pac/
Non-Members and Community/Faith Leaders are welcomed !
To RSVP, call 202.714.5921 or email African_PAC@Yahoo.com
APAC is a premiere non-profit umbrella organization that protects the interests of all
African immigrants, refugees, businesses, Community-based organizations, and Faithbased organizations in the USA, and mobilizes them for action and advocacy.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006 - Time to Build a Trans-Africa Road Network: New
Analysis of the Costs and Benefits, and Preliminary Suggestions on How the Donors
Could Make it Happen - Center for Global Development
12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. @ Center for Global Development, 1776 Massachusetts Ave.
NW, Third Floor
(A light lunch will be served)
Speakers:
Piet Buys - Development Research Group, World Bank
Uwe Deichmann - Development Research Group, World Bank
David Wheeler - Development Research Group, World Bank
Download Road Network Upgrading and Overland Trade Expansion in Sub-Saharan
Africa paper.
Download PowerPoint presentation (2 MB)
Discussant:
Andre Groenewald - First Secretary (Economic), South African Embassy
Chaired by Todd Moss, Research Fellow, Center for Global Development
Inadequate roads are a major impediment to trade, development and poverty reduction in
Africa. What would it cost to fix this long-standing problem? How large would the
benefits be? Who should do it? World Bank researchers used spatial analysis and
econometric techniques to quantify the costs and trade-expansion potential of a network
of primary roads connecting all Sub-Saharan capitals and other cities with more than half
a million people. They show very large potential payoffs for a continental network
upgrading program. More tentatively, they suggest institutional and administrative
arrangements for coordinated development and long-term donor financing of the
proposed trans-African road network.
Please RSVP by March 13th to Events@cgdev.org
Thursday, March 30, 2006 & Tuesday, April 11, 2006 – NonProfit Career Fairs –
Baltimore, MD & Washington, DC
Check the following Web site for details: http://www.idealist.org/fairs
Workshops/Lectures
March Lectures and Workshops at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia
For more information contact the African Studies Center at UPENN: Phone: (215) 8986610, africa@sas.upenn.edu
Tuesday, March14, 2006 - Teacher's Workshop: "Teaching & Learning about Liberia"
4:00 -6:00 PM in Williams Hall (255 South 36th Street), Room 632.
Wednesday, March 15, 2006 - Tomorrow, Tomorrow: The Black Woman
Presented by Diana Slaughter-Defoe, Constance E. Clayton Professor in Urban Education
12 noon- 1 p.m. Center for Africana Studies Seminar Room Suite 330A, 3401 A Walnut
Street
RSVP to africana@sas.upenn.edu or 215-898-4965
Seating is limited. Available on a first-come, first served basis
Friday, March 17, 2006 - "Culture in Motion: Coastal West Africa, 1760 – 1860"
A lecture by Sandra Barnes Department of Anthropology (University of Pennsylvania)
2:00 -3:30 PM in Logan Hall (249 South 36th Street), Room 392
Tuesday, March 21, 2006 - Teacher's Workshop: "Teaching & Learning about Ethiopian
History "
4:00 -6:00 PM in Williams Hall (255 South 36th Street), Room 632
Wednesday, March 29, 2006 - Teacher's Workshop: "Swahili Language and Culture"
4:00 -6:00 PM in Williams Hall (255 South 36th Street), Room 632
Friday, March 31, 2006 - "Africa and the Political Economy of Globalization"
A Lecture by Thomas Callaghy Department of Political Science (University of
Pennsylvania)
2:00 -3:30 PM in Logan Hall (249 South 36th Street), Room 392
Films
March 8, 2006 - A Celebration of International Women's Day - GALA Theatre-Tivoli
5:30 PM @ GALA Theatre-Tivoli. 3333 14th Street, NW (One block north of the
Columbia Heights Metro Station)
Washington, DC Independent Film Festival, Amnesty International USA & Women in
Film International proudly present
A Celebration of International Women's Day
Reception - 5:30pm
Presentation of Women's Human Rights Award
Film Screening - 6:30pm
Featuring
A Woman's Face, Uganda/UK
Dual Injustice, Mexico
Stories from Afghanistan, Afghanistan
God Sleeps in Rwanda, Rwanda
Discussion - 7:45pm
Light Refreshments will be provided
Tickets: $25 Regular price
$20 AIUSA, DCIFF and Women in Film members
For more information please contact: wminterndc@aiusa.org or 202.544.0200 x:482
Tuesday, March 14, 2006 - Guns, Germs and Steel: Into the Tropics – National
Geographic Society
12pm @ The Grosvenor Auditorium, National Geographic Society Headquarters, 1600 M
Street, NW
Jared Diamond offers a geographic viewpoint on the European colonization of Africa and
its legacy in the continent's troubled present. (56 min.)
*Free admission
Thursday, March 16, 2006-Friday, March 17, 2006 – Darwin’s Nightmare – Embassy of
Austria
8pm, both nights @ Embassy of Austria, 3524 International Court, NW
A documentary by Hubert Sauper, France/Austria/Belgium 2004 (In English, 107 min.)
"Darwin’s Nightmare" is a tale about humans between the North and the South, about
globalization, and about fish. Some time in the 1960s, in the heart of Africa, a new
animal was introduced into Lake Victoria as a scientific experiment. The Nile Perch, a
voracious predator, extinguished almost the entire stock of the native fish species.
However, the new fish multiplied so fast that its white fillets are today exported all
around the world. Huge hulking ex-Soviet cargo planes come daily to collect the latest
catch in exchange for their southbound cargo… Kalashnikovs and ammunitions for the
uncounted wars in the dark center of the continent. This booming multinational industry
of fish and weapons has created an ungodly globalized alliance on the shores of the
world’s biggest tropical lake: an army of local fishermen, World Bank agents, homeless
children, African ministers, EU commissioners, Tanzanian prostitutes and Russian pilots.
Admission free. RSVP required: 202-895-6776 or rsvp@austria.org
For More Information: Event Phone: 202-895-6776 Venue Phone: 202-895-6714
Starts Friday, March 10, 2006 – Totsi – Landmark E Street Cinema
Landmark E Street Cinema @ 555 11th Street NW
After a fight in a bar, Johannesburg gang leader Tsotsi (Presley Chweneyagae)
impulsively steals a woman's car, only to discover a baby in the back seat. He tries to care
for the child in secret, eventually forcing recently widowed mother Miriam (Terry Pheto)
to help him. As their relationship slowly progresses, Tsotsi is forced to confront his
violent nature and forgotten past. Infused with pumping, high-energy Kwaito music,
writer/director Gavin Hood's film is an extraordinary portrait of the choices we make in
life and the personal triumph that comes from choosing love over rage. Academy Award
nominee for Best Foreign Language Film
Call for Papers
Critical Half
Woman for Women International is currently seeking submissions for the biannual
academic journal of the organization, Critical Half 's Spring 2006 edition, which will
focus on the importance of psycho-social support for women in conflict and post-conflict
societies. Please visit http://www.womenforwomen.org for further details about the
journal and submission guidelines. The deadline for submissions is March 1, 2006. Past
issues of the journal are also available for review at
http://www.womenforwomen.org/repubbiannual.htm
Conferences
June 15-17, 2006 - The Aging and Social Change in Africa International Conference Atlanta, GA
Sponsored by AAGE will be held at Georgia State University in Atlanta, GA. The
primary goal of the conference is to create opportunities for national and international
networking among scholars and students interested in African aging. The registration
deadline is June 6, 2006. For more information, visit www.oucom.ohio.edu/som/aage or
www.gsu.edu/gerontology
International Conferences/Events
October 11-13, 2006 - Education in the Caribbean: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow: A
Local Imperative in a Global Context - Saint Maarten, the Netherlands Antilles
You will find all details at: http://www.geocities.com/consultants_2006/conference.html
Job Postings
Assistant, Urgent Action Program - Amnesty International - Washington, DC
The Urgent Action Program Assistant supports the UA Program Director by helping with
day-to-day functions of the Urgent Action program and the FIRST APPEAL Pledge
Program. Given the unique nature and daily demands of Urgent Actions, which feature
individuals at risk of immediate, life-threatening human rights violations, the Program
Assistant must be able to oversee the distribution of UAs, WARNs, Medical Actions, and
national section actions upon the absence of the UA Program Director. The Program
Assistant responds to daily office correspondence (email, fax, post, phone), handles the
daily maintenance of the Urgent Action program’s member database in ADS, assists with
the writing and posting of online actions and materials, and assists with managing and
training the program’s volunteers and interns.
Qualifications: Bachelors degree recommended. Interest and knowledge in human rights
or NGO work preferred; a broad and deep understanding of AI and AIUSA practice and
policies (including the UA program) highly desirable. Must have friendly communication
and teamwork skills and ability to work with diverse populations. Fluency in Spanish or
foreign language highly desirable. Must have attention to detail and comfort with
computers, databases, and variety of software programs (such as Word, Access, Lotus
Notes, Adobe PageMaker, Excel, PC Transact, Macromedia Dreamweaver). Web skills
(HTML/XML) highly desirable. Better-than-average writing and editing skills are
desirable. Must be organized and able to work in a fast paced environment.
How to Apply: Send resume and cover letter by March 10th to AIUSA, Human
Resources / UAA, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue SE, Washington DC 20003, or fax 202-5467142. No calls. AIUSA is an EOE.
Lecturer: Sociocultural and/or Linguistic Anthropology - Sarah Lawrence College Bronxville, N.Y.
Sarah Lawrence College announces an opening for a one-semester, full-time guest
position in Sociocultural and/or Linguistic Anthropology for the Fall 2006 term.
Additional teaching in the Spring 2007 term is possible but not yet definite. We are
especially interested in applicants whose area interests lie outside of Africa and South
America. We seek a person who can both introduce students to the discipline of
anthropology in creative ways and teach content-based research seminars. Ph.D. required.
Interested candidates should send a cover letter, resume, and two course syllabi to
Rosemary Weeks, Faculty Assistant, Anthropology Guest Search, Sarah Lawrence
College, 1 Mead Way, Bronxville, N.Y. 10708. Applications must be received by April 1,
2006. Sarah Lawrence College is a small liberal arts college with a unique pedagogy
based on small classes and individual tutorials. For information on Sarah Lawrence
College, our curriculum, teaching methods, and philosophy of education, please see our
Web site at http://www.slc.edu. Sarah Lawrence has a strong commitment to the principle
of diversity. In that spirit, we especially welcome applications from under-represented
groups.
Assistant Professor in African languages - Michigan State University - East Lansing, MI
The Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African Languages at
Michigan State University will make a three-year, fixed-term appointment at the
Assistant Professor level in African languages to begin on or after August 16, 2006.
Teaching duties will include a 0.5 appointment teaching Hausa (or another West-African
language) and 0.5 coordinating the African Language Program and its faculty-supervised,
individualized-instruction offerings. The appointee also will be a core faculty member of
the MSU African Studies Center. Ph.D. by time of appointment. Review of applications
will begin on March 1, 2006. Send letters of application describing your teaching and
research interests, vita, three letters of recommendation to: David K. Prestel, Chair, A615 Wells Hall, Department of Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian and African
Languages, Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48825-1027.
International Job Postings
Resident Director: Political Party/Elections Programs – NDI – Nouakchott, Mauritania
NDI is seeking to hire a Resident Director for Political Party/Elections Programs.
Primary responsibilities will include designing and implementing training programs for
political party leaders on a range of topics including campaign planning, voter/constituent
targeting, voter contact and mobilization, policy development, internal and external
communication and internal party training capacity. Responsibilities will also include
designing and implementing training programs for local independent election monitors,
party poll watchers and journalists. The Director will serve as NDI's principal liaison to
the Mauritanian independent national election commission (CENI), local
nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), political parties and governmental authorities as
well as international representatives. The Director will also manage the implementation
of NDI programs in Mauritania and provide management and oversight of the local
office. The Director will report to NDI's Senior Representative for the Maghreb based in
Morocco and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Regional Director in
Washington, DC. Close coordination will also be expected with NDI staff in Washington
as well as the Resident Senior Program Officer in Mauritania. The position is based in
Nouakchott, Mauritania.
Background: On August 3, 2005, while President Maaouiya Ould Sid'Ahmed Taya was
in Saudi Arabia, senior military officers seized control of the government and overthrew
him in a bloodless coup. While the coup itself was a fundamental breach of the
democratic process, Mauritania now faces an opportunity to move from a closed and
highly controlled political system to one that provides for multi-party politics and an
engaged citizenry. The ruling Military Council for Justice and Democracy (CMJD) has
developed a 19-month plan with four different elections to restore an elected government
by April 2007 and has demonstrated, at least initially, a commitment to inclusive
decision-making.
During transition planning, the CMJD has been open to input from political parties and
civil society groups, and continues to solicit feedback from them on election-related
issues. Their capacity to maintain the momentum to influence government decisions
about the electoral process during this period is essential to the success and legitimacy of
the transition. Similarly, parties will need to devote considerable attention to engaging a
hopeful but wary electorate as they make sense of the more than 30 parties that have been
officially recognized and the many others currently in the process of registering.
Following the coup, NDI sent a three-person team in September to assess the political
environment, suggest benchmarks for a meaningful democratic transition and make
recommendations for possible democratic assistance programs. Since that time, NDI has
continued to provide ongoing technical support in response to requests for assistance and
consultations with political parties, civil society groups, government officials, and
journalists. Given the dynamic pace of events in the country, NDI has established a
permanent presence in the country, now maintaining a political party resource center in
Nouakchott that serves as a training and meeting facility for a wide range of programs
helping Mauritanians prepare for the transition process.
Primary Responsibilities: Manage the implementation of all of NDI's programs in
Mauritania. * Provide management and oversight of local and expatriate program staff in
the Nouakchott office. * Design and conduct training workshops and one-on-one
consultations for political party members. * Implement NDI's programs in collaboration
with in-country field staff and pro-bono trainers or short-term consultants. * Build and
maintain collaborative working relationships with senior political party leaders. * Provide
technical assistance to the CENI on matters related to the electoral processes. * Design
and conduct training workshops and consultations with party poll watchers and local
independent election monitors. * Design and conduct training workshops and
consultations on electoral coverage for the media. * Serve as the NDI representative to an
international coordination committee on the democratic process. * Serve as principal
liaison between NDI and international donor representatives in country, Mauritanian
government officials, legislators and staff, political party leaders, local nongovernmental
organizations (NGOs), the media, and U.S. Government representatives. * Provide
oversight and review of the in-country budget and the submission of a monthly financial
reconciliation to the Washington DC office. * Review written reports to Washington DC
that monitor and measure program results and political developments in Mauritania. *
Monitor programs to determine that programmatic goals are achieved and that
operational and reporting requirements are adhered to. * Adjust programmatic activities
based on changing political circumstances and in response to needs articulated by local
partners and program stakeholders. * Build the capacity of NDI staff to play a substantive
role in program development and implementation.
Qualifications: Bachelor degree, preferably in International Relations or related subject;
graduate degree preferred. * Minimum twelve (12) years substantive political experience,
including working for the legislature, executive branch or political parties. * Experience
in program management, especially implementing USAID and other U.S. governmentfunded programs. * Proven ability to effectively communicate skills and experiences to
others as a trainer or advisor. * Demonstrated ability to conduct and apply sophisticated
political analysis to programmatic activities. * Demonstrated ability to work effectively
with senior political and civic leaders as well as members of the donor and diplomatic
community. * Ability to communicate skills and experience to others as a trainer, advisor
and consultant. * Excellent managerial, interpersonal and networking skills, as well as the
ability to establish and maintain professional political relationships. * Strong oral and
written communication skills in English and French. * Experience living and working
overseas and an ability to work in a challenging environment highly desirable. *
Demonstrated ability to work as a member of a team.
All applicants for internships and regular full-time employment in the U.S. must possess
work authorization which does not require employer sponsorship.
Comments: Salary range commensurate with experience. A generous benefits package is
provided, including in-country housing allowance.
Application Instructions: Interested applicants can apply now using our on-line resume
tool. Cite the exact position title in the cover letter.
http://sh.webhire.com/servlet/resp/grf?acctid=401
Director - Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Abdulaziz Alsaud Center for American Studies and
Research - The American University in Cairo - Cairo, Egypt
The American University in Cairo seeks a Director for its Center for American Studies
and Research (CASAR) that was established in 2004. Application Instructions: E-mail a
letter of intent specifying Position # CASAR-1 with a current C.V. to
facultyaffairs@aucnyo.edu and arrange to have three letters of recommendation and
transcripts mailed to: Dr. Earl (Tim) Sullivan, Provost American University in Cairo, 420
Fifth Avenue, Fl. 3-CH, New York, N.Y. 10018-2729
For full consideration, candidates must also complete the Personnel Information Form
provided at http://forms.aucegypt.edu/provost/pif3.html. Review of candidates will begin
immediately; applications will be accepted until the position is filled. Web Site:
http://forms.aucegypt.edu/provost/pif3.html
Fellowships/Scholarships/Other Funding
Scholarships in Human Rights for Women
The Native Leadership Scholarship (NLS) program creates educational opportunities for
women around the world who are grassroots leaders, organizers, and activists
demonstrating financial need. Scholarship recipients enroll in programs of study that
cover a range of human rights and development issues at the non-doctoral graduate level
including gender, reproductive health, HIV/AIDS, child exploitation, human and drug
trafficking, infant and maternal mortality, microbial diseases, conflict resolution,
environmental justice, global fair trade, agroecology, and sustainable development. NLS
is a secular program and does not support programs of study that promote specific
religious beliefs. All applicants are invited to fill out pre-applications on the website
listed below. NLS pre-applications for the 2006-07 academic year will be available
through March 25, 2006 on the website or by request from: info@nativeleaders.org. For
more information please visit: http://www.nativeleaders.org/ or contact: Aline Carton,
Program Manager, Native Leadership Scholarship, Channel Foundation, 603 Stewart St.,
Suite 415, Seattle, WA 98101, USA; Tel: (00)1-206-621-5447; Fax: (00)1-206-621-2664;
e-mail: info@nativeleaders.org
Stanley J. Tarver Memorial Scholarship
The Community Foundation of Dutchess County, located in Poughkeepsie, New York is
pleased to offer the Stanley J. Tarver Memorial Scholarship. This fund provides a
scholarship to a graduate student of African descent, an African American, or a black
person of another nationality who is matriculating toward a Doctorate or a Masters
Degree in African History and/or Culture, and who has completed at least one year of
graduate study at a college or university in the US. The scholarship is $1, 000 per
semester award, and a maximum of $2,000 per academic year. Applications must be
postmarked by April 20, 2006. Applications can be obtained at www.cfdcny.org. Any
specific questions can be directed to Nevill Smythe at 845.452.3077 or at
nsmythe@cfdcny.org
Rockefeller Foundation/CGIAR Fellowships
Second Round of Fellowship Program: Enhancing the careers of East African women
scientist, which is part of the Rockefeller Foundation/CGIAR Fellowships is an
opportunity for women scientists and researchers working in Kenyan, Ugandan, and
Tanzanian universities. Minimum qualification for applicants is MSc. Applicants are
requested to submit a maximum four-page proposal. For proposal format requirements,
visit: http://www.genderdiversitycgiar.org. The application deadline is February 28,
2006.
The Brown International Writers Project
The Brown International Writers Project is currently seeking nominations and
applications for its one-year fellowship with residency. The Fellowship, supported by a
grant from the William H. Donner Foundation, is designed to provide sanctuary and
support for established creative writers - fiction writers, playwrights, and poets - who are
persecuted in their home countries or are actively prevented from pursuing free
expression in their literary art. The Fellow will be a member of a supportive community
that includes faculty members and graduate students in Brown's Program in Literary Arts
and the Watson Institute for International Studies, co-sponsors of the Project. The
fellowship will be accompanied by a series of lectures, readings and other events that
highlight the national artistic and political culture of the writer and address the global
issues of human rights and free expression. It will include a stipend, relocation funds, and
health benefits. Brown will aid the writer in the visa and relocation process and provide
administrative support, office space on the Brown campus in Providence, Rhode Island,
and equipment. To apply, send a letter, providing publishing history and explaining need,
together with a resume, to the International Writers Project, Watson Institute for
International Studies, Box 1970, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, or by email to
iwp@brown.edu. Supporting letters from others would be helpful.
UNESCO Fellowships Programme
UNESCO http://www.unesco.org
Closing Date: 30 April 2006
Description: The fellowships offered under this scheme are of short term duration, from
1-6 months for completion between 1 September 2006 and 31 December 2007, and are
intended for specialised training at post-graduate level. Candidates should be promising
and qualified specialists who seek to undertake advanced research or to upgrade their
skills and knowledge of state-of-the-art developments in their field of study or work.
Principal priority areas include:
* education — basic education for all, with special attention being given to literacy,
HIV/AIDS prevention and education and teacher training in sub-Saharan Africa;
* sciences — water and associated ecosystems;
* social and human sciences — ethics of science and technology, with emphasis on
bioethics;
* culture — promoting cultural diversity, with special emphasis on the tangible and
intangible heritage;
* communication and information — empowering people through access to information
and knowledge with special emphasis on freedom of expression.
Applications will be accepted from graduate and post-graduate candidates for study
abroad wishing to pursue training, undertake advanced research, ugrade skills, or attend
specialised or refresher courses. Priority attention will be given to women, and those
from least developed countries. Candidates must have a university degree, be not more
than 45 years of age, and have demonstrated that they possess outstanding potential that
would enable them to make a significant contribution to their country upon their return.
The maximum cost should not exceed US$15,000 to cover, either partially or fully,
expenses related to the study programme. Should the proposed study programme need
additional funds, other sources must be sought.
The national commission of the candidate's country submits the application(s).
Applications from individuals will not be accepted and must be received by 30 April
2006.
Application forms are also available from the website.
Click here for more information
http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.phpURL_ID=17616&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html
Announcements
North American Diaspora Editorials - Pambazuka News
Pambazuka News (www.pambazuka.org), a weekly electronic social justice newsletter
for Africa, is seeking North American Diaspora editorials. The editorials will be part and
parcel of a new series on Diaspora Africans residing in the U.S. and Canada--essentially a
glimpse into Diaspora concerns as they relate to Africa. With a readership of over 60,000
worldwide, Pambazuka covers the gamut of issues, from human rights to development,
women's rights to refugee rights, conflict and emergencies to science and technology. If
you are interested in submitting Diaspora editorials, please contact Robtel Neajai Pailey
(rpailey@yahoo.com) for submission guidelines.
Sundays - Africa Meets Africa – WPFW 89.3
Tune in on Sundays at 9:00pm to 89.3 FM WPFW or listen on the Internet at
www.wpfw.org.
"Africa Meets Africa" is a progressive hour long, weekly radio magazine that showcases
the diversity and resources of the continent of Africa and its Diaspora.
We would love to air commentaries from African students and others. We welcome your
show ideas!!! Visit www.africameetsafrica.com