March 02, 2023
Chad: The Lake Chad Basin Is a Security Nightmare - 5 Guidelines for Finding Solutions
It is now 14 years since Boko Haram and other armed groups began to operate in the Lake Chad Basin. The region, which includes Niger, Nigeria, Chad and Cameroon, has become… Read more »
South Africa: Roads and Power Lines Put Primates in Danger - South African Data Adds to the Real Picture
About 25 million kilometres of new roads are expected to be built around the world by 2050. Along with power lines and railways, roads cut through the landscape everywhere,… Read more »
Egypt: Five Discoveries That Changed Our Understanding of How the Ancient Egyptians Created Mummies
Centuries after the first golden coffins were taken to Europe, ancient Egyptian mummies still vividly capture people's imaginations. Perhaps we're awed by the grandeur of their… Read more »
Nigeria: Election Was Nearly Derailed By Technology - but Biometric Devices Weren't the Problem
Technology nearly derailed the conclusion of the 2023 presidential elections in Nigeria. The Independent National Electoral Commission could not fulfil its promise to transmit… Read more »
March 01, 2023
Africa: High-Tech Replacements Aren't Really 'Resurrecting' Endagered Species
It's no secret that human activities have put many of this planet's inhabitants in danger. Extinctions are happening at a dramatically faster rate than they have over the past tens… Read more »
Africa: Oil and Gas Companies Are Seen As Climate Villains. Truth Is, We'll Need Their Expertise to Make Green Hydrogen a Reality
Think about oil and gas companies and climate change and chances are you'll think dark thoughts. It's true Exxon Mobil had remarkably detailed knowledge of global warming in the… Read more »
Africa: How SpaceX's New Internet Service Could Be a Gamechanger in Africa
It's hard for many of us to imagine a world without instant, limitless internet access. Some have even argued that it should, alongside access to clean water and electricity, be… Read more »
Nigeria: Bola Ahmed Tinubu Promised to 'Renew Hope' for Nigeria - 5 Ways He Can Achieve This
The 2023 presidential election in Nigeria has been formally won - and lost. By mid-week Bola Ahmed Tinubu, of the ruling All Progressives Congress, had been declared the winner of… Read more »
Zambia: History of Green Policies Shows Why Environment and Development Must Go Hand in Hand #AfricaClimateCrisis
Climate change and environmental policy measures have become a central part of planning for sustainable development and avoiding crises such as food and water insecurity. Read more »
South Africa: Sex Work in South Africa - Why Both Buying and Selling Should Be Legal
It is illegal to buy or sell sex in South Africa. But this may soon be a thing of the past if a recently published draft bill to decriminalise sex work is passed. Researchers and… Read more »
Africa: ChatGPT - How to Prevent It Becoming a Nightmare for Professional Writers
Nearly half of white-collar professionals have tried using ChatGPT to help with their work, according to a recent survey of more than 10,000 people at blue chips such as Google, JP… Read more »
Africa: Race and Erasure - Why Africa's Humanitarian Crises Don't See the Same Response As Ukraine
With the war in Ukraine now in its second year, nearly a third of the country's population has been displaced, including 8 million people who have sought refuge beyond its borders. Read more »
Nigeria: 5 Essential Books Nigeria's New President Should Read
Not many African political leaders are known to have publicly declared their love of reading. US president Barack Obama popularised the idea of a recommended reading list and he… Read more »
Africa: Curious Kids - Why Don't Grown-ups Play Like Kids?
Why don't grown ups play like us kids do? Annie, aged 7, Canberra Read more »
Africa: Curious Kids - What Happens to Your Brain If You Don't Get Enough Sleep?
Curious Kids is a series for children of all ages. Have a question you'd like an expert to answer? Send it to CuriousKidsCanada@theconversation.com. Read more »
South Africa: Dance Me to the End of Time - South African Film On Death Is a Powerful Celebration of Life
In her 2021 documentary Dance Me to the End of Time, South African film-maker and educator Melanie Chait has produced a truly great film. Not only for the breadth of themes it… Read more »
February 28, 2023
Africa: Germany's New Migration Policy Could Take Away Vital Talent From Several African Countries
Germany has announced a project for migrant centres in five African countries which would offer a select category of Africans the possibility of settling on its soil. The… Read more »
South Africa: God and Politics in South Africa - the Ruling ANC's Winning Strategy
Religion shapes some of the most controversial decisions that governments need to make: access to abortion, same-sex marriage, the death penalty and the legal status of sex work.… Read more »
Africa: How to Ditch 'Fomo' and Foster 'Jomo' - the Joy of Missing Out
Have you ever felt a sense of joy because you knew you were missing out on an invitation to a party, shiny new opportunities or the latest social media posts and influencer trends… Read more »
Africa: La Niña Is Finishing an Extremely Unusual Three-Year Cycle - Here's How It Affected Weather Around the World #AfricaClimateCrisis
It was anchovy fishermen in Peru who first noticed and named El Niño events in the tropical Pacific hundreds of years ago. Their catches would fluctuate and the largest… Read more »
Africa: When Should We Worry About Bird Flu Making Us Sick? When We See Human-to-Human Transmission - and There's No Evidence of That Yet
Bird flu has been causing growing concern in recent months, with hundreds of millions of birds dying of the virus since October 2021. This is the largest global outbreak. Read more »
South Africa: Working Women Proved Their Resilience During Covid - As a Result They've Enhanced Their Well-Being
One of the outcomes of the COVID pandemic is that people's working lives have changed. Working at home and hybrid work have become prevalent, after constantly changing government… Read more »
Africa: Dall-E 2 and Midjourney Can Be a Boon for Industrial Designers
Since the introduction of DALL-E 2 and ChatGPT, there has been a fair amount of hand-wringing about AI technology - some of it justified. Read more »
February 27, 2023
Africa: Cough Syrup Can Harm Children - Experts Warn of Contamination Risks
The recent deaths of over 300 children in Africa and Asia have prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to warn about the use of "substandard and falsified" medical products.… Read more »
South Africa: Online Learning Platforms Aren't Enough - Lecturers Need the Right Technical Skills
Technology has become the centre of our lives. It has also changed how university students learn and how lecturers teach. Some institutions had already shifted to some form of… Read more »