The African Studies Initiative invites K-16 educators, UMN faculty, students, staff and the general audience to join us for a two-day in person summer Institute titled Climate Change & Sustainable Development in Africa.
According to a recent article, “due to the widespread impacts of climate change” Africa is “losing 5% to 15% of its gross domestic product growth annually. Seventeen of the twenty countries most affected by climate change are located in Africa.” The goal of this institute is to share current knowledge, resources, and ideas about climate change mitigation, climate change adaptation, and climate justice in Africa with educators to enable them to develop classroom materials that they will use in their various curricula. We will examine multiple case studies on the African continent to learn how Africans are focusing on solutions to the changes they experience through presentations by faculty from various higher education institutions in Africa, development practitioners, as well as climate scientists and activists. Featured case studies will include Liberia, Kenya, Namibia, Niger, Tanzania, Senegal, The Gambia, Uganda, and Zimbabwe respectively. The Institute will be facilitated by Dr. Awa Saidy, Associate Director of African Studies Initiative and Dr. John Vreyens, Director of Global Initiative, University of Minnesota Extension. Registration is free.
Date: Monday, June 30 & Tuesday July 1, 2025
Time: 8:30 AM - 3:30 PM CDT
Location: Humphrey SPA - 50B, UMN West Bank, University of Minnesota, Twin Cities campus.
In-Service K-16 Educator Participants will receive:
Certificate attesting to 13 hours of attendance at a professional development activity
$100 stipend for developing a plan to incorporate what they learned from the Institute into their lesson plans and classroom practice (only the first fifteen registrants)
All participants will receive:
Parking vouchers to cover the full cost of parking (all attendees)
Breakfast and lunch for both days
Factsheets for Liberia, Kenya, Namibia, Niger, Tanzania, Senegal, The Gambia, Uganda, Zimbabwe as well as the continent of Africa
