Voice4Thought Academy Mali also contributes to other projects in Mali and across the Sahel region. Activities outside the V4TA Mali programme are an important part of the Academy’s autonomisation, its efforts to ensure the programme’s continuity beyond the current funding period. In addition to participating in other projects, the Academy also takes part in activities such as the annual international campaign 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence and International Women’s Day, including activities in Yanfolila.
Below is an overview of these projects.
Decoding Digital Media in African Conflicts (2022–2023)
As part of this project, funded by the Norwegian Research Council, V4T Academy Mali was responsible for conducting research in Mali on the role of digital communication in conflicts, with particular attention to disinformation and hate speech. In 2023, V4TA Mali organised a workshop in Bamako with Malian experts on digital media. The team also examined the role of WhatsApp groups and local radio stations during crises and conflicts in Mali.
African Cup of Slam Poetry (2023)
V4T Academy Mali collaborated with ACSP (CASP, Coupe d’Afrique de Slam Poésie), Africa’s largest slam poetry organisation, during the finals in Bamako. The Academy organised a workshop on deepfakes, disinformation, and their legal implications, and contributed to the festival’s technical organisation.
Slam et Eve (2021)
The Slam et Eve festival, organised in collaboration with Voice4Thought Academy Mali, took place in Bamako in June 2021. Slam et Eve is a slam concert featuring exclusively women, founded in Chad in 2016 as part of the international festival N’Djam s’enflamme en slam. Since then, it has grown into a recurring event that celebrates and promotes the role of women in the slam scene.
In addition to performances by female slam artists, the workshops focus on developing skills in the art of slam poetry. Emerging slam artists receive training from renowned and experienced performers, who share their knowledge and expertise with them. In Bamako, the workshops were led by slam artist Amee from Côte d’Ivoire.
V4TA Mali slam trainer Fanta Mariko, from Ségou, participated in the international World Slam Poetry Championship in Paris. She was recognised at the Prix de l’Éloquence category.
Nomadic Pastoralism: Research in Mali (ongoing)
V4T Academy Mali collaborated with researchers from the University of Florida on research into the effects of insecurity and conflict on pastoral communities in Mali. In three regions, 300 surveys were conducted, focusing on changes in security, mobility, livestock farming, and livelihoods, as well as on how communities respond to political, social, and environmental conflicts.
Read articles about our research on our website, including: ‘Local authorities’ intervention in managing conflicts between herders and farmers: the case of Bodo’.
Water Mobility (ongoing)
IHE Delft’s Water Mobility programme supports innovative projects that contribute to a fair and sustainable approach to water, with particular attention to the relationship between water, climate change, and mobility. As part of this project, V4T, together with the Algerian consultancy ECA, is exploring the complex relationship between migration, mobility, and climate change in Mali and Algeria, with a focus on local stories and perspectives.
Académie Mali has both an implementation and a substantive role in the project. The Academy trains and supports young people in research and creative methods such as photography, video, slam poetry, and theatre. Drawing on their local contexts, they collect and share stories and knowledge about mobility, climate, and water through presentations, debates, and cultural activities.
Read an article written by one of the researchers on our website here.
Djonya Kélé Ja Toulon – Gamers against Slavery in Mali (2021–2022)
In collaboration with Malian organisations and SOAS, the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London, V4T Académie Mali researched the practice of ‘hereditary slavery’ in Mali, with particular attention to young people’s perspectives. Young people were trained in research and visual methods and conducted fieldwork in the regions of Kayes and Macina. Based on the research, a theatre production was developed, with the possible development of a mobile video game as a next step.
For more information, visit the project’s Facebook page.
Media in Times of Multiple Crises in Mali (ongoing)
Media in Times of Multiple Crises in Mali (Médias et polycrise au Mali) is a research project by Voice4Thought in collaboration with the Hirondelle Foundation. The project examines how local journalism in Mali can continue to provide reliable and relevant information in a context of multiple crises, including conflict, humanitarian challenges, political instability, and climate change.
Researchers from V4TA Mali contribute to the preparation and implementation of the fieldwork, including through interviews and observations in different regions of Mali. The Academy also contributes to the analysis and reporting of the research findings and to the development of a podcast to share the findings more widely.
