25^th Annual UT Austin Africa Conference at the University of Texas at Austin

CALL FOR PAPERS

 

Date: April 1^st to 5^th, 2026 (Wednesday April 1^st, to Sunday April 5^th, 2026).

Email: utaustinafrica@gmail.com

Conference Theme: Movements, Migrations, Labor & Displacements in Africa and the African Diaspora

The 25^th Annual UT Austin Africa Conference at the University of Texas at Austin calls for submissions of papers in the humanities, social sciences, sciences, health, medicine, pharmacy and other disciplines on the multifaceted nature of African Movements, Migrations, Labor & Displacements and same for those of the Diaspora. The objective of this conference is to encourage conversations rooted in the rich and diverse knowledge of the African people, focusing on African epistemologies, ontologies, and concepts that have shaped the continent’s worldviews on Labor, Movements, (im)migration, and wellbeing. This conference will provide a platform to critically examine the construction, imagination, and conceptualization of African labor and Immigration paradigms. We welcome Papers, Roundtable Discussions, Panels, Poster Presentations and Creative Works/Performances that pose critical medical, scientific, historical, technological, sociological, methodological, and theoretical questions, whether addressing relevant, recurring, and urgent issues or raising vital but often neglected topics relating to Movements, Labor, Migrations, Refugee & Displacements both in Africa and the Diaspora.  All themes, inclusive of time, period, and space parameters as well as interdisciplinary perspectives are welcome.

Submission may include but are not limited to the following sub-themes and topics:

Sub-Themes:

• Deities In Motion, Diaspora, & Resistance 
• African Women, Migration, & Human Trafficking
• Cultural Production On African (Im)Migration
• Multiple Diasporas And Pan-Africanism
• Migration For Development
•  Imperialism And African Movements/Migrations
• Comparative Diasporas And (Im)Migrations – Rethinking Histories Of African, Latino And Asian Migrations
• Diaspora Within/Without And Shifting Identities
• Migrant Labor, Sacrifice, & (Under)Development
• Illegal Trafficking, Refugees, And Squatters
• Migration And Issues Of Cultural Retentions
• Africanisms In The Diaspora
• Diaspora Theory From The Margins Of Blackness
• Migrations, Aesthetics, And African Art
• Immigrants, Refugees, And Host Societies
• Violence And Traumas Of Displacement
• Migrations, Aesthetics & African Arts
• Material Culture, Fashion, Dress, Performance and Identity
• Pop Cultures in Africa, Labor and Migration
• Literature And The Politics Of Displacement
• Migration, Educational Equity, And Development
• Health Issues, Migration, And Development
• Religion And (Im)Migration In Africa & The Diaspora
• Pre-Colonial Migration And Identities
• Trans-Atlantic Migrations And New Communities
• Development, Migration And Change
• Globalization, Migration, & Hybridity
• Migrations, Imagination, & Transformative Possibilities

Scholars from different fields and regions will be able to communicate, share ideas, and get feedback at the conference. As in past years, participants will be chosen from all over the world. Attendance and paper presentations by graduate students are also highly encouraged. According to similarities in theme, topic, discipline, or geographic focus, submitted papers will be assigned to panels. We highly encourage Poster Presentations too. Selected articles will then be published in several book volumes. Submissions examining the complexity of African knowledge systems and their significance in determining the future of African cultures are welcome.

Each proposal must include:

Title of the work and an abstract of 200 words

Name of the presenter (with the surname underlined)

Mailing address, Phone number, & WhatsApp contact, (if any)

Email and Institutional affiliation

Three to five keywords that best characterize the themes and topics relevant to your submission.

 

Participants are expected to follow these guidelines.

Proposals for panels (3-5 presenters) must include the following:

The title of the panel and a collective summary of 250 words on the panel’s theme, including the title of everyone’s work

A 200-word abstract for each speaker’s presentation, with the keywords stated.

Mailing addresses

Phone numbers

WhatsApp contacts

Email addresses

Institutional affiliation of each presenter.

 

Proposals/Abstracts will ONLY be accepted via channels of the official conference email utaustinafrica@gmail.com  up until the MIDNIGHT DEADLINE of November 1^st, 2025. Participants who require a visa to enter the United States must submit abstracts and register early, as it may take six months and or even MORE to be able to book visa appointments.
 

A mandatory non-refundable registration fee for participants must be paid immediately upon acceptance of the abstract. Amendment of conference registration fees from hence would be as follows:

 

IN-PERSON/FACE-TO-FACE PARTICIPATION:

• • Participants & Residents from Europe, Asia, and the Americas: $150 USD.
  • Participants specifically from Africa: $100 USD.
  • Graduate Students SPECIFICALLY from Universities in Africa: $80 USD
  • Graduate Students attending in-person regardless of location: $100 USD.

VIRTUAL ATTENDEES REGARDLESS OF PLACE OF ORIGIN/LOCATION: $50 USD.

 

Participants and Scholars sending in abstracts of their works MUST TAKE NOTE of the fees stated above!

All participants must have funds to attend the conference, including the registration fee, transportation, and accommodation. The conference and the University of Texas at Austin do not provide any form of sponsorship or financial support. Events are subject to change following CDC guidelines and global health, travel and safety concerns.

If you have questions, please contact the conference coordinators via the official email. All correspondence, including submission of abstracts, panel proposals, completed papers, and all kinds of inquiries, must go through the official conference email: utaustinafrica@gmail.com

 

PROPOSALS/ABSTRACT SUBMISSIONS & TIMELINE FOR ACCEPTANCE

• FIRST BATCH: 1st July – 30^th August 2025: Acceptance Letters to be dispatched on/by September 15, 2025.
• SECOND BATCH: 31^st August – 30^th September 2025: Acceptance Letters will be sent on/by October 15, 2025.
• THIRD & FINAL CALL: 1^st October – 1^ST November, 20025 by 11:59 PM: Acceptance Letters to be sent on/by November 15, 2025.

CONFERENCE TEAM  

Organizers:

Yahaya HALIDU: yahaya@utexas.edu

Chukwuemeka OHAJIONU: cchibuzo.ohajionu@utexas.edu  

Convener:

Toyin FALOLA, toyinfalola@austin.utexas.edu