Empowering African Studies for a Global Impact

My name is Michael Akinpelu. I am an associate professor of Sociolinguistics at the University of Regina, in Regina (Saskatchewan). My research interests focus on language policies and planning and their impact on sustainable development in multilingual environments (such as Africa). I am also interested in immigration from Sub-Saharan Africa, sociolinguistic approach to teaching and learning of French as a foreign language, as well as Francophonie in minority contexts. I am currently engaged in various research projects, including a study on the settlement and integration of Afro-Canadian immigrant youth in Saskatchewan.

Dr. Jones Adjei is a Sociology Instructor, and Head of Sociology, at Red Deer Polytechnic, specializing in social demography and applied statistics. His research interests include immigrant settlement experiences and population health disparities. His work has been published in peer-reviewed journals such as the Journal of Sex Education, Ethnicity and Health, Canadian Studies in Population, Journal of Biosocial Science, and Canadian Ethnic Studies. In addition to his passion for teaching, he generously volunteers his research skills to enhance the operational capacity of immigrant service organizations in the Red Deer area. He has also served as a board member of the Central Alberta Immigrant Women's Association (CAIWA) for the past six years.

Mohamed Sesay is an Assistant Professor and Coordinator of the African Studies Program in the Department of Social Science, York University. He is also a member of the UKRI GCRF Gender Justice and Security Hub at the London School of Economics’ Centre for Women, Peace and Security. His research focuses on the rule of law, legal pluralism, customary justice, transitional justice, international criminal justice, and postconflict peacebuilding in sub-Saharan Africa.

Abel Chikanda is an Associate Professor in the School of Earth, Environment & Society (SEES) at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. He holds a PhD in Geography from Western University (2010) and was an Assistant / Associate Professor at the University of Kansas (2015 – 2022). Prior to that, he was a SSHRC postdoctoral fellow at Queen’s University (2010-2012) and Research Coordinator at the Balsillie School of International Affairs (2013-2015). He also worked as a lecturer at the University of Zimbabwe (2004-2006). His research focuses on African immigrant integration, the role of diasporas in developing their countries of origin, and exploring the ways in which African cities can build sustainable and resilient food systems. He is an active member of the Southern African Migration Programme (SAMP), the African Urban Food Network (AFSUN), the Hungry Cities Partnership (HCP) and the Migration and Food Security (MiFOOD) research networks. For full biography and publications, please see https://experts.mcmaster.ca/display/chikana

Philippe M. Frowd is an Associate Professor in the School of Political Studies at the University of Ottawa. His research draws on critical security studies and focuses on emerging transnational forms of governance of security in the Sahel region of West Africa. His research has primarily focused on irregular migration and border control in the region and has been the focus of his latest book Security at the Borders: Transnational Practices and Technologies in West Africa (2018, Cambridge University Press). Philippe also works on the politics of non-state security provision and dynamics of militarization and intervention in the Sahel more broadly. His work has most recently appeared in Third World Quarterly, Geopolitics, and African Affairs. He is an editor of Security Dialogue.

Dr. Isaac Odoom is an Assistant Professor of Political Science at Carleton University specializing in International Relations and the Politics of Development in the Global South with a focus on Africa. Dr. Odoom attained his PhD in Political Science (International Relations and Comparative Development) from the University of Alberta, Canada. He is also a Non-Resident Fellow at The Centre for Asian Studies, University of Ghana, Accra. Dr. Odoom’s research program focuses on African Politics, International Development, Africa-China relations, China’s foreign policy, Rising Powers in Global governance, South-South Cooperation, and the Political Economy of Development in the Global South. He is also interested in Critical International Relations and pedagogy, particularly questions around academic dependency and decolonization in higher education. Dr. Odoom’s ongoing research examines the impact of Chinese energy and technology investments in Canada and across Africa. For full biography and publications, please see: https://carleton.ca/polisci/people/isaac-odoom/