Tuesday, May 31, 2016
The seminar in Senegal
I should catch readers up on exactly what we are doing here in Senegal. 16 college professors from all over the country are attending a Fulbright/Hayes seminar titled" Senegal: Religion and Diversity in West Africa". It goes for one month---we return home near the end of June. The premise is as follows: Senegal has a overwhelming majority of Sunni Muslims---some say 95% of the population. They are in the view of the seminar presenters, a markedly unique Muslim population in the sense that they have not "radicalized". To keep it simple, we are learning about theories that pertain to why. Our leader is Dr. Fallou Ngom, Associate Professor of Anthropology and Director of African Languages at Boston University. He is accompanied by Dr. Tim Longman, Director of the BU African Studies Center, Associate Professor of Political Science and International Relations, and expert in Christianity in Africa who has extensive experience in East Africa as well as conflict zones in Rwanda, Burundi et. al.
Up to this point we have had specialized lectures that delve into the context described above:
Friday 5/27---a lecture on pre-colonial West Africa by a Professor Ibrahima Thiaw, a fellow at the West African Research Center, our in-country sponsor, and an archeologist specializing in what is referred to as pre-Atlantic West African history---knowledge of what pre-dates European ocean contact with Africa. The essence of his lecture is that history is never real, that it is a construction and that societies in this region were extraordinarily complex and dynamic. He refers to his conclusions as "triangulation"----and starts discussing events around 10,000 BC(Euros didn't get here until the Portuguese in the 15th Century!), incorporating Arab chronicles, merchant stories, and archeological evidence, looking at Kingdoms, trade routes, complex social institutions, geographic change, agronomy, trade castes, ethical constructs, ....and religion. One of the main subjects discussed was the existence of craft and agricultural castes that incorporate material technical knowledge, but also perceived supernatural and metaphysical power. Gold production, iron smelting, and rice cultivation are all covered. He concludes with a seemingly obvious, yet uncommon "take"----Africa was really only colonized after the mid 19th Century. From 1445 to 1750 the Europeans clung to the coasts, paying tax and tribute to African Kings---often completely dependent on these societies to survive.
Why would this interest a business professor? The above is all about trade, about human interaction, about commercial relationships. My students come from 180 different countries---many of them African. My mind is already racing regarding new teaching strategies and ways to engage these students.
Up to this point we have had specialized lectures that delve into the context described above:
Friday 5/27---a lecture on pre-colonial West Africa by a Professor Ibrahima Thiaw, a fellow at the West African Research Center, our in-country sponsor, and an archeologist specializing in what is referred to as pre-Atlantic West African history---knowledge of what pre-dates European ocean contact with Africa. The essence of his lecture is that history is never real, that it is a construction and that societies in this region were extraordinarily complex and dynamic. He refers to his conclusions as "triangulation"----and starts discussing events around 10,000 BC(Euros didn't get here until the Portuguese in the 15th Century!), incorporating Arab chronicles, merchant stories, and archeological evidence, looking at Kingdoms, trade routes, complex social institutions, geographic change, agronomy, trade castes, ethical constructs, ....and religion. One of the main subjects discussed was the existence of craft and agricultural castes that incorporate material technical knowledge, but also perceived supernatural and metaphysical power. Gold production, iron smelting, and rice cultivation are all covered. He concludes with a seemingly obvious, yet uncommon "take"----Africa was really only colonized after the mid 19th Century. From 1445 to 1750 the Europeans clung to the coasts, paying tax and tribute to African Kings---often completely dependent on these societies to survive.
Why would this interest a business professor? The above is all about trade, about human interaction, about commercial relationships. My students come from 180 different countries---many of them African. My mind is already racing regarding new teaching strategies and ways to engage these students.
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