Webinar: Decolonising the university: Why?
Friday 16 April 2021
5pm - 6pm
Emmanuel Akerele, President (Education and Welfare) will be joined by RGU Lecturer, Dr Linda Harms-Smith to discuss and examine the concept of “decoloniality” and its critical importance within the Higher Education Sector.
There is currently a lot of debate around this topic nationally, and especially within the UK higher education sector, and this event will bring forward arguments about the problems of ongoing coloniality and the importance of decoloniality in the pursuit of social justice and the elimination of race inequality. It is not only about changing a curriculum; it must be about genuine transformation.
Dr Linda Harms-Smith
Linda Harms-Smith is a lecturer in Social Work in the School of Applied Social Studies. Her research and scholarly work focus on decoloniality; social justice; anti-racism; ideology; human rights; and the role of social movements. She is a founding member of the RGU Race Equality Network; a member of RGU’s Equality and Diversity Forum; part of the School’s Anti-Racist Action Group; a Steering Committee member of the Social Work Action Network (a radical national and international social work network); organising member of Stand up to Racism (SUTR) North East Scotland and is African Regional Editor of the Critical and Radical Social Work Journal.
As a South African living in Scotland, her academic, practice and political background is shaped by the ongoing legacy of the oppressive Apartheid regime as a project of racist capitalism. She is committed to work around Disrupting Coloniality; Decoloniality in higher education; challenging racism at all levels; and activism towards social justice. She has published widely in these areas and collaborates with role-players in these fields locally and internationally.
Emmanuel Akerele
Emmanuel Akerele is President (Education and Welfare) and Vice-Chair of the Trustee Board at RGU:Union. Considered to be an emerging international thought leader in critical inclusive leadership, he is a founding member of the Black Liberation Network which is a network of RGU students coming together to take a stand against racism and all forms of injustices. He led the successful delivery of #RGUBlackHistoryMonth2020. Emmanuel is also the current Ethnicity Lead for the Scottish Students Sports Equality Steering Group.
Apart from Equality and Diversity, Emmanuel is passionate about enhancement, student engagement and partnership. His recent work with reps founded Chat Comment Change, a campaign for student engagement as experts in the student experience. He is a strong voice within the Scottish Higher Education sector maintaining an active role in sector engagements, activities and discussions as an active member of the SPARQS’ National Education Officers’ Network (NEON), QAA Enhancement theme, Advance HE anti-racism campaign and very recently worked with the National Union of Students and the Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science to ensure that the Scottish Government Winter Discretionary fund was open to all higher education students no matter where they are from.
Emmanuel received the ‘Pride in Partnership’ award 2020 for his contributions to engagement and partnership amongst several other awards.
To find out more visit rguunion.co.uk or email: presew@rguunion.co.uk