Workshop by WONAGO and Research Centre “Hamburg’s (post-)colonial Legacy”
This workshop aims to address the ongoing decolonisation efforts in academic and cultural fields like education, global history, legal studies and activist movements.Some examples of current decolonisation projects include public movements demanding the toppling of statues with colonial contexts, decolonising curricula in schools and at universities or the restitution and repatriation debates across the globe. The event will bring together scholars and artists based in Namibia, South Africa, and Germany to discuss and collaborate on these topics. The speakers were invited to create long-lasting connections between the research centre “Hamburg’s (post)colonial Legacy”, the WONAGO Project and other select institutions from southern Africa and Germany.
The list of speakers consists of WONAGO Visiting Fellows from Namibia and South Africa who will be conducting research in Hamburg during the summer and present their respective research projects during the workshop. Based on the wish to further decolonise research also in Germany, further scholars were invited to participate in the hybrid event. The programme consists of three panels.
The first panel, “Public Space(s) & Museums” will explore issues related to public areas and museums in the context of colonial legacies. The speakers include Dr. Napandulwe Shiweda from the University of Namibia, Prof. Dr. Heike Becker from the University of the Western Cape, and Isabel Eiser, a PhD researcher from the University of Hamburg.
Panel number two, “To Educate & Decolonise”, focuses on the hurdles that decolonisation efforts often come upon as well as a debate on the pro’s and con’s of decolonising literature, attitudes and other media outlets. The speakers include Dr. Artwell Nhemachena from the University of Namibia (online), John Nakuta from the University of Namibia, and Dr. Florian Wagner from the University of Erfurt.
Last but not least the third panel, “Visualisations”, will explore visual representations and their role(s) in decolonisation. Topics include photography from colonial contexts and how to counter the colonial gaze and the visual narratives it created. The speakers are Dr. Christoph Rippe, photo historian, Dr. Nicola Brandt, a photographer from Namibia, and Dr. Diana Miryong Natermann from the University of Hamburg.
The organisers hope that the workshop will foster long-term connections, highlight topical similarities and differences and facilitate scholarly interactions among the participants. Constructive discussions, idea exchange and engagement with outreach possibilities are expected throughout the day.
More info and registration: https://www.giga-hamburg.de/en/events/conferences-and-workshops/decolonising-german-academia-changing-narratives-global-south
Organisers: WONAGO Project (University of Hamburg & GIGA Hamburg) – Dr. Diana Miryong Natermann Research Centre “Hamburg’s (post)colonial Legacy” – Prof. Dr. Jürgen Zimmerer
Coooperation Partners
German Institute for Global and Area Studies (GIGA) | Universität Hamburg