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Call: Asixoxe – Let’s Talk! Conference on African Philosophy
Interdisciplinary perspective on the African youth and civil society
Africa in a Cosmopolitan and Polycentric World: The African Youth and Civil Society
SOAS, London, 3-4 May 2019
CGS, Prague, 17-18 June 2019
The ideological turn of the end of the last century brought to light two dynamics that characterize our times: the consciousness of polycentrism and the demand for cosmopolitanism. The world is viewed as a multipolar network where power results from a multiplicity of decision-making centers, while the recognition of cultural spaces and ways of life that are different (other) postulates the project of a society based on both the principles of unity and diversity. The demand for cosmopolitanism is based on the premise that all human beings are, can be or should be citizens in a single community. This idea has been articulated through different paradigms including, for example, political, socio-economic, moral and cultural cosmopolitanism.
The Asixoxe (Let's talk) Conference on African Philosophy 2019 would like to explore in an interdisciplinary perspective a range of questions that this theoretical framework raises for the African continent. This conference focuses particularly on the African youth and civil society as the two of them are amongst main actors of recent changes occurring in Africa in a polycentric and cosmopolitan world. The conference seeks to define, for example, the concept and role of civil society in the current African social and political context. It also calls for an exploration of the relevance of African youth’s leadership and achievements for an alternative African development.
In addition to that, the conference addresses issues related to African political thought, African languages and literature, African culture and identity, migration and gender, human rights and demography. Possible topics may also include:
- Literary representations of power and citizenship
- Democracy (people’s empowerment, state’s accountability, elections)
- Decolonization (African languages, literature, culture, education, arts),
- Struggles for human rights (African activists, strength and weakness)
- Intercultural and religious dialogues
- The interactions between the local and global structures of power
We invite you to explore these questions at the third edition of Asixoxe –Let’s Talk! Conference on African Philosophy, organized jointly by the School of Languages, Cultures and Linguistics (SLCL) of the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) and the Centre of Global Studies (CGS) of the Institute of Philosophy of the Czech Academy of Sciences. The conference has two parts, one will take place in London, on 3-4 May 2019, the other in Prague,
on 17-18 June 2019. Titles and abstracts of 200 words, as well as any queries, should be sent by 23 April 2019 to asixoxe@cluttersoas.ac.uk (London) and to albertkasanda@clutteryahoo.fr (Prague). Each speaker will be given 20 minutes for the presentation, with subsequent 10 minutes for questions and discussion. We envisage a publication of selected papers from the conference. There is no registration fee for presenters and other participants. English is the working language.
