What constitutes African (digital) heritage? Who assigns heritage values to (im)material cultural elements of the past, present and future? Who maintains and conserves these cultural elements and for which (shared) purposes? To what extent do African state actors and individual cultural entreprenuers work together-apart in activating heritage memories at home and in the diaspora? These and more questions will be up for discussion at next week’s “African (Digital) Heritage” Workshop at the University of Bayreuth in Germany on 18 – 19 January 2023.

I am pleased to be involved in this workshop where I will be presenting on the topic of: “Activating (heritage-making) memory through the cultural entrepreneurship of people of African-descent”. This is based on my ongoing VENI research project and new ideas-in-progress emerging. I will also be a moderator for a PhD Work-In-Progress session. I am looking forward to interacting, sharing ideas and learning with the many brilliant hosts, speakers and participants. The preliminary programme looks very exciting:

This is a public workshop so you are all coordially invite if you are close by and interested. More information can be found on the workshop website: https://www.historicalculturesofafrica.org/post/workshop-african-digital-heritage-18-19-jan-23