Deadline: 23 August 2019
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) has opened a call for abstracts in preparation of a Regional Conference on the theme: Governance of Diversity: Challenges and Opportunities for Sustainable Development and Peaceful Coexistence in Africa, to be held in Accra Ghana, from 10 to 12 October 2019.
This conference aims to provide a platform for knowledge production and experience sharing on the governance of diversity, notably cultural diversity, and exploring how best to improve both the existing scholarship and academic work in this area to nurture more effectively policy environment, practices and programmes for grounding peaceful and sustainable inclusive societies.
In addition, it is about identifying and sharing of existing good practices worth leveraging on, as well as appropriate review mechanism that could be useful to monitor and inspire a more systemic approach to monitor countries efforts to lay the foundations for peaceful co-existence, unity in diversity.
Duration and format
The conference is proposed to take place over three days. Upon reception of abstracts, a Committee will analyze, select and suggest an agenda that will include a keynote to address in a broader sense the theme, and shed more light on the discussions that will be organized within plenary panels and sessions. Each session will comprise panelists with diverse background including, but not limited to academics, experts, government authorities, civil society organization, religious leaders, traditional rulers, as well as youth organizations. Methodologies, approaches and tools offered by the UNESCO Management of Social Transformations (MOST) Programme will be used throughout this process.
Conference Sub-themes
- Conceptualizing Cultural Diversity in Africa: Semantic, Epistemological and Philosophical Considerations;
- Governance of Cultural Diversity: An overview from Pre-colonial to Post-colonial African State;
- Governance of Cultural Diversity and the Shaping of National Unity;
- Indigenous peoples and minority groups: Integrating the right to difference in nation building;
- Reporting diversity, conflict and violence in a plural-ethnic society: the role of the Media;
- Assessing, measuring, and enhancing cultural diversity: What concrete tools, mechanisms and good practices to sustain reconciliation and resilience for national unity and peaceful coexistence?
Criteria
This Call for Abstracts is therefore open to researchers and academics, as well as practitioners, with scholarship available to support the participation of young researchers from across Africa.
How to Apply
Abstracts should be sent to the UNESCO Regional Abuja Office via e-mail at the address given on the website.
For more information, please visit https://en.unesco.org/news/call-abstracts-assessing-challenges-and-opportunities-towards-effective-governance-diversity