Next Journalism:
uk literature

Deadline: 13 May 2011

The Financial Times is offering a three-month internship in the memory of Peter Martin, the FT’s former chief business columnist and deputy editor, who died in August 2002 at the early age of 54.

Peter was one of the very best business writers of his generation. He made an outstanding contribution to the Financial Times with his ideas, wit and humanity. As well as writing columns that sparkled with original insight, he played a key role in the international development of the paper and in the conception and expansion of its online presence with FT.com.

The Peter Martin fellow will join the leader-writing team of the FT in London for a period of three months, from mid July 2011. We are looking for someone with an excellent grounding in economics, a capacity for original thinking and an ability to write fluently and accessibly for a well-informed but non-professional readership.

Candidates should already have a good first degree; post-graduate qualifications in a relevant subject would be a bonus. Applicants should also have a strong interest in subjects that especially interested Peter: business and, in particular, the economic impact of technological change.

The successful candidate will work under the supervision of Martin Wolf, Chief Economics Commentator, and Jonathan Ford, Chief Leader Writer. A bursary of £5,000 to cover travel and accommodation will be made.

Candidates should email a curriculum vitae and a draft editorial of 500 words on an economics or business topic, to pmfellow@ft.com. The closing date for applications is 13 May 2011.

Contact Information:

For inquiries: pmfellow@ft.com

For submissions: pmfellow@ft.com

Website: http://www.ft.com

Deadline: 3 May 2011

The Itupale Online Journal of African Studies will be hosting an Academic Workshop on Saturday 7th May 2011. The theme for the Workshop relates to Volume IV of the Journal, which will be published in 2012.

The Workshop features a Panel Discussion in the morning, and Small Group Discussions in the afternoon. More details on each session can be found below. Lunch will also be provided.

Please Note: Limited Places

There are only 25 places available on a first-come-first-served basis, and the terms of Itupale's funding means that priority must be given to African students studying in the UK. However, we also have a small number of places available for any UK-based post-graduate students working in an area related to African Studies.

The deadline for registration is Tuesday 3rd May 2011. To register, please e-mail Dr Sacha DeVelle: itupale@cambridgetoafrica.org

Itupale is able to cover reasonable travel expenses for African students living outside of Cambridgeshire.

If you have any enquiries, then please feel free to get in touch with our Administration Officer, Sundeep Athwal: sundeep@cambridgetoafrica.org

Itupale Academic Writing Workshop
'The Millennium Development Goals:
Directions and Results in Sub-Saharan Africa'
Saturday 7th May 2011
11.00am - 4.00pm
The Pavilion, Hughes Hall,
University of Cambridge

Contact Information:

For inquiries: sundeep@cambridgetoafrica.org

For submissions: register by emailing itupale@cambridgetoafrica.org

Website: http://www.cambridgetoafrica.org/

Deadline: 13 June 2011

Many crucial issues facing the developing world are often overlooked or underrepresented by the media. The Guardian International Development Journalism competition 2011 aims to highlight some of them. We are searching for enthusiastic writers who want to demonstrate their journalistic abilities by examining these issues.

The competition, in partnership with a group of UK-based international non-governmental organisations (NGOs) – is now in its fourth year, building on the successes of 2008, 2009 and 2010.

The NGOs are Marie Stopes International, CARE International UK, The David Rattray Memorial Trust (UK), Direct Relief International, FHI, International Childcare Trust, Malaria Consortium, Plan UK, and Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture.

The competition is sponsored by Barclays and GlaxoSmithKline.

The challenge is to write a feature of 650 to 1,000 words by 10 June on an aspect of global poverty that deserves greater media exposure. The 16 best writers (eight amateur, eight professional) will be selected from a longlist of around 40 entrants, all of whom will have their articles published online at guardian.co.uk.

The 16 finalists will be flown to a developing country to research a new assignment. The finalist pieces will then be published in two Guardian newspaper supplements, after the announcement of the two winners at an awards ceremony in November 2011.

Theme

To enter the competition, you need to write a 650-1,000 word feature on one of the 16 themes listed below.

The page for each theme listed tells you more about the subject, giving background information on the theme, guidance on writing about it and some initial links to help your research. This is the brief.

Make sure that you follow this brief. You can interpret the theme in whatever way you think fit, but should not veer off the subject or your entry will not be accepted.

# Aids orphans and the challenges they face
# Can empowering women end poverty?
# Can long-term disaster recovery lead to improved healthcare?
# Early marriage: what is the right age for a girl to become a woman?
# Emergency Preparedness - how do prepared areas fare better post-disaster?
# From small farmers to big levers: how can smallholders best link up to improve their livelihoods?
# Gender inequality and limitations in impoverished areas
# Increasing access to anti-malaria drugs in sub-Saharan Africa. The role of community change agents
# Long-term disaster response in impoverished areas
# Making the small scale businessman a behavioural change agent for malaria control in Africa
# Socio-cultural barriers to family planning
# The challenges faced by disabled girls
# The impact of unsafe abortions on MDG 5: Improve maternal health
# What are the challenges and the long-term importance of providing shelter after emergencies?
# What role, if any, should the private sector / multinationals play in development?
# What stops children in rural areas going to school?
# Why are Neglected Tropical Diseases neglected?
# Youth unemployment: what future?

How to enter the awards

All you need to do is write a 650-1000 word article on an aspect of global poverty covered by the themes set, and upload it using our online entry form. The entry period closes on Monday 13 June 2011.

FAMILIARISE yourself with the Guardian and guardian.co.uk. Online, the Katine and the Global Development section of the site provides a good template of the sort of writing the Guardian values.

Judging criteria What the judges will be looking for, particularly in the first round of the competition:

• Clear and concise argument based on the chosen theme
• Supported by factual evidence
• That your piece meets the theme brief
• A piece that "lives" to the reader. Does it feel real? Are the people or situations described vivid and believable to the audience?
• No patronising or sensationalist statements
• Sense that the writer has understood the subject
• Accessible to people who don't know much about the subject.
• Good writing skills, grammatically correct with an absence of jargon
• Readable from a journalistic perspective

Entry guidance

Additional/support material

Please do not send any additional material with your entry

Tips

• Familiarise yourself with the Guardian and guardian.co.uk. This will give you an idea of what we are looking for in terms of tone, style and content.

• Numerous styles of journalism – comment, news reports, personal testimonies – can come under the rubric of development journalism. For the purpose of this competition, however, we are looking for features.

• Don't be sensationalistic or use hyperbolic, objectifying language. Be measured and objective, even if you are writing about a situation that makes you angry. The experience of one person – however interesting – may not be representative of the situation.

• If you are going to write about something that is very controversial, or has not had any publicity in the UK before, you should be able to back up your facts through at least two unimpeachable sources.

• Although many people will have been to the countries they write about, it is not essential to writing a good piece for this competition. One of last year's finalists compared a situation she knew about in the UK with the developing world.

• Make sure you stick to the theme and keep to the maximum word count of 1,000 words.

• Ask someone else to proofread your story. Typos and grammatical errors are a big turn-off for judges and editors.

• One way in which last year's amateur entries stood out from the professionals was in energy, passion and enthusiasm. If you are a professional, we don't want to read cynicism and world-weariness.

Entry to the 2011 International Development Journalism competition opens on Tuesday, 3 May.

Contact Information:

For submissions: click here

Website: http://www.guardian.co.uk

Africa – ‘African local intellectuals’ strand – call for papers

The aim of this strand of the journal is to introduce and analyse texts – whether oral, manuscript or print – produced by authors outside the literary or academic mainstream. Such texts might include notebooks, diaries, letters, local works of history, philosophy or literature, performed or written poetry, newspaper serials and a host of other forms.

To coincide with the journal’s move to journal Cambridge University Press in 2011, we are taking this opportunity to re-launch the ‘African local intellectuals’ strand and invite further contributions.

This rich seam of intellectual work is increasingly becoming a focus of attention by historians, anthropologists and literary scholars. Texts such as these constitute an archive of local thought and experience, experiment and commentary. They shed a fascinating light on life ‘on the ground’ in Africa, past and present. But the texts themselves are rarely accessible outside the local context of their production. As the series develops, the journal will be building up an on-line repository of texts to which scholars and researchers can return over the years.

The preferred format is an introductory essay of approximately 5000 words and a sample text (with translation if relevant) also of approximately 5000 words, for the print version of the journal; plus a longer text – there is no formal word limit – appropriately edited and annotated by the contributing scholar, for the online archive.

For further details, contact iai-africa@contacts.bham.ac.uk

Deadline: 29 April 2011

READ International, a student-led educational charity that distributes textbooks to secondary schools in East Africa, is delighted to announce the official launch of the 2011 Read for READ Anthology Competition, on World Book Day, 3rd March.

The Read for READ Anthology 2011 is a unique short story competition for young, socially motivated aspiring writers, and will be launched with support from the British Library. To celebrate the endless possibilities that can derive from a single book, the theme of the anthology this year is ‘The Book Effect’, and will be a collection of stories that focus on inspiration and motivation.

Entrants can submit their story for free in the Read for READ competition, get the chance to have it judged by some of the best in the industry and be published in the anthology alongside established authors and other aspiring writers. Writers that get through to the second round of the competition will have their stories published on the READ website and will battle it out for public votes. Each vote token will cost 50 pence, the cost for READ International of sending a book to a child in Africa.

As Rob Wilson, founder of READ International, says ‘It never costs READ International more than 50 pence to move one book from a UK classroom into the hands of a Tanzanian or Ugandan school child or teacher’. With over three thousand pounds raised by voting cast by the public in 2010, the Read for READ anthology raised the potential to send 1500 books to East Africa. demonstrating how a love of reading and writing in the UK can directly enable more reading and writing amongst students in East Africa.

In anticipation of sending our one millionth book to East Africa this year, the Read for READ Anthology completes the circle of young aspiring writers and global citizens encouraging a new generation of readers and writers to become more socially engaged.

Sonny Leong founder of Cavendish Publishing and Hon. President of the IPG said, “The Read for READ competition is an aspiring initiative for anyone who wants to put pen to paper, realising a dream to be published and at the same time helping thousands of East African students reach their potential.”

Guidelines:

Do you love to write? Have you always dreamt of having your work published?

READ International is offering a once in a lifetime chance to make the dreams of aspiring writers a reality.

What is Read for READ?

Read for READ 2011 is READ International's second annual exciting story competition aimed at young, aspiring writers. It will be launched on World Book Day 2011 on Thursday 3rd March, supported by The British Library, and will result in the production of a published anthology bringing together the work of aspiring and established authors.

By entering the competition, young aspiring writers will have the chance to have their writing judged by some of the best in the industry, be published in an exciting short story anthology alongside established authors whilst helping raise valuable funds to improve education in Tanzania and Uganda, inspiring the next generation of young global citizens.

How can I enter?

The theme of the competition this year is ‘The Book Effect’.

At the heart of READ International’s work in the UK and East Africa is the potential for books and education to empower, motivate and inspire young people to achieve development, drive their communities forward and make change in their world. In this competition we would like you, as aspiring writers, to write a short story on this theme. It can be the subject of the writing itself or the characters within which create 'The Book Effect' and it is up to you to explore this in your entry. Be creative as you want with the theme, and then put pen to paper and enter it into our competition for free, starting your own 'Book Effect'.

For some inspiration and to see our own take on ‘The Book Effect’ click here.

To enter, write a short story of no more than 5000 words and be as creative as you like! Enter between the launch of the competition on 3rd March and the closing date on 29th April 2011. You can enter online by filling in the online Submission Form here or by sending in your printed typescript story to us, along with a signed Postal Entry Form, to READ International, 39-41 Coldharbour Lane, Camberwell, London, SE5 9NR.

Who can enter?

Anybody over the age of 16 from anywhere in the world can enter the competition.

How does it work?

Writers that get through the initial story screening will have their stories published on the READ website for 2 months, from 10th May until 10th July 2011 and will battle it out for public votes. There are no limits to the amount of votes that can be cast, and each vote token will cost 50 pence, the cost for READ International to send one book to a school student in East Africa.

The ten stories with the most votes will then go through to the final, where our panel of expert judges will pick the winners who will be published in our Read for READ Anthology 2011 alongside stories donated by established and successful authors.

Our panel of established judges includes Scarlett Thomas, an established novelist and short story writer whose works have been translated into more than 20 languages. Shortlisted for the South African Boeke Prize and longlisted for the Orange Prize, Scarlett now teaches Creative Writing at the University of Kent, and is working on her ninth novel, The Seed Collectors'. Further judges are currently being confirmed.

How can I increase my chances of winning the competition?

Provided your story makes it to the second round you will have a great chance to influence whether or not your story makes it through to the final round to be read and judged by some of the most experienced members of the publishing and literary world. It's in your hands!

You can use Read for READ as a platform to promote your work. Harness the power of social networking sites like Facebook, Bebo and Myspace, and get everyone you know, from friends, to your mum, to your next-door-neighbour, to visit the site and vote for your story.

What is the prize?

Our panel of judges will pick three winning stories from the ten most-voted-for stories that make it to the final. The prize will be publication of the winner’s stories in the Read for READ Anthology, alongside stories donated by established authors.

The anthology will be promoted and sold through our partner organisations, including expert online book seller Better World Books.

Our supporters at the British Library will host a celebratory event to honour the winners. The winners will also have the chance to meet the judges and established authors at this event.

For more details please have a look at the competition terms and conditions.

Any queries? Contact abi.colley@readinternational.org.uk

Submissions form >>

Deadline: 16 March 2011 (Korea)

Before making an application you should visit the local British Embassy or High Commission or British Council office website, where any details about how the scheme will run locally will soon be published; including if the Chevening programme is running in your country, any local guidance or criteria, as well as application opening and closing dates.

You can apply for a Chevening scholarship using our online application system eChevening. Remember that Chevening scholarships are prestigious and sought after awards aimed at extremely capable individuals who have already made an impact and are motivated to pursue a career that will take them to a position of leadership within their own country.

What is the Chevening Programme?

The Chevening programme has, over 26 years, provided more than 30,000 Scholarships at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the UK for postgraduate students or researchers from countries across the world.

Largely funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Scholarship scheme also receives significant contributions from HEIs and other organisations in the UK, and from a wide range of overseas sponsors including governmental and private sector bodies, with which the FCO or its overseas Posts have partnership agreements.

The programme is managed by the British Council, on behalf of the FCO, both in the UK and overseas.

The Embassy will accept applications for scholarships to study in the following fields. We will not fund English language courses, such as TEFL. MBA programmes are also not a priority for this scheme:

* Politics
* International Affairs
* Law fields, including human rights and international law
* Climate Change/Energy
* Development Studies
* Public Administration
* Corporate Governance/Fighting Corruption
* Finance/Economics
* Science
* Media Studies

Applications for the scheme must be submitted online by 16 March 2011. You must apply online through the online Chevening application site.

Frequently Asked Questions

2010-2011 CHEVENING CALENDAR

Chevening scheme opened: 31 January

Deadline for submitting application: 16 March

Sifting applications: 17 March - 6 April

Interviews: Throughout April

Candidates informed: Mid-May

What are Chevening scholarships?

Chevening scholarships are a prestigious worldwide scholarship programme, funded by the British Government. About 2,000 scholars and fellows from around the world receive awards to study in the UK each year. The Chevening scholarship scheme aims to provide opportunities for potential leaders, decision makers and opinion formers to study in the UK so they can contribute to the future development of their country.

What does a successful scholar look like?

There is no such thing as a 'typical' Chevening scholar! Successful scholars are very diverse - former scholars include senior civil servants, lawyers, specialists in human rights, politicians, business people and journalists. What they have in common is the potential to be leaders in their fields.

What can I study?

Chevening scholarships are awarded for one-year Masters level postgraduate courses. We do not award scholarships for undergraduate programmes. We will only consider postdoctoral study in exceptional circumstances. We will not fund students who have already started their course in the UK, for example, the second year of a Masters degree or the second/third years of postdoctoral research.

The Embassy will accept applications for scholarships to study in the following fields. We will not fund English language courses, such as TEFL:

* Politics
* International Affairs
* Law fields, including human rights and international law
* Climate Change/Energy
* Development Studies
* Public Administration
* Corporate Governance/Fighting Corruption
* Finance/Economics
* Science
* Media Studies (including Journalism, New Media & Mass Communications)

Where can I study?

Chevening scholarships are awarded for study in universities in the United Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) only.

Who can apply?

It is our policy to provide equal opportunity to all who are eligible for the programme on the basis of ability and qualifications. Applications from all qualified persons, including women, members of minority ethnic groups and people with disabilities are therefore welcome.

In order to apply for a Chevening Scholarship you should meet the following general conditions:

Condition 1 - you must not be a British Citizen (although dual nationals will be considered on a case by case basis).

Condition 2 - you must have at least one qualification at degree level or equivalent.

Current or recent employees of the British Embassy and the British Council are not eligible.

English Language Requirements

Applicants need to have a very good standard of English to benefit from study in the UK. British universities will expect a minimum IELTS score of 6.5. You should submit evidence of your language ability with your Chevening scholarship application. IELTS score is preferred but TOEFL (minimum 100) will also be accepted. If your previous degree was taught entirely in English, this will usually serve as evidence of your ability.

Apply online via eChevening.

Deadline: 15 May 2011

AiM 2011 SHORT FILM COMPETITION

Call for Submissions to the 2011 Short Film Competition

African filmmakers are invited to submit short films of no longer than 30 minutes for Africa in Motion’s prestigious annual short film competition, to which a substantial cash prize is attached.

The competition specifically targets young and emerging African film talent; filmmakers who enter must not have completed a feature-length film previously. We call for short films on all themes and of all genres (including fiction, documentary, animation and experimental work) completed in 2009 or later. The aim of Africa in Motion’s short film competition is to nurture and support young and new filmmakers from all over the continent in the knowledge that making films can be a real challenge and we hope that the prize will be invested in future projects by the filmmaker.

A shortlist from all the entries will be announced by the end of August 2011. A high profile jury of local and international film specialists and established African filmmakers will choose the competition winner, to be announced during the festival (27 Oct to 6 Nov 2011).

All shortlisted films will be screened at the festival. In addition to the overall winner selected by the jury there will be an audience choice award announced at an awards ceremony at the end of the festival in November 2011. Please read the complete guidelines and regulations carefully before submitting your film.

Please post the following by 15 May 2011:

□ 3 copies of the film on DVD

□ 3 copies of the entry form, completed and signed

□ promotional material (press pack, stills, trailer etc.) on CD

Send to:

Africa in Motion Film Festival
6 East Bay
North Queensferry
Fife KY11 1JX
UNITED KINGDOM

The deadline for short film competition entries is Friday 15th May 2011. Please read the full submission guidelines and regulations below, and to download the entry form, scroll down.

AFRICA IN MOTION SHORT FILM COMPETITION: SUBMISSION GUIDELINES AND REGULATIONS

We accept entries from all filmmakers of African nationality working in Africa or abroad. We prioritise directors who are African nationals because we wish to specifically promote indigenous African cinema and to encourage and support African filmmakers. Under ‘Africa’ we regard all countries on the African continent, plus the islands surrounding the continent: Madagascar, Mauritius, Reunion, Seychelles, Canaries, Cape Verde, etc.

We are particularly interested in giving exposure to young, emerging African filmmakers living and working in Africa. To this end, filmmakers who enter a film for consideration must not have completed a feature-length film previously.

Films entered can be of any theme or genre; fiction, documentary, animation or experimental, and shot in any format.

Only recent films directed by filmmakers of African nationality will be accepted. The film must have been completed in 2009 or after and could have been screened on television, at festivals and in cinemas previously.

Films should be no longer than 30 minutes.

We will only accept films in English or with English subtitles (the dialogue could be in any language). Participants are responsible for all translation and subtitling.

Viewing copies should be on DVD (any region). All films submitted should be accompanied by a completed entry form and all viewing copies should be clearly labeled with the title of the film and name of the director. Please submit three DVD viewing copies as well as three copies of the completed entry form.

Viewing copies and promotional materials submitted cannot be returned to the sender and will be stored in our festival archive. These are kept exclusively for research and non-commercial purposes. Africa in Motion has the right to digitise or duplicate films for internal usage and press purposes.

All deliveries from outside the European Union should be marked with the phrase “no commercial value – for cultural purposes only”. Applicants are responsible for the cost of posting the entry forms and viewing copies to us. Please note that packages arriving with outstanding courier or custom fees will be refused by the festival office.

The completed entry forms and viewing copies should reach us not later than 15 May 2011. There is no entry fee. Likewise, Africa in Motion will not pay any screening fee for selected short films to be screened in the festival.

We welcome stills, press releases and other promotional materials to accompany entries, which we might use for promotional purposes. These materials can be sent on CD with the DVDs and entry forms. Digital stills can be emailed to submissions@africa-in-motion.org.uk with the title of your film in the subject box. Digital stills submitted should be in JPEG format and must be at least 300 dpi and no less than 500KB.

By submitting your film to the Africa in Motion short film competition, the copyright holder of your film authorises the festival to make clips of a maximum of three minutes available on online broadcast channels (such as the Africa in Motion tv channel and other online channels affiliated to the festival). The purpose of this is solely to promote the festival and your film.

We will contact all applicants at the end of August 2011. If your film is shortlisted we will get in touch with you to arrange for a screening copy to be sent to us. Screening copies should be on a professional exhibition format such as Betacam SP, Digibeta, DV CAM or HD CAM. Participants are responsible for the cost of sending the screening copies to the festival by courier. The festival will cover the cost of returning/forwarding screening copies. The distributor of the film agrees to work with the festival organisers and the staff at Filmhouse cinema in order to ensure the timely transport of the film before the festival. Only copies in a good state of projection will be accepted.

The director and the beneficiaries of the submitted film undertake not to withdraw the film from the competition as of the announcement of the festival programme in September 2011.

Africa in Motion wishes to promote, support and accompany a selection of the short films on a touring programme in the UK immediately following the main festival in Edinburgh. The festival has the right to screen these films free of charge on the Tour, and undertakes to inform the director and producer of the film in advance.

Please note that the only competition strand at this year’s festival is the short film competition. Films submitted for the feature-length programme will be outwith competition.

Three copies of the completed entry forms, three viewings copies on DVD and a CD with promotional materials should be posted by 15 May 2011 to:

Africa in Motion Film Festival
6 East Bay
North Queensferry
Fife KY11 1JX
UNITED KINGDOM

If you have any queries regarding the submission guidelines and regulations, please email the festival directors Lizelle Bisschoff and Stefanie Van de Peer at submissions@africa-in-motion.org.uk.

To enter, please download, print and complete the 3-page entry form: PDF or Word

Black Rainbow Poetry (BRP) began in September 2009. The poetry group was set up to unite writers across the globe to share their passion with others. BRP hosts regular poetry competitions, allows writers to share, post and talk about poetry on the on-line facebook group with over 500 members.

BRP was founded by Ijeoma Jacqueline Okoli, a London born writer, spoken-word performer and teacher, who has been writing poetry since the age of 11. Ijeoma hopes that BRP will enable new and talented writers to get their voices heard.

We are currently looking for creative individuals to take part in the Black Rainbow Poetry writing project for 2011. For your chance to get your poem, song, lyric or verse published. Email info@blackrainbowpoetry.co.uk to find out more info! Know someone who should be published? Send us their details for their chance to be in print.

Deadline: 14 February 2011

Comic Relief is inviting tenders from interested parties to undertake a review of the literature on the African Diaspora based in the UK and their role in international development.

Expressions of interest should be sent to: Rupal Mistry at r.mistry@comicrelief.com no later than 14 February 2010.

Purpose and Objective

The primary objective of this consultancy is to provide Comic Relief with a detailed picture of the research undertaken and literature published to date on the African Diaspora in the UK and their role in international development in sub-Saharan Africa.

This consultancy will enable Comic Relief to build a picture of the international development activities of the African Diaspora in the UK and will feed into other elements of the Common Ground Initiative, in particular the communications and advocacy and influencing work. It is intended that this work will form the first phase of a longer study and will provide the basis for the commissioning of a series of more focused studies.

Methodology

The work will be desk based. The consultant will review research and latest evidence from academic, political and non-government sectors, synthesise and critique the findings, and highlight areas requiring further investigation. It is also suggested that the consultant hold short interviews with key informants to build up an understanding of the anecdotal evidence within the sector of the role played by the UK based African Diaspora in international development.

Areas to be explored through the literature review:

* The different ways in which the African Diaspora in the UK are organised, grouped, clustered or networked and whether or not there are any similarities in approaches to development based on typology
* The kind of development related activities African Diaspora in the UK are engaged in - thematic areas of implementation, e.g. remittance, business, service delivery (health, education etc), and the different approaches being used
* The scale of this activity – local or community based, district, national, and specific regions across the continent
* The ways in which they are working with communities in Africa – the types of relationships they build
* The level of engagement that the African Diaspora in the UK groups or individuals have with other stakeholders, communities in the UK and Africa, other NGO’s, governments, policymakers
* Examples of best international practice – in terms of relationships, activities, governance
* The level of interest, engagement and support of politicians and policymakers in relation to the “Diaspora and Development” agenda
* Any specific policy- level changes (both in the UK and in Africa) driven by the African Diaspora based in the UK
* The type of funding that UK based Diaspora entities have accessed

Deliverables

A detailed literature review report (maximum 30 pages, plus executive summary and annexes) structured as:

* Executive summary of key findings and recommendations
* Methodology
* Key Findings –in relation to areas to be explored, what is known, ongoing research and donor initiatives
* What don't we know: information and research gaps, differences of opinion/ current debates
* Implications for Comic Relief and its stakeholders
* Conclusions and recommendations – summary of findings, suggested further actions for donors, practitioners and researchers
* Appendices – List of articles and reports reviewed

The Consultant should submit the final report in both hard copy and electronic versions.

Timeframe

The consultancy will take place between March and May 2011. The draft report should be received by Comic Relief within 30 working days of the commencement of the consultancy with an additional month to receive comments and finalise the report.

Required qualifications and skills

Contractors would need to have:

* Ideally a postgraduate level qualification in relevant discipline
* An understanding of migration and international development
* Experience of working with BME communities in the UK
* Good analytical skills and attention to detail
* Ability to communicate effectively in English, both verbally and in writing

Comic Relief is committed to diversity in all of our contracts and tenders. The successful contractor will be expected to uphold the principles of respect and open engagement throughout their work with us.

Date: 19 February 2011

LSE Space for Thought Literary Festival creative writing workshop

Time: 12-1pm
Venue: Alumni Theatre, New Academic Building
Speaker: Lauri Kubuitsile

Lauri Kubuitsile will speak about the publishing climate in Southern Africa (in particular Botswana and South Africa) and how it’s different from the UK. She’ll also talk about writing across genres including television writing, writing for children, writing short stories and writing for adults.

Lauri Kubuitsile is a full time writer in Botswana. She has thirteen published books including those for children, young adults and adults, and her short stories have appeared in publications on four continents. She has written two television series for Botswana Television: Morwalela and Re Bina Mmogo II . Her writing prizes include the Golden Baobab Literary Prize (USA) -the junior category in 2009 and the senior category in 2010, the BTA/AngloPlatinum Short Story Contest (South Africa- 2007) and the Botswana Ministry of Youth, Sports, and Culture’s Orange Botswerere Prize for Creative Writing (2007). She was chosen as a writer in residence in El Gouna Egypt for the month of May 2010. She writes a weekly column called It’s All Write about books and writing in the Botswana national newspaper The Voice and she blogs at Thoughts from Botswana.

Registration

This event is free and open to all, but pre-registration is required. Pre-registration will be possible via this webpage from Monday 31 January.

From time to time there are changes to event details so we strongly recommend that if you plan to attend this event you check back on this listing on the day of the event.

CPD

This event has been certified for CPD purposes by the Continuing Professional Development Certification Service. It is the responsibility of delegates to register their details with a LSE event steward at the event in order to obtain a CPD certificate of attendance. If a delegate fails to register their details at the event, it will not prove possible to issue a certificate. Certificates of attendance will be emailed out within 10 working days of the event.

If you are planning to attend this event and would like details on how to get here and what time to arrive, please refer to Coming to an event at LSE

Date: 31 January 2011

EC Osondu, winner of the 2009 Caine Prize, reads from his debut collection of short stories, Voice of America. Set in Nigeria and America, the subjects of these stories range from the poverty of a refugee camp to the disorienting experience of immigrant life in a new world. Focusing on village communities and the bustling metropolis, Osondu's writing is shot through with humour, pathos and wisdom.

The event is chaired by Bernardine Evaristo, author of Soul Tourists and Blonde Routes.

'Osondu looks at the human condition in all its poignant absurdity; with observant wonder and subtle humour.' (Mary Gaitskill)

In association with African Writers' Series.

31 January 2011, 7:45pm