The African Critical Inquiry Programme is pleased to announce the 2026 Ivan Karp Doctoral Research Awards to support African doctoral students in the humanities and humanistic social sciences and invites proposals from scholars and/or practitioners in public cultural institutions in South Africa to organise a workshop to take place in 2027. ACIP is a partnership between the Centre for Humanities Research at the University of the Western Cape and the Laney Graduate School of Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia (USA).

We are delighted to announce that the Centre for Humanities Research and the University of the Western Cape have signed two historic memoranda of understanding with Compagnie Sogolon, Bamako, Mali, and Iziko Museums of South Africa.

The African Critical Inquiry Programme has named Maja Jakarasi as recipient of the 2025 Ivan Karp Doctoral Research Award. Jakarasi, a Zimbabwean student in the Anthropology Department, is working on his PhD at the University of the Western Cape. Support from ACIP’s Ivan Karp Award will allow Jakarasi to pursue significant research for his dissertation.

The CHR is pleased to announce that applications for the 2026 African Critical Inquiry Programme (ACIP) workshop and Doctoral Research awards for 2025 are now open.