Congratulations to Annachiara Raia, who has been awarded a Vidi grant from the Dutch Research Council (NWO). With this grant, Raia will be able to develop a research project about narratives across distant-water islands. The project studies narrative migrations that cross borders and forge intertextual-and-religious relations among islanders of Indian Ocean islands Lamu, Madagascar, and Java.

On 5 November, Myfanwy James (London School of Economics) will give a talk about the frontline humanitarians who negotiate access with rebel groups in North Kivu, eastern DRC, to foreground the work of local aid workers who are the backbone of humanitarian operations.

The ASCL Annual Report for 2025 is out now! In it, you will find highlights such as the launch of the new research programme, library acquisition trips to West Africa, and the well visited panel discussion on media attention for the wars in Sudan and the DRC. 

The ASCL has a vibrant Visiting Fellows Programme. Selected fellows work together with ASCL colleagues, make use of the excellent African Library, and give a seminar with the CRG they work with. Learn more about our current three visiting fellows: Edwin Asa Adjei, Twasiima Bigirwa, and Jane Akinyi Ngala Oduor.

Aba Amandzewaa Anaman, Head Librarian of the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana, undertook a work exchange with the African Library in Leiden to share ideas and experiences. Her stay included a visit to the National Library and a workshop with Leiden University Libraries.

What is it like to live with the pollution from mining and oil day in day out? Through photography and poetry, Abundance/Extracted portrays scenes from everyday life in the Niger Delta, the Zambian Copperbelt, and Johannesburg. The book is the result of a long-term collaboration between academics, photographers, and poets.