MSU Tuesday Bulletin, 04/03/07
The African Studies Center at MSU
Tuesday Bulletin for April 3rd, 2007
Topics covered in this issue: Events | Announcements | Other Announcements | Jobs
Events
National [Senegal] Fund of Youth Promotion
Thursday, April 19, 2007
African Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Maimouna Kebe, Hubert H. Humphrey Fellow
(Senegal), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.
Film- Camp de Thiaroye
Friday, April 6, 2007
This is an Award-winning drama that explores the Politics of Language, War, and Empire,
by Sembene Ousmane. Sponsored by the African American and African Studies Dept., 7:00
p.m., Room 206 Old Horticulture Bldg.
(The film will also be shown on Saturday, April 7th at 5:00 p.m., Lansing Community
College (LCC), Room 170 Arts & Science! Bldg.
Farm Workers, Farm Dwellers, Farm Owners and Restitution Communities: The Complexities of
Land Reform
Thursday, April 26, 2007
African Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Bill Derman, Faculty (Anthropology, MSU),
12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.
Local and Regional Food Aid Procurement: Assessment of Experience in Africa and Elements
of Good Donor Practice
Thursday, April 12, 2007
African Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Dave Tschirley, Faculty (Agricultural
Economics, MSU), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.
South Africa's Agriculture Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (Agribee) Policy:
Implications from a Domestic Content Model
Thursday, April 5, 2007
African Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Kudzai Mukumbi, Graduate Student (Agricultu!
ral Economics, MSU), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center! .
Announcements
The Gangbe? Brass Band at the Wharton Center
The Gangbe' Brass Band will perform at the MSU Wharton Center, Thursday, April 12,
2007; 7:30 p.m., in the Pasant Theatre. For ticket information, please contact the Wharton
Center at (517) 432-2000 or 1-800-WHARTON; or http://www.whartoncenter.com.This 10-member
brass band from the West African nation of Benin combines ancient Yoruba songs with jazz
and Afro-pop. The Gange' Brass Band, whose name means "the sound of metal," was created in
1994 when eight musicians from Cotonou-Benin came together to promote the originality of
the music of Benin (located between Nigeria and Togo). There will be a PreView lecture in
the Festival Lobby 45 minutes before the show begins. PreView lectures are free, half-hour
discussions presented by industry experts that provide unique insight into the
performance.
Faculty A! nnouncements
Harm de Blij, John A. Hannah Professor of Geography has published two new editions of
text books and a new book, "Survey of Sub Saharan Africa" with Oxford Press and edited the
Oxford Atlas of North America.
Chris Duvall, MSU Faculty in the Department of Geography and MSU Core Faculty member
completed his dissertation at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, on the spatial and
ecological relationships between human settlement practices, vegetation composition, and
chimpanzee distribution in southwestern Mali.
Leo Zulu, MSU Faculty in the Department of Geography and MSU Core Faculty member is a
human geographer coming to MSU as an Africanist via the University of Edinburgh
(Scotland), then to Clark University (Worcester, MA), and finally the University of
Illinois-Urbana-Champaign before coming to MSU. Before coming into academe, he had
considerable professional experience in social f! orestry management and planning and
international coordination! of fore stry and biodiversity management in the southern
African region, with an operational base in Malawi.
2007 Compton Africa Peace Fellowships-Extended Deadline April 13, 2007 and September 15,
2007
Michigan State University's African Studies Center (ASC) and Women and International
Development (WID) Program are offering Compton Africa Peace Fellowships to graduate
students from Sub-Saharan Africa to support their dissertation field research in Africa.
This program is an element of the MSU African Higher Education Partnerships Initiative
(AHEPI). These dissertation fellowship awards are made possible by a grant from the
Compton Foundation through its Peace Fellowship Program for addressing peace, conflict
resolution, and security in Africa.
For Information on eligible research topics, eligibility requirements, and application forms please visit: http://africa.msu.edu/compton.php. Completed application forms must ! be submitted by mail and e-mail to: MSU-Compton Fellowship Committee, c/o David Wiley, African Studies Center, 100 International Center, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan 48824-1035; Tel: 517-353-1700; Fax: 517-432-1209; e-mail: wiley@msu.edu. The application deadline is April 13, 2007 (MSU African Students) and September 15, 2007 (Students from Africa).
Afrobarometer Conference at MSU, May 12-13, 2007
On behalf of the Afrobarometer Network, the Department of Political Science and the
African Studies Center at Michigan State University are pleased to host a conference on
the Micro-Foundations of Mass Politics in Africa.
To date, scholars of African politics have concentrated principally on the deeds -- and
misdeeds of political elites. Studies of mass participation have been largely
limited to local cases and have been hampered by a lack of sys! tematic data on public
values, attitudes and behavior. The adv! ent of t he Afrobarometer, now comprising three
rounds of national probability sample surveys in up to 18 African countries, 1999-2006,
offers unique opportunities to delve into the foundations of individual political
action.
The conference will feature 20 original research papers by leading and emergent scholars from Africa, Europe and the United States. The themes of the papers include electoral participation, ethnic identity, economic well-being, social capital, and democratic citizenship. All papers draw evidence from Afrobarometer public opinion data. An edited volume is planned. Conference papers will be available at http://www.polisci.msu.edu/about/2007microMPA.htm by April 15, 2007.
Summer Course Announcement
Graduate Seminar available on the Internet
RD876, International Rural Development, is a 3 credit graduate seminar available every semester on the MSU ANGEL Program. The course! simulates a small group of students sitting around a table with the professor, who has years of hands-on experience designing and implementing many development programs and projects in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. For more information see the preview at: https://angel.msu.edu or e-mail Professor George H. Axinn at axinn@msu.edu.
Other Announcements
Call For Submissions
Ghanaian Women and National Development
As part of the celebration of Ghanaian women and their contributions to national
development during the past 50 years, the Gender Programmes Unit (GPU) of the University
for Development Studies (UDS) in collaboration with the Ghana Journal of Development
Studies (GJDS) is putting together a special issue on Ghanaian women in National
Development.
The coordinator of the GPU and Editorial Chair of GADS, extends an invitation for participation in the form of! paper or artistic/aesthetic contributions to the special issu! e.Women tend to express themselves in a variety of ways. As such, the hope is that this special issue will capture and reflect that variety. Hence, submissions in the form of articles, poems, reviews, biographies, songs, etc are encouraged. Unfortunately, audio-visual submissions cannot be submitted at this time. Articles may cover areas such as economics, politics, health, education, agriculture, culture, religion, community development, ICT, women's organizing and leadership, and related social issues such as poverty, violence, human rights, migration, etc. Papers that deal with policy, programmes, projects, and practices are encouraged. The main requirement is a link to national development during the last fifty years. The deadline for submission is June 30, 2007. A slightly modified standard guide for paper contributions to the GADS can be accessed at http://www.wid.msu.edu/Documents/GJDS_Notes_to_Contributors.pdf. Those interested in paper submissions may! find it useful.
Coffeehouse and Cultural Celebration- Haslett, MI
On Saturday, May 5, 2007 from 3:00 to 5:00 p.m., Haslett Community Church (HCC) will
host the third annual Coffeehouse and Cultural Celebration to continue support for
Association Mwana Ukundwa (Beloved Child) in Rwanda. Under the leadership of Rose
Gakwandi, AMU provides food, clothing, housing, and education for approximately 2,000
children who lost their parents in the 1994 genocide in Rwanda or to AIDS.
This year HCC is especially pleased to welcome Rose Gakwandi to Michigan. Her last
visit was in 2003. The coffeehouse will feature music and dance by local artists and
performers, as well as the now-famous buffet of homemade desserts and gourmet Rwandan
coffee. There is no admission charge, but donations are appreciated, and receipts will be
given for tax purposes. In addition, there will be Rwandan! handcrafted items for sale to
benefit AMU. All proceeds will ! go to AM U for their work in Rwanda. Since 2001, HCC
together with a number of other mid-Michigan churches have raised more than $28,000 for
the children of AMU. These funds provide the immediate necessities of life, plus education
and vocational training. AMU has purchased land and started construction of a community
center that will also serve as a school building. On May 5th, join the fun and meet Rose,
as we celebrate this opportunity to change lives -- including our own! Haslett Community
Church (HCC) is located at 1427 Haslett Rd, Haslett, MI 48840 (½ mile east of Marsh
Road).
Jobs
Visiting Faculty/Lecturer in Swahili - Princeton Univ.
The Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies and the Program in
African Studies at Princeton University invites applications for a half-time visiting
faculty/lecturer language position in Swahili for the 20078 academic year. The
instructor will be! appointed in the Department of Comparative Literature and will be
expected to teach the following three courses plus advising.
Fall 2007:
- Introduction to literature and literary criticism in Kiswahili
- Swahili Novel
Spring 2008:
- Swahili Drama
The courses focus on introducing undergraduate students who have studied elementary and
intermediate Swahili to the basic vocabulary/concepts and aspects of theory, criticism,
and reading of authentic texts in all genres of literature in Kiswahili language.
Applicants must have proven qualifications and experience in teaching and scholarship in
Kiswahili literature or a related area. Salary will be determined by qualifications and
experience - Ph.D. preferred. This is a one year, half time teaching position.
The application deadline is Apr! il 30, 2007. Applications must include: (1) a letter ! of appli cation, (2) a current curriculum vita, (3) teaching evaluations, (4) sample syllabi for at least one of the courses above, and (5) three letters of recommendation, and be sent to: Visiting Faculty/Lecturer in Swahili, Program in African Studies, Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies, 334 Aaron Burr Hall, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544. Applications may also be sent via fax: 609-258-3988 or e-mail to piirs@princeton.edu. For information about applying to Princeton, see: https://web.princeton.edu/sites/dof/ApplicantsInfo.htm.
For more information, visit the African Studies Center Website. Please submit information on Africa-related events or news seven to ten days in advance of publication. Send to the African Studies Center, 100 Center for International Programs, Michigan State University. Telephone: (517) 353-1700; Fax: (517) 432-1209; E-mail: africa@msu.edu.
Page Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar, Ph.D.