CFP - African Philosophy Futures Conference 2027

[Elvis Imafidon]

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

It is my pleasure to invite you to propose a paper for presentation at the three-day Àkotà: SOAS African Philosophy Futures Conference, planned to take place from May 19–21, 2027.

African philosophy, as an intellectual, embodied and lived philosophical tradition drawn from textual and non-textual epistemic repositories, has generated rich and robust discourses and debates and contributed to the global dialogue on academic philosophical inquiry and its implications for lived experiences, social issues and debates, more prominently in the last eight or so decades. African philosophy has contributed significantly to critically interrogating and reimagining the dominant philosophical canon and provided important and authentic insights into philosophy’s obligation to critically analyse and reshape human and nonhuman ecosystems in such areas as technology, politics, disability, environment, gender, Artificial Intelligence, education and justice. But there is much left to deliberate on, interpret, understand and interrogate in terms of identity and defining features, methods, theories, themes and focus, and practices and applications in relation to African philosophy. What is the future of this authentic African mode of inquiry as it continues to contend with itself, its othering and its place in the contest and context of the global philosophical tradition?

Proposals for presentation and discussion are hereby invited from African philosophers across the globe and philosophers from diverse philosophical traditions interested in engaging critically and constructively with the African philosophical tradition, for what promises to be a thrilling and lively international conference at the heart of London, in a space that has over the years become self-critically dedicated to understanding the world from the epistemic lenses of Africa, Asia and the Middle East, SOAS University of London. The three-day Conference will focus on questions of identity, methods and approaches of doing African Philosophy (Day 1); thematic and theoretical considerations and debates, such as gender, disability, life’s meaning, modes of being, modes of knowing, moral theory, violence and suffering, personhood, and justice that centre on African philosophical traditions (Day 2); and applied African philosophy or the implications of African philosophy for practices and models concerning such spheres of social, scientific and technological life as AI, environment, health and wellbeing, mental health crises, politics, migration and education (Day 3). Proposals for panels on any aspect of these are also welcomed.

The highlight of each day of the conference will be the Àkotà Forum. Àkotà is a word from the ancient Kingdom of Benin in Southern Nigeria which literally translates as ‘coming together for deliberation.’ A carefully selected group of delegates will be asked to spend some time collectively deliberating on a theme and taking notes for the purpose of co-authoring a paper from the deliberation. Two volumes are planned to emerge from the conference, a journal special issue and an edited book. The collaboratively curated discourses will be published in these volumes alongside individually or co-authored papers selected and developed from presentations during the conference.

The conference dates are May 19–21, 2027. Abstract Submission (no more than 250 words for individual submissions, and no more than 1,000 words for panel proposals) is open from now until January 31, 2027. Proposals will be reviewed within two weeks of receipt and authors informed of the decision taken. Travel arrangements will begin from December 1, 2026. If your abstract is selected and you need a visa to travel to the UK, we can provide the necessary documents of invitation. All necessary travel support details will be made available in due time. There is no registration fee to attend the conference. Please note that we cannot provide funding for travel, accommodation and subsistence for delegates. However, we are currently exploring conference funding and if this is successful, we might be able to provide such support. We will keep authors of successful applications updated in due course.

All submissions and queries should be sent to The Centre for Global and Comparative Philosophy: cg...@soas.ac.uk

Looking forward to a memorable event with you, dear colleagues and friends, and please spread the news widely. 

Best wishes, 

Elvis. 

___________________

Professor Elvis Imafidon

Professor of African and Comparative Philosophy

Head, School of History, Religions and Philosophies

Chair, Centre for Global and Comparative Philosophies
SOAS University of London.

Research Associate, ACEPS University of Johannesburg

Editor, Contributions to African Philosophy Book Series (Springer Nature)

Most Recent Publications

• Doing African Philosophy: Beyond Textuality and Individual Authorship (Bloomsbury, 2026).
• African Philosophy and Deep Ecology (Routledge, 2026)
• A Comparative Analysis of the Critical Resilience and Gender Equity of Mothers Impacted by Albinism: Promising Practices From Tanzania and South Africa. In Public Health Challenges (2026).
• African Philosophy of Disability. In Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Disability Studies (OUP 2026)

Àkomhęn is an African adage of the Esan people of Southern Nigeria (my heritage) which means 'we get better together' or 'we are better if we do it together'.