Black History Month And Beyond! Institute of African Studies (IAS) Film Festival And Lecture!

Ever wonder why the people with the longest history on earth have to cram it into the shortest month of the year for Black History Month? Well, at the Institute of African Studies this year (and every year) it's Black History Month and Beyond!!!!

Next week, we will mount our 3rd Annual Black History Month (and Beyond) Film Festival together with a special treat for the very first time as part of the week's activities -- a captivating lecture from the NEW Deputy Chairperson of the African Union, Thomas Kwesi Quartey.

What: AU Deputy Chairperson Thomas Kwesi Quartey will be speaking on the topic "From the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade to the AU: Tracing the Interconnecting Cord of Pan-Africanism." In this talk he will educate and explicate about some of the early roots of African Unity!

When: 2 March 2017, 4-6PM Ghana Time

Where: Live and in-person at the Institute of African Studies JHK Nketia Conference Hall (upstairs) and online via  Skype: Just add user ias.legon to be linked to the lecture live and to participate in the Q&A!!!

Also, we have an amazing line up of films this year with the theme of "African People Solving African Problems: Lessons in Self-Determination and Self-Sufficiency!"

What: The 3rd Annual Black History Month Film Festival "African People Solving African Problems: Lessons in Self-Determination and Self-Sufficiency!"

When: 27 February - 3 March 2017, 4-6PM Ghana Time

Where: Institute of African Studies - JHK Nketia Conference Hall

The Coconut Revolution (27 February 2017)
This is the modern-day story of a native people’s remarkable victory over Western Colonial power. A Pacific island rose up in arms against giant mining corporation Rio Tinto Zinc (RTZ) - and won despite a military occupation and blockade. When RTZ decided to step up production at the Panguna Mine on the island of Bougainville, they got more than they bargained for. Read more here http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/the-coconut-revolution/

Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai (28 February 2017)
Taking Root tells the dramatic story of Kenyan Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Wangari Maathai whose simple act of planting trees grew into a nationwide movement to safeguard the environment, protect human rights, and defend democracy—a movement for which this charismatic woman became an iconic inspiration. Read more here: http://takingrootfilm.com/the-film/

The Man Who Stopped the Desert (1 March 2017)
Yacouba Sawadogo, a non-literate farmer from Burkina Faso has transformed the lives of thousands of people across West Africa. Over cinematic reconstruction Sawadogo tells his incredible story of his battle with nature and man. Read more here: http://www.1080films.co.uk/yacoubamovie/

How Cuba Survived Peak Oil (3 March 2017)
When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1990, Cuba's economy went into a tailspin. With imports of oil cut by more than half – and food by 80 percent – people were desperate. This film tells of the hardships and struggles as well as the community and creativity of the Cuban people during this difficult time. Cubans share how they transitioned from a highly mechanized, industrial agricultural system to one using organic methods of farming and local, urban gardens. It is an unusual look into the Cuban culture during this economic crisis, which they call "The Special Period." Read more here: http://www.documentarywire.com/how-cuba-survived-peak-oil/

Be sure to join us all next week for an exciting line-up of films and a thought-provoking lecture!!! 

See you in the place to be at the University of Ghana - Institute of African Studies!!!