The Economic, Engineering, Governance and Water Clusters of the Future Africa Research Leadership Fellowship (FAR-LeaF) of the University of Pretoria held a network of cluster training workshop from 26 to 28 June 2024 at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana.
Africa is one of the continents threatened by climate change and other global challenges that need a transdisciplinary approach to tackle the problem and adapt for sustainable development. Rising temperatures and extreme weather events threaten human health and food security in Sub-Saharan Africa.
The FAR-LeaF programme develops leaders with transdisciplinary skills for application-oriented research that can help tackle the continent's challenges. It funds postdoctoral research projects and offers a mentoring platform for fellows’ career and personal development.
The development of the transdisciplinarity skills of researchers is urgent and critical. The current trend of impactful research demands the involvement of more than one discipline and stakeholders to achieve the expected outcome. Moreover, emerging challenges such as climate change are global and transboundary and can only be effectively addressed using a transdisciplinary approach.
There is a gap in the transition of African institutions from multidisciplinary to transdisciplinary research. FAR-LeaF is working to bridge the gap.
The three-day training workshop brought together experts (mentors and supervisors) and early career researchers active in transdisciplinary research and introduced them to strategies for developing a transdisciplinarity collaborative approach in research. It leveraged the expertise of mentors and supervisors to aid participants in developing career plans and enhanced their presentation and writing skills. Attendees deliberated on pathways to move research to action that addresses the African continent's economic, health and food security challenges.
The FAR-LeaF network of clusters training workshop – presented by the Economic, Engineering, Governance and Water Clusters – strengthened the leadership capacity of fellows and early career researchers.
The workshop was attended in-person by FAR-LeaF fellows Dr Kwame Adjei-Mantey, Dr Ebenezer Amankwaa, Dr Prosper Bazaanah, Dr Enoch Bessah, Dr Brighton Chunga, Dr Samson Mhizha, Dr Onyekachi Nnabuihe, Dr Tonye Odubo, Dr Levy Otwoma, Dr Nkechi Owoo, Dr Vincent Pagiwa, Dr Joseph Nelson Siewe Fodjo and Dr Eric Tchao; and virtually by Dr Emmanuel Chukwuma, Dr Sophie Etomes and Dr Anna Msigwa.
