Windhoek — WITS School of Art, Dramatic Art and Drama for Life, in association with UP Music Therapy, UP Drama Department, SAAD and SANATO will shortly host the third Africa Research Conference in Applied Drama and Theatre, entitled Arts Activism, Education and Therapies.

Building on the previous two conferences to further stimulate research in applied drama and theatre in Africa, this year's conference extends its focus to include the practice and theorising of the arts and their application in activism, education and therapy.

It will provide opportunities for arts practitioners, academia, trainers and community workers to engage in compelling and critical dialogue regarding their work.

It also aims to inspire networking amongst delegates, and will showcase new work in this field, within a supportive and focused environment.

This year's conference will seek to ask questions about the relationship between activism, education and therapies; it seeks to acknowledge the role of traditional healing arts in Africa; it seeks to find relationships between African and western notions of healing through the arts; it seeks to acknowledge that education - as we have historically known it - has to change fundamentally to embrace the profound human crises throughout the continent.

Four areas of continental concern will be addressed: HIV/AIDS and health; environment; diversity; violence and conflict in relation to the pressing need to re-conceptualise what community means and why communities need to be transformed.