Welcome to the Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa blog symposium where the africanlegalstudies.blog and the Law and Development Conversations Blog join forces! This symposium emerged from the early career workshop Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa: Legal Methods, Critical Perspectives, and Decolonial Approaches in the Context of Human Rights and Sustainable Development, which took place from 16–18 March 2026 at the University of Antwerp as a collaborative event organised by the Law and Development Research Group at the University of Antwerp together with the Chair of African Legal Studies at the University of Bayreuth.
Blogposts
From the bottom-up: how transitional justice is being reappropriated and used as a mobilising tool in Eastern DRC
What happens when transitional justice (TJ) moves beyond negotiated peace agreements and post-confli…
Leveraging Customs and Traditions in Addressing Child Marriages in Tanzania: An Interdisplinary Approach and Cultural Legitimacy
Introduction According to international and African regional human rights instruments, some customs …
Upholding Human Dignity in the Feed: The Case of Meta in Kenya
Introduction Every meal tells a hidden story. Seeds are prepared and sold; a farmer cultivates…
Bottom-Up Approach to Just Transition in the Mining Industry
Amid escalating impacts of climate change, energy transition is strikingly necessary to tackle clima…
A legitimacy critique of the usage of IFC Performance Standards (2012) in relation to human rights by development financiers and agencies
At the Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa Workshop, Prof. Dr Thoko Kaime presented on the …
Global tug of war in international negotiations: Global South and North standpoints on victimhood in the draft legally binding instrument
The workshop Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa brought together scholars and participants…
Revisiting ICC Convictions as a Manifestation of Power Asymmetries in Public International Law in 2026?
Introduction The workshop “Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa: Legal Methods, Critical Per…
A case for African perspectives in Law and Anthropology: beyond data and disciplinary boundaries
Introduction Emerging from the workshop Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa: Legal Methods,…
Moving Beyond Positivism and Western-Centric Thinking in Francophone Legal Academia
Decolonising legal methods begins with questioning what legal scholarship allows itself to see as la…
Symposium Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa: Setting the stage
Introduction Welcome to the Rethinking Legal Research in and with Africa blog symposium where the af…