The Merian Institute for Advanced Studies in Africa (MIASA) writing workshop is for Africa-based early career researchers from 12-16 April 2021 at the University of Ghana.

They seek to explore the themes of sustainable peace, sustainable democracy, and sustainable environmental transformation on the continent with the space and intellectual community. The 5-day writing workshop is designed to provide these researchers with the opportunity to contribute to knowledge production in the humanities and social sciences and to transform a draft paper into a publishable journal piece.

Application Deadline 

January 7, 2021

Objectives

•  To strengthen the academic writing skills of African early career scholars, with particular attention to female scholars.
•  To enhance the success rate of early career African scholars’ submissions to high-quality journals.
•  To build a network of Africa-based scholars working on the themes of sustainable peace, sustainable democracy, and sustainable environmental transformation.

The workshop is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research through the Merian Institute for Advanced Studies in Africa (MIASA) based at the University of Ghana, Legon. The organizers of the workshop are MIASA at the University of Ghana in cooperation with ZIAF, the University of Frankfurt, Germany.

MIASA Writing Workshop Program 2021

The 5-day program will be organised as a writing retreat, with daily seminars and writing sessions. The seminars will include practical guidance on academic writing and publishing in high-quality journals. The daily writing sessions will be supported by academic mentors and editors with research interests in sustainable peace, sustainable democracy, and sustainable environmental transformation.

Eligibility for the MIASA Writing Workshop 2021

Applications are welcomed from early career researchers who meet the following eligibility criteria:

•  Applicant must possess a doctorate which was awarded within 5 years of the application deadline, i.e. doctoral certificate awarded after January 2016 to date
• Applicants must be employed at a recognised university or research institute in Sub-Saharan Africa.
•  fluency in written and spoken English (there will be no translation services provided)
• Excellence, relevance, and originality of the draft research paper will enhance the selection

Application Guidelines for the MIASA Writing Workshop 2021

The application should include the following:

• a motivation letter (1-page maximum) outlining reasons for wishing to attend the writing workshop and the benefits to be gained
•  a draft research paper (5,000-8,000 words in English) that contains original data and preliminary data analysis in the areas of sustainable democracy, sustainable peace or sustainable environmental transformation, and which is aimed at journal submission
•  an abstract of the paper
•  a full CV
•  a Ph.D. award certificate
• Applications should be filled using the following link 

Prizes for the MIASA Writing Workshop 2021

• Funding to cover travel expenses to Ghana from Sub-Saharan Africa 
• Accommodation
• Other costs for the duration of the workshop. 

Inquiries should be directed to miasa@ug.edu.gh