Periodic Reporting for period 1 - SLAFNET (Slavery in Africa: a dialogue between Europe and Africa)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2017-06-01 al 2019-05-31
SLAFNET, Slavery in Africa: a dialogue between Europe and Africa
Consortium:
IRD - Coordinator (France),CNRS (France), Université de Nantes (France), Bath Spa University (UK) The University of Birmingham (UK), Faculdade de letras da Universidade de Lisboa (Portugal), Universitaet Hamburg (Germany)
Catholic University of Eastern Africa (Kenya) ; National Musuems of Kenya (Kenya), University of Mauritius (Mauritius), University of Yaounde (Cameroon), Addis Ababa University (Ethiopia), Université Cheich Anta-Diop (Senegal)
The overall objective of the project is to establish a top-level scientific network of several institutions and research groups from Europe and Africa on the field of slavery studies. It aims at focusing mutual efforts of 13 research groups with extended and complementary competences in their respective research fields and at gathering multidisciplinary expertise in slavery-related issues by encouraging the exchange of young and senior researchers from both continents.
Our aim is to conduct research on both historical and contemporary slavery and forced labour and to emphasize its international dimension. One of the main goals of this project is to bridge disciplinary and regional area studies or initiatives, to encourage dialogue and to engage in collaborative research. It involves African and European researchers from various disciplines from different parts of the world with complementary skills. That will enrich the analysis of the underlying local situations and address the impact of slavery and slave trade on population histories in Europe and Africa.
This project is composed of three components (training, research, diffusion) and has the followinge main objectives:
-Promote and support scientific and technological cooperation between African and European researchers working in research institutions and universities
-Develop new collaborative linkages that will result in innovative ideas
-Encourage exchanges and synergy between researchers, by supporting mobilities and establishing a sustainable network within and outside academia
-Support junior researchers to succeed in building capacity and improving performance
Consortium:
IRD - Coordinator (France),CNRS (France), Université de Nantes (France), Bath Spa University (UK) The University of Birmingham (UK), Faculdade de letras da Universidade de Lisboa (Portugal), Universitaet Hamburg (Germany)
Catholic University of Eastern Africa (Kenya) ; National Musuems of Kenya (Kenya), University of Mauritius (Mauritius), University of Yaounde (Cameroon), Addis Ababa University (Ethiopia), Université Cheich Anta-Diop (Senegal)
The overall objective of the project is to establish a top-level scientific network of several institutions and research groups from Europe and Africa on the field of slavery studies. It aims at focusing mutual efforts of 13 research groups with extended and complementary competences in their respective research fields and at gathering multidisciplinary expertise in slavery-related issues by encouraging the exchange of young and senior researchers from both continents.
Our aim is to conduct research on both historical and contemporary slavery and forced labour and to emphasize its international dimension. One of the main goals of this project is to bridge disciplinary and regional area studies or initiatives, to encourage dialogue and to engage in collaborative research. It involves African and European researchers from various disciplines from different parts of the world with complementary skills. That will enrich the analysis of the underlying local situations and address the impact of slavery and slave trade on population histories in Europe and Africa.
This project is composed of three components (training, research, diffusion) and has the followinge main objectives:
-Promote and support scientific and technological cooperation between African and European researchers working in research institutions and universities
-Develop new collaborative linkages that will result in innovative ideas
-Encourage exchanges and synergy between researchers, by supporting mobilities and establishing a sustainable network within and outside academia
-Support junior researchers to succeed in building capacity and improving performance
During their mobility, African and European researchers have actively participated in classes and seminars
Several activities realised in EU & Afr. provided benefits and skills in terms of professional academic and technical training as well as scientific networking. These events were widely disseminate outside the academic wolrd and allowed interaction with local museums, civil society organizations & Anti-slavery associations. SLAFNET attaches great importance to cross-sectoral trade.
Summer school and training:
“Sources and Research methods in History of Africa” – BathSpa
Advanced Training Course for SLAFNET Network – UoB
1st Summer School - UoM & UoB
Training sessions to present corpus of Portuguese sources and various archival centres – FLUL
Training session “Circulations between Europe and Senegambia” – UCAD
Methodological Workshop - UHam
Methodological workshop “Mirroring Senegambia, the Americas and Europe, 15th-21st centuries: Race, Colour, Lineage and Slavery”
2nd Summer School "Teaching Slavery in East African societies: Slavery and the Slave Trade in Ethiopia and Beyond” – AAU
Capacity building:
Contribution of scholars and scientists to teaching programmes during their mobility (in EU & Afr.)
Exchange of technical staff
Technical Training Workshop - Inventory on material on Slavery – Greenstone, UoM
Training in software and databases management, UNan
Networking activities:
International seminar ‘Researching Slavery in Africa’ UoB
Summer Institute and International conference in Mauritius, UoM
Summer School “What does Slavery Mean (XV-XXI Century)” – UNan
« Slavery Routes » Documentary Screening & Debate » - UCAD & AAU
Conference « L’esclavage dans l’espace sahélo-saharien: mutations, persistances et perspectives »
“Memory of origins, places and life-stories: cross-cutting approaches in the humanities and social sciences
Several activities realised in EU & Afr. provided benefits and skills in terms of professional academic and technical training as well as scientific networking. These events were widely disseminate outside the academic wolrd and allowed interaction with local museums, civil society organizations & Anti-slavery associations. SLAFNET attaches great importance to cross-sectoral trade.
Summer school and training:
“Sources and Research methods in History of Africa” – BathSpa
Advanced Training Course for SLAFNET Network – UoB
1st Summer School - UoM & UoB
Training sessions to present corpus of Portuguese sources and various archival centres – FLUL
Training session “Circulations between Europe and Senegambia” – UCAD
Methodological Workshop - UHam
Methodological workshop “Mirroring Senegambia, the Americas and Europe, 15th-21st centuries: Race, Colour, Lineage and Slavery”
2nd Summer School "Teaching Slavery in East African societies: Slavery and the Slave Trade in Ethiopia and Beyond” – AAU
Capacity building:
Contribution of scholars and scientists to teaching programmes during their mobility (in EU & Afr.)
Exchange of technical staff
Technical Training Workshop - Inventory on material on Slavery – Greenstone, UoM
Training in software and databases management, UNan
Networking activities:
International seminar ‘Researching Slavery in Africa’ UoB
Summer Institute and International conference in Mauritius, UoM
Summer School “What does Slavery Mean (XV-XXI Century)” – UNan
« Slavery Routes » Documentary Screening & Debate » - UCAD & AAU
Conference « L’esclavage dans l’espace sahélo-saharien: mutations, persistances et perspectives »
“Memory of origins, places and life-stories: cross-cutting approaches in the humanities and social sciences
SLAFNET will represent a landmark intellectual and social achievement and a future model for successful collaborative projects. Research is progressing through the development of field, training and networking activities
The development of teaching modules on slavery in Africa has the potential to impact national curricula, and to transform the way we look at enslaved people, their descendants, and structures of domination.
Expected impacts & results:
-Increase scientific contribution to African slavery studies by exploring the compared histories of transition from slavery to post-slavery across African regions and acknowledging the political significance of these transformations
-Improve dialogue and exchanges between researchers, activists, politicians, and civil society.
-Bring together specialists of slavery in Eastern and Western Africa; Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions; and Francophone, Anglophone and Lusophone countries and historiographies
-Boost dialogue and exchanges between ESR & ER (17 ESR started or are finalizing their PhDs) - PhD are jointly supervised and trained by the ER team members
-Improve dissemination of results to non-specialist
The project encourages ESR to develop their professional, social and intercultural skills to increase their employability. SLAFNET pays particular attention to gender equality. The leadership of the WP have been distributed according to regions and gender.
The dissemination of results, analysis and exchanges developed within SLAFNET benefit from various types of publications; books, articles and edited volumes that will be submitted to peer-reviewed journals and renowned book collections. The accessibility of some sources (WP4) will allow other colleagues and institutions to benefit from the work produced by SLAFNET. Maps, dictionary, exhibition and documentary films on preparation will provide innovative knowledge and representations of slavery, as well as tools for use by various national and local stakeholders.
A wide impact is expected ; public presentations and discussions about slavery, social status and human rights contribute to raising social awareness and foster solidarity.
Thanks to the inter-sectoral trade, SLAFNET contributes to formulate new perspectives in policy development related to the preservation, management and social benefit of heritage sites, which represent human and economic potential to be developed.
About sixty ER, ESR ans Staff compose the SLAFNET network. The training of a new generation of European and African scholars, and the career development of the ER involved in SLAFNET will be one of the strongest assets insuring the sustainability of this collaborative work after the completion of the project.The publications, proceedings, reports and other deliverables will be innovative background through which team members will be able to conceptualise and develop new research and innovation programs. Members and participating institutions will represent major references on Slavery Studies in Africa and in Europe.
One of the major concerns of the SLAFNET coordinator, is the sustainability of the network and the perpetuation of the actions initiated during the project. A fund has been allocated by a French Research Institute (CNRS) to promote the work done since 2017, increase the existing collaboration and develop new topics around the issues of race and memory.
The development of teaching modules on slavery in Africa has the potential to impact national curricula, and to transform the way we look at enslaved people, their descendants, and structures of domination.
Expected impacts & results:
-Increase scientific contribution to African slavery studies by exploring the compared histories of transition from slavery to post-slavery across African regions and acknowledging the political significance of these transformations
-Improve dialogue and exchanges between researchers, activists, politicians, and civil society.
-Bring together specialists of slavery in Eastern and Western Africa; Atlantic and Indian Ocean regions; and Francophone, Anglophone and Lusophone countries and historiographies
-Boost dialogue and exchanges between ESR & ER (17 ESR started or are finalizing their PhDs) - PhD are jointly supervised and trained by the ER team members
-Improve dissemination of results to non-specialist
The project encourages ESR to develop their professional, social and intercultural skills to increase their employability. SLAFNET pays particular attention to gender equality. The leadership of the WP have been distributed according to regions and gender.
The dissemination of results, analysis and exchanges developed within SLAFNET benefit from various types of publications; books, articles and edited volumes that will be submitted to peer-reviewed journals and renowned book collections. The accessibility of some sources (WP4) will allow other colleagues and institutions to benefit from the work produced by SLAFNET. Maps, dictionary, exhibition and documentary films on preparation will provide innovative knowledge and representations of slavery, as well as tools for use by various national and local stakeholders.
A wide impact is expected ; public presentations and discussions about slavery, social status and human rights contribute to raising social awareness and foster solidarity.
Thanks to the inter-sectoral trade, SLAFNET contributes to formulate new perspectives in policy development related to the preservation, management and social benefit of heritage sites, which represent human and economic potential to be developed.
About sixty ER, ESR ans Staff compose the SLAFNET network. The training of a new generation of European and African scholars, and the career development of the ER involved in SLAFNET will be one of the strongest assets insuring the sustainability of this collaborative work after the completion of the project.The publications, proceedings, reports and other deliverables will be innovative background through which team members will be able to conceptualise and develop new research and innovation programs. Members and participating institutions will represent major references on Slavery Studies in Africa and in Europe.
One of the major concerns of the SLAFNET coordinator, is the sustainability of the network and the perpetuation of the actions initiated during the project. A fund has been allocated by a French Research Institute (CNRS) to promote the work done since 2017, increase the existing collaboration and develop new topics around the issues of race and memory.