Mawazo Ideas Podcast

The Season 7 finale features a compelling roundtable with young academics, Chebet Koske and Dorcas Mwigereri, discussing the realities of navigating the African academy. They tackle challenges like limited resources, mentorship gaps, and sidelined youth voices, while emphasising the need for intergenerational collaboration and peer support. Our guests share strategies for young people to confident...

How are youth shaping and influencing the African research ecosystem and its future? As the youngest generation in the field, they bring with them a unique perspective, and technological implications as digital natives along with their desires and motivations.  Dr. Moses Ngware, Head of Education and Youth Empowerment research at the African Population and Health Research Center, discusses how to...

If the African academy is broken, how can it be reimagined? In this bonus episode with Prof. Wandia Njoya, we pick up our conversation on how to build alternative systems that encourage intellectual freedom and critical thinking. We examine the unique history of the university system in Kenya, alongside broader challenges across Africa, exploring the tension between government control and the publ...

Can we reimagine education and create alternatives, or is the African university under siege? With Prof. Wandia Njoya, an Associate Professor of Literature who loves to stretch academic boundaries, we explore the stifling of African talent within the current education system that drives many to seek opportunities abroad. We also discuss the plight of young African women researchers, the lack of ca...

We sit down with Dr. Obiageli “Oby” Ezekwesili, senior economic policy expert, former Nigerian Minister and Vice President for the World Bank's Africa Region, and founder of the School of Politics, Policy and Governance to examine how policy impacts the implementation and utility of research across Africa. We discuss what policymakers need to consider to effectively bridge the gap between pol...

What does it means to be a “young” researcher in Africa? In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Elizabeth Mutua, a computer science lecturer and Mawazo Fellowship alumnus, to discuss the unique challenges and growth opportunities for young academics. Dr. Elizabeth offers insights from her PhD journey, including the age limitations imposed by funders and the added challenges of balancing her researc...

In this Sixth and Final Episode of the Mawazo Ideas Podcast Season Six, scholars explore the impact of conflict on African women researchers. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees ( UNHCR ) states that 30 million displaced people live in Africa. This is about one-third of the world’s refugee population. Higher numbers have been recorded in Ethiopia, Central African Republic, Sudan, Sou...

The team explores how African women scholars fund their doctoral studies in this fifth episode of Season Six of the Mawazo Ideas Podcast. The scholars take us on a daring journey of crowdsourcing funding information, seeking familial support, partnering with scholars from different geographical jurisdictions, adapting to existing funding criteria, and mapping new trajectories whenever necessary to...

This season of the Mawazo Ideas Podcast, we are exploring the Realities of African Women in Research. Join us as we dive into  what it truly means to pursue a PhD on the continent on as an African woman. For the first episode of the season, we will follow an African woman's journey into the research realm. African women only account for 31.5 percent of the researchers on the continent, yet an...

In this fourth episode of season 6 of the Mawazo Ideas Podcast, the team explores how women scholars pioneer, research, and generally exist on the margins of academia.  Scholars explore the gendered experiences of women academics through the feminist intersectional lens. The discussion focuses on sexism and misogyny within the academy and other critical intersecting identities like race, ageism, a...

In this third episode of season 6 of the Mawazo Ideas Podcast, the team explores the role of community in the PhD journey.   Scholars communicate in information sharing, innovation, publication, and evaluating each other’s work, establishing and maintaining ties that become an integral part of a scholar’s career. Yet, conducting research is often described as a lonely and isolating affair. Subject...

In this second episode, we delve into the topic of Research Mobility among African women scholars. According to Momeni et al. (2020), academic progress is significantly influenced by international collaboration among researchers. Research mobility, defined as the ability or opportunity for researchers to move and pursue academic activities in different locations, institutions, or countries, plays...

In 28 years, African cities are projected to be home to 950 million people and by the end of this century, 2100, Africa is projected to be the only continent with a growing population. This is according to the Africa Development Bank . Against this backdrop of a rapidly urbanising space, it is crucial we understand how our cities are developing and whom they serve. To answer these questions, we br...

Mawazo builds platforms to help scientists communicate on the issues of our time. To unpack what the climate change looks like for the African continent we hosted a live quiz night that put local celebrities to the test against experts. With three rounds of trivia questions and only one winner, our quiz night, 'It's Getting Hot in Here' featured marine scientist Dr. Fiona Moejes (Ma...

The research to commercialisation pipeline is plagued with a lot of unknowns and many researchers don’t know where to start when thinking about how to attract funding for their ideas. In this episode, we replay a taped discussion with industry professionals, where we demystify the commercialisation pipeline for researchers. We also talk about gender and the investment landscape.  The discussion fe...

Dr. Jacqueline Kariithi is a trailblazing environmental scientist working in the Mt. Elgon region of Kenya, which makes up part of the country’s bread basket. Although the region supplies a large share of the nation's maize crop, which is critical to national food security, many people who live in the area remain food insecure. Through El- Koony center, where Dr. Kariithi is CEO, she is using...

What might the future of education look like for Africa? In this episode, we share a discussion with Julia Jenjezwa, a Zimbabwean product designer and educator, and Dr. Wangui Kimari, a Kenyan urban scholar. Both Julia and Wangui use human-centered research practices to work within communities in Kenya, Tanzania, Nepal, and elsewhere. In this episode, they share how applying co-visioning and co-de...

How are African ideas being used to build the future of the African continent? Season 5 of the Nairobi Ideas Podcast returns September 15th under a brand new theme; ' African Futures'.  Don't miss our new season as we talk to experts whose work explores new pathways around; the future of education, the future of food, the future of African cities, the future of health, and approache...

Our oceans are becoming "hot, sour, and breathless," says Dr. David Obura, a marine biologist supporting coral reef research and conservation in Africa. In this episode, we explore how our oceans are changing as a result of climate change and the challenges this poses for African island-nations whose statehood is being threatened by rising sea levels. We are joined by Dr. David Obura and...

What is gender based violence and how is it impacted by Climate change? It is estimated that one in three women will experience sexual or physical violence in their lifetime. During displacement and times of crisis which may be caused by wars, climate change and other occurrences, the threat of gender based violence significantly increases for women and girls. To help us understand how climate cha...

As we celebrate Wangari Maathai Day on March 3rd, we are bringing you a re-run of our interview with Dr. Paula Kahumbu, a leading figure in Kenya's conservation sector. Dr. Paula Kahumbu is an award-winning Kenyan conservationist and the current CEO of WildlifeDirect . In this episode of the podcast (originally aired in 2019), she celebrates Kenya’s rich biodiversity and talks about the need...

What is food security and why does it matter? Ensuring food security is one of the sustainable development goals - SDG 2 - which targets zero hunger. To help us understand the effects of climate change on food security in sub-Saharan Africa, we are joined by two experts, Yvonne Githiora and Maysoon Osman, who are both PhD students at the University of Nairobi. Yvonne Githiora: LinkedIn: https://ww...

In the fight against global warming, changes in individual behavior and system-level changes are being encouraged to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions necessary to limit global warming to “safe” levels. To better understand climate change adaptation and mitigation measures, we are joined by Dr. Gugulethu Tarakini, the Director of Research and Education for Sustainable Actions (RESA) in Zimbabwe...

Carbon produced by human activities is the largest contributor to global warming. The social cost of carbon is a measure of the economic harm from those impacts. In this context, carbon credit development and trading is considered to be a cost-effective solution for reducing emissions. We are joined by Nasra Nandha, an Environmental Senior Associate at Dentons Harrison Hamilton and Matthews who sh...

Do you think you know Mawazo? As part of Mawazo @ 5 , celebrating five years of the Mawazo Institute, we produced a special episode that digs into the Mawazo story. Featuring our co-founders, Dr. Rose M. Mutiso and Rachel Strohm, and our Acting CEO, Dr. Fiona Moejes, find out how one night in Berkeley, California is inspiring a new generation of female researchers and thought leaders in Africa. Vi...