Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 launches Africa Research and Knowledge Hub to drive interdisciplinary dialogue and research collaboration across the continent

By Lance Myburgh

 

Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 marked an important milestone in its commitment to advancing African scholarship with the official launch of the Africa Research and Knowledge Hub (ARKH), a dynamic new Research Group housed in the Department of Sociology. The launch event saw the Hub’s formal establishment as an institutional research entity, designed to promote interdisciplinary collaboration and critical dialogue around the social, political, environmental, and economic developments shaping Africa and its diaspora both digitally and offline.

The Hub was first initiated in early 2024 by Dr Joshua Matanzima, a Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 alumnus and Research Officer at the 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 of Queensland’s Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining. Dr Matanzima, a prolific scholar, is also co-chair of the Early Career Researcher (ECR) group of the Australia Africa Universities Network (AAUN). What began as a digital platform with three founding members has now grown into a vibrant intellectual space focused on critical themes such as waterscapes, agroecology, development-induced displacements, energy transitions, indigenous sovereignty, and natural resource conflicts.

Throughout 2024, the Hub hosted a webinar series engaging diverse voices and showcasing research around Africa’s socio-political and environmental challenges. Building on this momentum, the Hub now operates under Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网’s Research and Scholarship Entities Framework, with its online presence soon to migrate to the university’s website.

The event was formally introduced by Prof Kirk Helliker, a Hub member and Head of the Unit of Zimbabwe Studies at Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网.  Prof. Helliker reflected on the Hub’s evolution and intellectual foundations, stating that the Hub was created to serve as an institutional home for researchers at Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 and abroad. Dr Nomakwezi Mzilikazi, Deputy Vice-Chancellor: Research, Innovation & Strategic Partnerships at Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 officially launched the Hub, highlighted that the Hub’s thematic focus areas – such as waterscapes and agroecology – reflect Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网’s commitment to “building a resilient and sustainable research ecosystem, one that harnesses individual strengths and excellence for greater institutional benefit and the advancement of knowledge for a just and sustainable future”. She reaffirmed that Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 is a research-intensive institution, intentional about growing its proportion of postgraduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Dr Mzilikazi expressed hope that postgraduate students will take full advantage of the collaborative opportunities offered by the Hub.

The launch featured contributions from members of the Hub’s Advisory Board and founding team, all of whom spoke to the platform’s commitment to include interdisciplinary knowledge production. Dr Qinisani Qwabe from the Department of Agricultural Sciences at Nelson Mandela 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 expressed his confidence that the research emerging from the Hub will meaningfully address socio-economic challenges across South Africa. He also commended Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 on achieving this important academic milestone.

Professor Dion Nkomo, SARChI Chair for the Intellectualisation of African Languages, Multilingualism and Education from the School of Languages and Literatures at Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网 emphasised the urgent need to re-evaluate the purpose of research, arguing that its value diminishes when divorced from having a meaningful impact on humanity. He further noted that “knowledge production has become even more expensive”, calling for more strategic use of limited resources such as human capital, financial support, and research infrastructure. Professor Nkomo also stressed the importance of researchers continuously reinventing themselves to stay active and relevant within the evolving knowledge economy. He encouraged scholars to fully engage with the interdisciplinary nature of the Hub, urging them to “disobey and disrupt; disabling disciplinary boundaries without disregarding the foundational knowledge grounding of their respective disciplines”.

Jamie Alexander, of the Institute for Water Research, invited staff, students, research collaborators and practitioners to share their work with a wider audience via the Hub’s webinar series, with the Hub also offering to assist and foster research collaboration across disciplines.

Professor Kirk Helliker concluded the launch by inviting attendees to explore the Hub’s website and learn more about the existing research areas – which are expected to grow as the Hub develops. He emphasised that the Hub remains a work in progress and extended an open invitation for collaboration within the transdisciplinary research community to explore new and impactful research avenues.

The launch of the Africa Research and Knowledge Hub signals a key step in advancing collaborative, African-led research at Rhodes 老虎机游戏_pt老虎机-平台*官网. With its focus on real-world challenges and cross-disciplinary engagement, the Hub aims to drive meaningful scholarship across the continent and beyond.