News & Stories

Academy in Ghana aims to develop world leaders

Carl Kwaku Dey MBA ’21 graduated this month with not only a degree from the MIT Executive MBA (EMBA) Program, but also with plans to open a school in Ghana serving children in kindergarten through eighth grade. He’ll do so with the support of nearly 40 of his EMBA classmates, who helped with fundraising, branding, […]

Shipping Background Delivers the Chance to Feed Millions

As a high school student at a boarding school in Ghana, Chris Nikoi SM ’91 would sit by the dining hall windows and watch as ships docked in the port of Takoradi. Saturdays meant outings at the Seamen’s Centre; movie night meant boarding a ship to see the latest flick. Many of his classmates went […]

To understand race in Africa today, look to the past, panelists say

Last year protests erupted in the U.S. and parts of South America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, with the central message — Black Lives Matter. Ignited by the demonstrations for racial justice and police reform in the U.S., the protests around the world erupted in solidarity with the American cause, but took on the nuances of […]

Mobilizing the masses, one person at a time

Collective action can lead to fundamental change in societies, giving a voice to marginalized citizens and creating opportunities for greater political and economic equity. But for it to work, numbers matter. So Gabriel Nahmias is asking, “How do we get more people to engage in politics, and then how do we get those who are […]

Fellowship Opportunity: Legatum Foundry Fellowship

The Foundry Fellowship is an exciting new leadership development program for Africa-based founders who have scaled innovation-led companies. The Fellowship will bring together African leaders who have demonstrated a commitment to bringing about change through entrepreneurship and are ready to enter the next phase of their entrepreneurial journey. We are seeking 15 established entrepreneurs from Africa who have founded […]

From entrepreneur to climate policy advocate

Kiara Wahnschafft started her first company at age 16. After her classmate passed away from a drunk driving accident, Wahnschafft couldn’t stop thinking about ways technology could have saved a life. With two other students, she built a prototype for a car key that works only after the driver passes a breathalyzer test. Wahnschafft went […]

Podcast: Energy connectivity in Africa

Vera Songwe, under-secretary-general and executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, on economic development and energy connectivity in Africa.

MIT x TAU AFRICA WEBINAR SERIES

The Center for International Studies (CIS) has partnered with the newly launched TRUE Africa University (TAU) to host a webinar series focusing on various aspects of sustainable development in Africa. Thursdays at NOON ET, starting on March 4, TAU founder, MIT alumnus, and CIS research affiliate Claude Grunitzky, will interview the thinkers, shapers and doers who he sees […]

A new goal for soccer: Improving attitudes toward refugees

Across the globe, 26 million people have been displaced from their home countries by civil war, drought, political persecution, and other crises. At the same, attitudes against refugees are hardening in many countries; a 2018 survey found that 40 percent of Kenyans have heard that refugees are a security threat, and 45 percent don’t think […]