Ubuntu Dialogues Gathering 2023

We took the time to Pause, Participate, and Practice at the Ubuntu Dialogues Gathering. The Gathering commenced in East Lansing on 25 September and wrapped up on 29 September. We connected as students, scholars, practitioners, artists, activists, funders, and community and university leaders focused on centering collective rather than individual genius and grounding the concept/theory of Ubuntu in practice. 

We celebrated the outputs of the Ubuntu Dialogues project over the past four years and envisioned the intellectual and relational possibilities of our shared commitment to Ubuntu in both academic and public domains of our lives and work.

Our time together was structured as a communal Gathering of dialogue and shared enrichment rather than as a plenary-style Conference spotlighting individual expertise or featuring individual presentations. We spent one full day learning from and with off-campus Ubuntu practitioner communities such as the Ubuntu Village in Flint, the Ziibiwing Center of Anishinabe Culture & Lifeways in Mt Pleasant, the James and Grace Lee Boggs Center and the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, and the Justice League, in Lansing. 

We combined intellectually stimulating learning with relationally enriching networking opportunities that emerged from robust interdisciplinary, intergenerational, and transcontinental dialogues and engagements. 

Despite our limited time together, we're delighted that many have joined in advancing the African philosophy of Ubuntu, both in theory and practice to tackle complex societal problems. We eagerly anticipate continued collaboration in the next phase of our journey. 

We'd like to express our gratitude to senior MSU leadership, starting with Interim President Teressa Woodruff, whose opening speech served as an inspiration for the Gathering. Our appreciation extends to Interim Provost and Executive Vice President Jeitschko, as well as deans and heads of campus units, along with the entire MSU community for their support and attendance at Gathering events. We're also thankful for the participation of senior leaders from partner universities, including Stellenbosch, as well as community partners and all the participants, volunteers, and organizers who collectively contributed to the success of the Gathering. 

Nigeria's Un-Civil War Book Premiere Event
Today, October 24th, 2023

Michigan State University (MSU) Departments of Computer Science, Engineering and RS&GIS are looking for volunteers to participate in a research study titled, Physics-driven Modeling and Learning for Person ecognition at a Distance and Altitude. The objective of this research is to design, implement and evaluate a software system for face, whole-body and gait biometric recognition. Participants will receive a $50 prepaid visa card for a single session. See the flyer for more information 

OISS Coffee Hour
Every Friday, 4-6pm EST
Spartan Rooms B&C International Center

Join the Office for International Students and Scholars for Coffee Hour, a free event where students, staff, faculty, and community members gather to connect over coffee each week. Different hosts offer educational programs, information on how to get involved on campus, and fun activities that change throughout the year.  

We are looking for one early career researcher on alternative local food systems, focusing on local groups based in Tanzania. The research project will be based at the University of Padua, Dept. of Historical and Geographic Sciences and the Ancient World, and will be part of a larger project led by the University of Turin, Dept. of Cultures, Politics and Society

To develop locally conceived strategies to food security, the research project looks beyond standard discourses that emphasize efficiency and technological transfer. This is accomplished by discovering social innovations based on relational, unstructured, ecological and cultural approaches to food distribution and production, supported by grassroots groups and global movements of producers and consumers.

We are looking for researchers with prior experience in East Africa as the project will involve considerable fieldwork in Tanzania. Familiarity in participatory methods potentially including photo-voice and community mapping, is also required. The preferred applicants will have a PhD in human geography or a related field, or similar research experience.

The public selection process will begin in November 2023, but we are already collecting interest declarations. The project will take 24 months commencing in the first quarter of 2024.

If you are interested, please send a CV to Chiara Rabbiosi (chiara.rabbiosi@unipd.it) and Paola Minoia (paola.minoia@unito.it).