The Africa Institute, Global Studies University (GSU) in Sharjah, UAE, successfully concluded its symposium, Intertwined Ecologies and Interconnected Histories: The Indian Ocean Rim, from December 6–8, 2024. This event marked the finale of Thinking the Archipelago: Africa’s Indian Ocean Islands series, an initiative exploring the ecological, cultural, and economic connections across the Indian Ocean rim.
This symposium builds on the first three renditions as part of this multi-series conference program themed, Thinking the Archipelago: Africa’s Indian Ocean Islands. The first symposium titled, Reimagining Mobilities/Immobilities in the Indian Ocean (December,15-17 2022); Legacies of Race and Slavery In the Atlantic and Indian Oceans (June 12-14, 2023) and Colorful Threads: The Interwoven Worlds of Art and Culture in the Western Indian Ocean (December 14-16, 2023). Esteemed scholars convening the Country-focused Season’s four symposiums include Jeremy Prestholdt, Professor of History at the University of California, San Diego; Rogaia Mustafa Abusharaf, Professor of Anthropology at Georgetown University in Qatar; and Uday Chandra, Assistant Professor of Government at Georgetown University in Qatar.
Supported by the Social Science Research Council’s (SSRC) Transregional Collaboratory on the Indian Ocean, the symposium brought together an international cohort of over 15 scholars, policymakers, and climate activists to address critical challenges such as climate resilience, environmental adaptation, and socio-economic change in the Indian Ocean’s coastal communities.
“The Country-focused Season is a cornerstone of The Africa Institute’s mission to explore Africa’s complex history and engage with contemporary issues that impact its diverse regions. This year marks the third edition of Thinking the Archipelago: Africa’s Indian Ocean Islands, which began in December 2022. Over the past two years, The Africa Institute has hosted four symposia in Sharjah and Zanzibar, bringing together leading scholars, activists, artists, and community members in deep and thought-provoking discussions about the region’s critical role in shaping both Africa and global narratives,” said Distinguished Professor Salah M. Hassan, Chancellor of Global Studies University and Dean of The Africa Institute (GSU) in his welcoming remarks.
He also added that as part of this season, we have examined and reimagined themes such as circulation, mobility, race and slavery, ecological change, and cultural production through the lens of Africa’s islands. “As we gather for the final part of this series, Intertwined Ecologies, and Interconnected Histories: The Indian Ocean Rim, we are reminded of the urgency to consider both the historical and contemporary significance of this region in the face of pressing ecological and climate challenges.”
The symposium featured a keynote address by Isabel Hofmeyr, Professor Emeritus at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, titled Intertwined Ecologies and Biotic Borders: Plants, Politics, and Print in the Indian Ocean World. Following this, panels covered a range of topics, including the adaptation strategies of coastal communities to climate change, the impact of human-marine interactions on cultural exchanges, and sustainable practices in heritage conservation and environmental planning. Panelists included artists, scholars, musicians, activists, and architects from countries such as the USA, Canada, Denmark, Qatar, India, Mozambique, Tanzania, and the UAE. The symposium also included an excursion to the Khor Kalba Mangrove Center in Sharjah, where participants explored the UAE’s oldest mangrove forest, emphasizing the event’s focus on environmental conservation and sustainable development.
A complementary outcome of the Country-focused Season is Monsoon, an interdisciplinary journal published by The Africa Institute in collaboration with Duke University Press. The latest issue, themed Slavery and its Legacies in the Indian Ocean, was launched during the symposium, continuing its efforts to elevate scholarship on the region’s interconnected ecologies and histories.
Reflecting on the series, co-convenor Professor Jeremy Prestholdt in his opening remarks, emphasized the multidisciplinary approach of this country-focused season and the Monsoon journal in raising the profile of Indian Ocean studies. He said, “This series has highlighted the Indian Ocean rim as a uniquely valuable frame through which to interpret global past and present as well as to imagine our collective futures. Africa holds a central place in this matrix of connectivity, underscoring its profound historical, cultural, economic, and geopolitical significance.”
The symposium’s success underscores The Africa Institute’s role as a global hub for intellectual engagement and its commitment to fostering innovative, collaborative research on African studies.
Admissions for the Fall 2025 intake of the Master of Arts in Global African Studies program opened on December 8, 2024. This accredited, two-year interdisciplinary program offers specialization tracks in Museum and Critical Heritage Studies, Diplomacy and Africa’s International Relations, and Afro-Arab Relations.
Full scholarships are available for eligible students. For more information, visit our section on Academic Programs or email admissions@theafricainstitute.org.
The Africa Institute, Global Studies University (GSU) in Sharjah, UAE, successfully concluded its symposium, Intertwined Ecologies and Interconnected Histories: The Indian Ocean Rim, from December 6–8, 2024. This event marked the finale of Thinking the Archipelago: Africa’s Indian Ocean Islands series, an initiative exploring the ecological, cultural, and economic connections across the Indian Ocean rim.
The Africa Institute, Global Studies University (GSU) in Sharjah, UAE, successfully concluded its symposium, Intertwined Ecologies and Interconnected Histories: The Indian Ocean Rim, from December 6–8, 2024. This event marked the finale of Thinking the Archipelago: Africa’s Indian Ocean Islands series, an initiative exploring the ecological, cultural, and economic connections across the Indian Ocean rim.
This symposium builds on the first three renditions as part of this multi-series conference program themed, Thinking the Archipelago: Africa’s Indian Ocean Islands. The first symposium titled, Reimagining Mobilities/Immobilities in the Indian Ocean (December,15-17 2022); Legacies of Race and Slavery In the Atlantic and Indian Oceans (June 12-14, 2023) and Colorful Threads: The Interwoven Worlds of Art and Culture in the Western Indian Ocean (December 14-16, 2023). Esteemed scholars convening the Country-focused Season’s four symposiums include Jeremy Prestholdt, Professor of History at the University of California, San Diego; Rogaia Mustafa Abusharaf, Professor of Anthropology at Georgetown University in Qatar; and Uday Chandra, Assistant Professor of Government at Georgetown University in Qatar.
Supported by the Social Science Research Council’s (SSRC) Transregional Collaboratory on the Indian Ocean, the symposium brought together an international cohort of over 15 scholars, policymakers, and climate activists to address critical challenges such as climate resilience, environmental adaptation, and socio-economic change in the Indian Ocean’s coastal communities.
“The Country-focused Season is a cornerstone of The Africa Institute’s mission to explore Africa’s complex history and engage with contemporary issues that impact its diverse regions. This year marks the third edition of Thinking the Archipelago: Africa’s Indian Ocean Islands, which began in December 2022. Over the past two years, The Africa Institute has hosted four symposia in Sharjah and Zanzibar, bringing together leading scholars, activists, artists, and community members in deep and thought-provoking discussions about the region’s critical role in shaping both Africa and global narratives,” said Distinguished Professor Salah M. Hassan, Chancellor of Global Studies University and Dean of The Africa Institute (GSU) in his welcoming remarks.
He also added that as part of this season, we have examined and reimagined themes such as circulation, mobility, race and slavery, ecological change, and cultural production through the lens of Africa’s islands. “As we gather for the final part of this series, Intertwined Ecologies, and Interconnected Histories: The Indian Ocean Rim, we are reminded of the urgency to consider both the historical and contemporary significance of this region in the face of pressing ecological and climate challenges.”
The symposium featured a keynote address by Isabel Hofmeyr, Professor Emeritus at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, titled Intertwined Ecologies and Biotic Borders: Plants, Politics, and Print in the Indian Ocean World. Following this, panels covered a range of topics, including the adaptation strategies of coastal communities to climate change, the impact of human-marine interactions on cultural exchanges, and sustainable practices in heritage conservation and environmental planning. Panelists included artists, scholars, musicians, activists, and architects from countries such as the USA, Canada, Denmark, Qatar, India, Mozambique, Tanzania, and the UAE. The symposium also included an excursion to the Khor Kalba Mangrove Center in Sharjah, where participants explored the UAE’s oldest mangrove forest, emphasizing the event’s focus on environmental conservation and sustainable development.
A complementary outcome of the Country-focused Season is Monsoon, an interdisciplinary journal published by The Africa Institute in collaboration with Duke University Press. The latest issue, themed Slavery and its Legacies in the Indian Ocean, was launched during the symposium, continuing its efforts to elevate scholarship on the region’s interconnected ecologies and histories.
Reflecting on the series, co-convenor Professor Jeremy Prestholdt in his opening remarks, emphasized the multidisciplinary approach of this country-focused season and the Monsoon journal in raising the profile of Indian Ocean studies. He said, “This series has highlighted the Indian Ocean rim as a uniquely valuable frame through which to interpret global past and present as well as to imagine our collective futures. Africa holds a central place in this matrix of connectivity, underscoring its profound historical, cultural, economic, and geopolitical significance.”
The symposium’s success underscores The Africa Institute’s role as a global hub for intellectual engagement and its commitment to fostering innovative, collaborative research on African studies.
Admissions for the Fall 2025 intake of the Master of Arts in Global African Studies program opened on December 8, 2024. This accredited, two-year interdisciplinary program offers specialization tracks in Museum and Critical Heritage Studies, Diplomacy and Africa’s International Relations, and Afro-Arab Relations.
Full scholarships are available for eligible students. For more information, visit our section on Academic Programs or email admissions@theafricainstitute.org.
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