MSU Tuesday Bulletin, 03/14/06
Issue No. 9 Spring 2006
March 14, 2006
Weekly News from the AFRICAN STUDIES CENTER
MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY 100 INTERNATIONAL CENTER
EAST LANSING MI 48824-1035
For back issues, see archive <http://africa.msu.edu>
BULLETIN CONTENTS
EVENTS
MSU ANNOUNCEMENTS
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
CONFERENCES
FELLOWSHIPS
EVENTS
March 15, Wednesday
"Hausa Table," every Wednesday brown bag luncheon with Dr. Ibro Chekaraou.
Hausa-phones in the
Lansing/East Lansing area meet to practice their Hausa in order to maintain or improve
their oral skills in
the language, 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.
March 15, Wednesday
"Meza ya Kiswahili" (Swahili table) every Wednesday in the Crossroads Food Court, 12:30
- 1:30. For
information, contact Professor Deo Ngonyani, e-mail: ngonyani@msu.edu or call 353-4051.
March 15, Wednesday
"Defiance and Liberation: The People's Power and the People's Rights." Peace and
Justice lecture with
Jack DuVall, President and founding director of the International Center on Non-violent
Conflict and the
executive producer of the PBS series, A Force More Powerful. The talk is at 7:30 p.m. in
room 118,
Psychology Building (formerly the Physics & Astronomy Bldg.).
March 16, Thursday
"Reflections on the Struggle of Democracy under the South African Apartheid Government"
African
Studies Center Brown Bag talk with Dr. Renfrew Christie, Dept. of History and Dean of
Research (U. of
Western Cape), 12:00 noon, Room 201 International Center.
March 17-18, Friday - Saturday
- Islam and Gender
- Social Change and Cultural Diversity in Muslim Communities
conference to be held
at MSU. Check-in is at 8:30 a.m., Friday in Room 303 of the International Center.
Visit
http://www.soc.msu.edu/islam&genderconference/index.htm for additional information.
March 23, Thursday
"From Prisoner to Parliament and Beyond in South Africa," African Studies Center Brown
Bag with the
Honorable Ahmed Kathrada, Parliamentarian (South Africa), 12:00 noon, Room 201
International
Center.
March 24-25, Friday - Saturday
- No Place to Hide
- Student Activism and the Fight Against the Global AIDS
Pandemic conference will be
held on the second floor of the MSU Union, Friday, 1:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. and Saturday,
9:30 a.m. - 5:00
p.m. Register by going to http://www.mrule.msu.edu.
MSU ANNOUNCEMENTS
East Lansing Film Festival, March 22-30, 2006
Following are Africa-related films to be shown at Wells
Hall on the MSU campus:
The Boys of Baraka (84min) - Fri. 3/24 - 7:00 p.m.,
Hitchcock D.
Yesterday (96 min) - Sat. 3/25 - 1:00 p.m., Capra B.
For more information about the East Lansing Film
Festival, contact Shannon at:(517) 336-5802; e-mail:
shannon@elff.com or visit: http://www.elff.com.
Muslim Studies Specialization
There are more than 1.5 billion Muslims around the
world, the vast majority living outside the Middle East.
The largest Muslim communities are in Asia and Africa,
with significant and growing diasporas in Europe and
the United States. The Muslim Studies Specialization at
MSU seeks to explore the diversity of these Muslim
communities. It encourages students to acquire a solid
background in the history, religion, and culture of
Muslim peoples in general, while exploring in depth
particular Muslim communities in Asia, Africa, the
Middle East, Europe, and the Americas.
The Specialization in Muslim Studies, administered by
James Madison College, is available as an elective to
students who are enrolled in bachelor's degree programs
at MSU. For Specialization requirements contact the
Coordinators of the Muslim Studies Specialization:
Professor Mohammed Ayoob, e-mail: ayoob@msu.edu;
or Associate Dean, Professor Norman Graham, e-mail:
grahamn@msu.edu; 358 S. Case Hall, Michigan State
University, East Lansing, MI 48825; Tel: (517) 353-
6753; Fax: (517) 432-1804.
2005 Awards for Work in or with Africa
Michael Bratton, Afrobarometer project:
- Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation,
$350,000 for Afrobarometer Network Training (at the
University of Cape Town). Awarded August 2005,
active through April 2008;
- World Bank, $253,724 for a module of questions on
Governance and Service Delivery across 16 countries in
Afrobarometer Round 3. Awarded March 2005, active
through February, 2008;
- Donor Democracy and Governance Group ( a
consortium of European development assistance
agencies), $56,020 for a Round 3 Afrobarometer survey
in Uganda. Awarded February 2005, active through
January 2006;
- USAID/Washington, $53,000 for oversampling on
Afrobarometer surveys in six African countries (with
Carolyn Logan). Awarded February 2005, active
through August 2007.
There were four new proposals of which four were
awarded. Total awards for 2005 is $712,744.
Daniel Clay, PEARL project:
- The Maraba Coffee Cooperative in Rwanda won the
prestigious Gothenburg Environmental prize (Sweden)
in 2005. Maraba is the first PEARL supported
cooperative and is where the transformation of
Rwanda's coffee industry started. The cash award was
for $125,000. Though the award did not come to MSU
or the PEARL project, their efforts were an important
contributing factor to the success of the Maraba Coffee
Cooperative receiving it.
Edward Walker, NIH/NIAD Strategic Partnership
NIH/NIAID Strategic Partnership Award
- Insecticide mosaics and sustainability of treated nets.
Research sites are in western Kenya. On-going research
support, awarded September 2003, active through
March 2008;
- NIHNIAHD Anopheles gambiae: microbial mediation
of habitat selection and production. Study sites in
western Kenya. Awarded February 2002, active through
January 2007.
Lilian Kirimi
Received the Miriam J. Kelley Scholarship in 2005 from
the Office of International Students and Scholars.
OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS
Les Ballets Africans, April 14-15, 2006, Detroit, MI
Les Ballets Africains, National Dance Company of the
Republic of Guinea will perform at the Music Hall in
Detroit, Friday, April 14, 2006 and Saturday, April 15,
2006, 350 Madison St., Detroit, MI 48226.
To see details on the dance company, go to:
http://www.lesballetsafricains.com/index.php. For
ticket information, contact the Music Hall at (313) 963-
2366; or http://www.ticketmaster.com/venue/65560.
Summer Intensive Language Studies- Beloit College
Beloit College invites students to apply for first or
second-year Arabic beginning June 10 - August 11,
2006. Partial scholarships are available to students who
are accepted into the program by April 21, 2006.
For information on how to apply, contact: Patricia Zody,
Director, Center for Language Studies, Beloit College,
700 College St., Beloit, WI 53511-5595, USA; Tel:
(608) 363-2277; Fax: (608) 363-7129. Or go to the
website: http://www.summerlanguages.com.
2006 Request for Applications: New IDEAS
(Innovative Development and Engagement Across
Sectors) Partnership Program
Higher Education for Development (HED), in
cooperation with USAID's Bureau for Economic
Growth, Agriculture and Trade, Office of Education, is
issuing the New IDEAS Partnership Program RFA for
U.S. colleges, universities and community colleges,
together with their overseas higher education partners,
to address compelling development issues in USAID
presence countries. Applications may address issues in
any USAID development sector.
The purpose of the RFA is to:(1) Allow U.S. colleges,
universities and community colleges to propose their
own partnership programs that strengthen the capacity of
higher education institutions to address development
issues in any USAID presence country; (2) Allow the
higher education community to demonstrate to USAID
unique or exceptionally innovative approaches and
ideas; and (3) Encourage broader participation by the
higher education community in development activities.
HED anticipates making ten (10) awards of up to
$125,000 each over a three-year period, contingent on
USAID funding. The application deadline is April 25,
2006, 5:00 p.m. EDT. More information, including the
RFA, is available on the HED website:
http://www.aascu.org/ALO/RFPs/newIDEAS/newIDE
AS06.htm
CONFERENCES
African Diaspora Studies & the Disciplines
University of Wisconsin-Madison, March 23-26, 2006
The study of the African diaspora has become a most
vibrant area of research and teaching in recent years
across disciplines. Few efforts have, however, been
made to clearly situate, delineate, and reflect on the
practice of diaspora scholarship within the possibilities
and constraints afforded and imposed by the disciplines.
Interdisciplinary dialogue on the theoretical contours of
the African diaspora is even more rare. In order to begin
filling these significant gaps, the African Diaspora and
the Atlantic World Research Circle at the University of
Wisconsin brings together leading scholars in over a
dozen disciplines for a three-day international
symposium. For detailed information, see
http://africa.wisc.edu/diaspora/ or call (608) 265-9151.
Business Environment from an Islamic Perspective
Univ. of Kansas, April 7-8, 2006
The Kansas African Studies Center extends an invitation
to attend the workshop, "Business Environment from an
Islamic Perspective: A workshop on doing business in
countries where Islam plays a significant role in the
business culture" to be held at the University of Kansas
in Lawrence.
The keynote speaker will be Dr. Sultan Abu Ali,
Professor of Economics at Zagazig University, Egypt.
Sponsors are: the Kansas African Studies Center, the
Center for International Business Education &
Research, the Department of Economics, all of Kansas;
as well as The Islamic Economics Center at Al Azhar
University in Egypt; and Professor Mohamed El-Hodiri
of the University of Kansas.
For workshop information, registration, and the
brochure, please visit the website at:
http://www.kasc.ku.edu/Businesses_Islam_Perspectiv
e_Website_Feb7-06.shtml.
Theorizing the African and Black Diaspora
DePaul University, May 19-20, 2006 - CFP
The Center for Black Diaspora at DePaul University is
organizing the conference, "Theorizing the African and
Black Diaspora: History, Memory and Representation."
The conference provides a venue for a critical
exploration of history and memory and how these ideas
illuminate the movement (geographic, cultural, political
and psychological) of the African/Black Diaspora in the
context of globalized and transnational spaces.
Papers are invited. Selected papers from the conference
will be published in a special issue of African Identities,
(Routledge), and an edited book as an outgrowth of the
conference papers is also planned. An abstract of
approximately 300 words should be sent to the
organizing Committee by March 31, 2006. For more
information, visit the conference website:
http://www.depaul.edu/diaspora.
FELLOWSHIPS
Summer 2006 - SSRC Predissertation Fellowship
The Social Science Research Council Predissertation
Fellowship for International Collaboration (PFIC) is
offering new predissertation funding for three-month
immersion at the intended fieldwork site abroad.
Awards are for up to $7000 to be used this summer. The
deadline is March 31, 2006 and must include a letter
from the scholar-supervisor abroad. For details see:
http://www.ssrc.org/fellowships/PFIC/.
UNESCO Fellowships Program (2006-2007)
The UNESCO fellowships program, in support of
priority programme areas, are of short term duration,
from one to six months for completion between
September 1 2006 and December 31 2007, and are
intended for specialized training at the 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 are: 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, upgrade skills, or
attend specialized or refresher courses. Priority attention
will be given to women, and those from the Least
Developed Countries (LDCs). 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 USD $15,000 to cover,
either partially or fully, expenses related to the study
program. Should the proposed study program need
additional funds, other sources must be sought. The
application deadline is April 30, 2006. For further
details, contact, Chief, Fellowships Section, UNESCO,
7, place de Fontenoy, Paris 07 SP, 75352, France; Tel:
+33 (0) 1 45 68 13 13; Fax: +33 (0) 1 45 68 55 02/03; e-
mail: fellowships@unesco.org; website:
http://www.comminit.com/funding2006/fellowships20
06/awards-1336.html.
Page Editor: Ali B. Ali-Dinar, Ph.D.