Challenges encountered when doing research back home: Perspectives from African conservation scientists in the diaspora
Por:
Mwampamba, Tuyeni H., Egoh, Benis N., Borokini, Israel, Njabo, Kevin
Publicada:
1 may 2022
Ahead of Print:
1 oct 2021
Resumen:
African conservation scientists in the diaspora are still a largely
untapped resource for conservation efforts in Africa. Institutions that
harbor diaspora scientists from Africa should view their presence,
motivation, and skills as an excellent opportunity to build strong
bridges with the continent and undercut parachute science. Yet,
parachute science is still the prominent way of doing conservation
science in Africa and it can be difficult to escape, even for Africans
working abroad and conducting research in their home countries.
Espousing an alternative model to parachute science is possible, but it
requires conscious effort and systemic changes at all scales
(individual, departmental, universities). In this perspective, we
describe six situations that help illuminate the layers of factors that
diaspora African researchers must navigate while building
cross-continental collaborations in the absence of adequate
institutional support. They include the questioning of our
``local-ness,'' accusations of nepotism, over-explaining our
intentions and dealing with the demand for ``ground-breaking and
globally relevant research.'' We propose actions and best practices
for harnessing the potential of diaspora faculty to build meaningful,
equitable and long-term research collaborations with partners in Africa.
Filiaciones:
Univ Nacl Autonoma Mexico, Inst Ecosyst & Sustainabil Res, Morelia Campus,8701 Antigua Carretera Patzcuaro, Morelia 58190, Michoacan, Mexico
Univ Calif Irvine, Dept Earth Syst Sci, Irvine, CA USA
Int Inst Trop Agr IITA Cameroon, Yaounde, Cameroon
Univ Nevada, Dept Biol, Ecol Evolut & Conservat Biol Program, Reno, NV 89557 USA
Univ Calif Los Angeles, Ctr Trop Res, Los Angeles, CA USA
Green Published, All Open Access, Gold, Green
|