This conference will bring together some of today’s most influential thinkers on African affairs to reflect on the current social, political, religious, economic, and environmental dynamics that characterize the continent. Independence from colonial rule (around 1960), to many, was a turning point in African history - but what has changed, and what has persisted? What have been the drivers of stability and transformation? And how do we interpret the outcomes of these processes, for example in terms of the Sustainable Development Goals or the continent’s relationship with climate change? We challenge each of the speakers to reflect on Africa’s recent past and current state of affairs through the lens of their own discipline and expertise. Read more about the background of the conference. The conference is organized in the framework of Africa 2020, hosted by LeidenASA, the assembled Africanists from Leiden University and its LDE-partners TU Delft and Erasmus University (and others) to mark the year in which 17 countries on the African continent will celebrate 60 years of independence.

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