From 11 to 13 July, the Paderborn University campus will host "Highdigenous Live! The Festival of Amazement" will take place. To give you a foretaste of this fascinating journey through music, architecture, education and work around the Sahel, Prof. Dr. Martin Schneider of Paderborn University cordially invites you to the kick-off event on 17 January at 18:00 at Paderborn University.
The event will begin with a keynote speech by Dr Yanick Kemayou, a former student and doctoral candidate at Paderborn University. In 2018, Kemayou and his wife Michèle Traoré founded the Kabakoo Academies, a learning network in Bamako, Mali and other locations in Africa. In the lecture, Kemayou explains the philosophy of Kabakoo and raises the question of how Kabakoo can be an alternative to the colonial learning organisations in Africa. Together with other participants, he then explains the idea behind the festival in July. Mamadou Koné, architect and chief restorer of the world heritage sites in Timbuktu, and Cheick Diallo, award-winning designer from Bamako, will be joining us from Mali.
During the festival, the central questions about the future of the Sahel region will be brought to life in a sensory and interactive way, including concerts, seminars, discussions and VR installations. At the opening event, which will end informally with a drink and snack, interested participants will have the opportunity to find out how they can actively participate in the festival themselves.
The Festival of Amazement is sponsored by the LWL Cultural Foundation as part of the (Post-)Colonialism programme. The Paderborn-based association Kabakoo - Häuser des Staunens (Houses of Amazement) has apparently convinced the foundation with its project. Martin Schneider, who also acts as the association's chairman, is looking forward to the project's kick-off and summarises the key questions: "Concrete is replacing building with clay and plants - but aren't these much more sustainable? Western music is strongly influenced by Malian music - can you still recognise the traces? What are colonial learning organisations and how can they be overcome? These are the kinds of questions we will be addressing in the 2024 event year. The festival invites all students and interested parties from Mali and Westphalia to take part. The festival is open to everyone - ideas and your own activities are very welcome!"
Yanick Kemayou and Michèle Traoré, who founded Kabakoo Academies as innovative learning centres, describe them as "houses of wonder" in which learners benefit from "ecosystem-based learning". Kabakoo uses globally available, state-of-the-art technologies, such as artificial intelligence in learning platforms, but is also optimised for the regional characteristics of the Sahel region. The regions on the edge of the Sahara face a variety of ecological challenges. In addition, many young people are entering the labour market, which offers little formal employment. In Kabakoo, learners identify a problem from their home country and learn how to solve local problems in groups together with experts from the international cooperation network. This enables Kabakoo to create jobs and set up small businesses where they are needed. Kemayou completed his doctorate in the subject area of economics at Paderborn University and is still a lecturer there.
Interested parties can attend the launch event on Wednesday 17 January at 18:00 in Building O, Lecture Hall O2 at Paderborn University without prior registration or take part online after registering in advance.
