Yunana Ahmed is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English at Gombe State University, Nigeria. He earned his Ph.D. in Rhetoric, Theory, and Culture from Michigan Technological University in the United States and holds both an MA and BA in English Language from Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. Additionally, he completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation at Makerere University, Uganda. Dr. Ahmed has been awarded several prestigious fellowships, including the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS), African Humanities Postdoctoral Fellowship with Residency at Rhodes University, South Africa, the Fulbright Scholarship at Michigan State University, and the Rotary Peace Fellowship at the Makerere Rotary Peace Center. His research focuses on political rhetoric, crisis communication, and peace linguistics. He has also initiated and implemented various community projects aimed at peacebuilding, such as "Meeting on Education Respect, Resilience, and Inclusion," supported by the Public Diplomacy Section, U.S. Mission in Nigeria, and "Promoting Peace Education through Tolerance, Respect, and Inclusion," supported by the State2State USAID activity, among others.

Mohammed Seid Ali, PhD, is an Associate Professor at the Department of Political Science and International Studies at Bahir Dar University, Ethiopia. He also serves as the Head of Water Governance at Blue Nile Institute, Bahir Dar University. Dr. Ali is also a permanent academic staff member of the Department of Political Science and International Studies at Bahir Dar University. He offers key undergraduate and graduate program courses such as Political Philosophy and Theory, Africa and the Global Political Economy, International Relations, African Politics, and Global Governance. Dr Ali has also been a visiting presidential scholar at the African Studies Centre at the University of Michigan in 2021. With a diverse and interdisciplinary academic background in Philosophy, Law, Political Science, and Political Economy, his research interests encompass Political Philosophy and Theory, African and global political economy, International Relations, Global Governance, Political Institutions, Migration, and refugee studies. He has recently concluded his short research visit under the Coimbra Group Scholarship Programme at KU Leuven, Belgium. He has won 2 Erasmus Mundus Staff Mobility Fellowships (University of Sivas, Turkey, April 2024, and ISS, Hague, Netherlands, April 2025). In addition to his ongoing professional contribution as an associate editor of the Ethiopian Journal of Social Science, he works in the African Politics Conference Group at the American Political Science Association (APSA).

Eugenia Ama Breba Anderson is a Lecturer and Gender Historian affiliated with the Department of History and Political Studies at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. She holds an MPhil and PhD in Historical Studies, specialising in the gender question in Social Movements in Africa through the lens of student activism. She is an interdisciplinary researcher who employs methods from history, historiography, gender studies, and ethnography. Her expertise centres on the use of oral sources and archival documents. Her research interest is focused on women's leadership in higher education institutions, student activism, women and gender-based violence, religious activism, and decolonisation studies. She is currently also a postdoctoral researcher on the DANIDA-sponsored project Multiple Waterscapes in Urban Ghana (MUWUG). She was a Queen Elizabeth Scholarship Fellow at Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada (June-September 2024). She has conducted the postdoctoral research project Decolonization and Student Activism in the Postcolonial African University: Knowledge Production, Agency, and Critical Voices (Oct 2022-Sep 2023), funded by a Mellon Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ghana and was also part of a Feminist Africa Research Consortium on religious digital activism in Africa (2022-2025).

Imomotimi Armstrong is a Researcher in the Department of English and Literary Studies, Niger Delta University, Wilberforce Island, Nigeria, where he also teaches courses in African literature and popular culture. He received a PhD in African-language literature in 2020 from Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa. Armstrong's research interests include African folklore, oral literature, and popular music, with particular emphasis on the function(s) these cultural forms play in the Ịjọ community in Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta region. His research, some of which has been supported by the African Humanities Programme (AHP), Nigeria's Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND), and South Africa's National Research Foundation (NRF), has recently appeared in Journal of the African Literature Association, Journal of the Musical Arts in Africa, Africa Today, English Studies in Africa, Journal of African Media Studies, Tydskrif vir Letterkunde, and elsewhere.

Beza Dessalegn (PhD) is an Assistant Professor at the Institute for Peace and Security Studies, Addis Ababa University. He holds a strong academic background in law and Human Rights, with a particular focus on the intersections of peace, human rights, and federalism. His primary research interests include minority rights, federalism, human rights, transitional justice, and multi-level governance. Dr. Dessalegn has published on a range of issues related to Ethiopia's federal system, including the legal and institutional frameworks governing local government, electoral laws, and the protection of minority rights. His work contributes to ongoing debates on the structure and reform of governance in Ethiopia, particularly in the context of conflict transformation and democratization.

In addition to his academic work, he has been actively engaged in policy discussions and has provided expert input on governance-related issues in Ethiopia.

Dr Rosemary Chikafa-Chipiro is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Creative Media and Communication at the University of Zimbabwe. She is also a writer and a poet. She holds a PhD in Film and English Literature from the University of Zimbabwe. She has published on gender, media, and politics, film and literature, with a primary focus on representations of black women, southern feminist solidarities, alternative public spheres, and postcolonial identities. She has held catalyst fellowships at the Centre of African Studies at the University of Edinburgh and the African Studies Centre at the University of Oxford, through which she critiqued the African feminist movement in Zimbabwe through networks with gender organisations working on GBV and child marriages. She has recently been appointed to the Board of Trustees of the Institute of Creative Arts for Progress in Africa (ICAPA Trust), which curates the International Images Film Festival for Women in Zimbabwe, among other creative economy initiatives.

Dr. Ifeyinwa Chukwuokoro teaches at the Department of English and Literary Studies, Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki. She obtained a BA (honours) in English from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, a Postgraduate Diploma in Education from the National Teachers' Institute, Kaduna, an MA from Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, and a PhD in Pragmatics and Political Discourse from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Her research interests lie in discourse analysis and pragmatics, with a specific focus on conflict and political discourses. Her research findings have been read at many academic conferences and featured in reputable journals and books.

Building on the findings of this research, Dr. Chukwuokoro plans to expand her work on political discourse, security communication, and governance in Nigeria and Africa. A key future goal is to develop a comprehensive framework for transparent crisis communication, offering guidelines for policymakers and security agencies on effective and ethical counterinsurgency narratives. Additionally, she aims to establish a research network on language, security, and policy to foster collaboration among linguists, political scientists, and security experts. This network will facilitate interdisciplinary studies on discourse strategies in governance and conflict resolution.

In the next five years, Dr. Chukwuokoro aims to secure two more research grants from a reputable institution to advance her career in discourse analysis and policy communication, publish a book on discourse strategies in conflict, lead interdisciplinary research projects on security communication, and develop policy recommendations that influence national and regional peacebuilding efforts in Africa.

Getnet Tesfaw Demise (PhD) is an Assistant Professor of Social Psychology at Wollo University in the Department of Psychology. He earned his PhD in Social Psychology from Addis Ababa University, where he also completed his Bachelor's degree in Educational Psychology and his Master's degree in Social Psychology. Dr. Getnet has been serving at Wollo University since November 2007. From 2011 to 2013, he served as Head of the Department of Psychology, Wollo University. His research interests focus on youth and childhood studies, psychosocial issues, particularly in the context of parental migration and conflict situations. He has published peer-reviewed articles and has presented his research at national and international conferences. In 2025, he published a book chapter on migration and displacement in the IGAD region in Springer Nature. In 2024, he was a visiting fellow for three months at Ghent University, Belgium. He is a member of the Ethiopian Psychological Association and the Ethiopian Teachers' Association. He is also a lifelong member of the Family Guidance Association of Ethiopia.
In addition to his academic work, Getnet is actively engaged in providing psychosocial support to individuals and children affected by conflict and related challenges.

Révérien Interayamahanga is a distinguished Rwandan researcher, consultant, and thought leader with over two decades of professional experience spanning governance, peacebuilding, reconciliation, resilience, conflict transformation, gender equality, and social protection across Rwanda and the wider Great Lakes Region. He holds a Master's degree in Development Sociology from the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa and another Master's in Gender and Development from the University of Rwanda, building on a strong academic foundation in sociology. His dual expertise in sociological inquiry and gender-focused development provides him with a unique lens for addressing the complex social challenges facing post-conflict societies.

Throughout his career, Révérien has worked with a wide range of institutions, including Interpeace, Never Again Rwanda, the Rwanda Governance Board (RGB), MINUBUMWE (Ministry of National Unity and Civic Engagement), Transparency International Rwanda, International Alert, and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR). His roles have ranged from senior researcher to lead consultant, often spearheading high-impact studies and evaluations on national reconciliation, governance, social cohesion, and human rights. Mr. Interayamahanga is highly skilled in designing and implementing mixed-methods research and conducting rigorous program evaluations. His work has informed policy and programming in Rwanda and the region, especially in resilience-building, reconciliation, youth empowerment, psychosocial recovery, and citizen engagement. Notable studies under his leadership include assessments on the psychosocial impact of adolescent pregnancy, community resilience to genocide legacies, and the performance of governance systems and social accountability mechanisms in agriculture and justice sectors.

A prolific contributor to academic and policy discourse, Révérien has co-authored peer-reviewed articles, policy reports, and book chapters. His publications address key topics in post-genocide reconciliation, civil society and citizen participation, child soldiers, human trafficking, and gender dynamics in development. He is also an experienced trainer and presenter at regional and international conferences and workshops, having shared expertise on qualitative research methods, governance, and reconciliation frameworks. Currently serving as a Senior Researcher at the Centre for Community-Based Sociotherapy (CBS-Rwanda), Révérien continues to advance the knowledge and practice of peacebuilding and inclusive development.

Fluent in English, French, Kiswahili, and Kinyarwanda (native), Révérien is a communicator and bridge-builder whose work continues to shape policy, inform practice, and strengthen communities throughout Rwanda and the region.

Bendicto Kabiito is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Governance, Peace, and International Studies, in the School of Arts and Social Sciences of Uganda Martyrs University. His academic background spans philosophical studies, peace and conflict, environmental conservation, and climate protection. He is a recipient of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation International Climate Fellowship (2018-2019) for young climate protection leaders.

His work spans multiple areas, including peacebuilding, peace and conflict research, environmental conservation and climate protection, conflict resolution research, traditional justice systems, environmental justice, and climate protection governance. Owing to his deep interest in the use of nature-based solutions for climate protection, he founded Karamoja Ecological Farm (KEF) in the pastoral rangelands of Northeastern Uganda and Mivule Forest Conservancy in central Uganda. KEF is a peacebuilding initiative that promotes food security, environmental conservation, and Climate protection. He has been committed to the transformation of Karamoja since 2014, and he did his doctoral studies in the same area. His publications are in the areas of conflict resolution, environmental justice, governance, and humanized educational pathways.

Getahun Fenta Kebede is an Assistant Professor in the African Studies Program, College of Social Sciences, Arts, and Humanities at Addis Ababa University. He holds a PhD in Development Studies from the University of Trento, Italy. Additionally, he has three MA degrees: a Joint European Master's in Comparative Local Development from a consortium of four European Universities, an MA in Economic Geography, and an MA in Rural Livelihoods and Development, both from Addis Ababa University. With over 20 publications, his research focuses on migration, forced displacement, urban poverty, informal labor markets, social protection, social capital, social network analysis, and inclusive development. As a peer reviewer for numerous local and international journals, he has contributed to advancing academic discourse in these fields. His research career has attracted significant funding, exceeding $300,000 from organizations such as the African Academy for Migration Research, the Organization for Social Sciences Research in Southern and Eastern Africa, the Ethiopian American Foundation, the European Commission, and Addis Ababa University. His contributions highlight a commitment to understanding migration, displacement, and broader development challenges in Ethiopia and beyond. Beyond academia, Getahun has served as a lead consultant for the Ethiopian government, UN agencies, and NGOs, contributing to over 30 consultancy assignments.

Dr. Margaret Monyani is a Senior Migration Researcher at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) based in Pretoria, South Africa. She holds a PhD in International Relations from the University of the Witwatersrand and brings over a decade of experience in migration governance, peacebuilding, and human security across Africa. Her work focuses on the intersection of migration, displacement, and regional policy development, with a particular emphasis on the protection of mobile populations and the role of state and non-state actors in humanitarian governance. She has led multi-country research projects on migration, gender, and security, contributing to both academic research and high-level policy discussions. Dr. Monyani's APN research explores the role of the ICRC's RedSafe platform in supporting peacebuilding through digital humanitarianism in Southern Africa. She has provided technical input to migration policy processes at the African Union and has engaged with stakeholders across East, West, and Southern Africa. She has also taught migration and international relations at the University of the Witwatersrand and regularly contributes to expert forums on human mobility and governance.

Dr. Teverayi Muguti is a Postdoctoral Researcher associated with the History Department at Stellenbosch University in South Africa. He holds a BA Honors Degree in Economic History (University of Zimbabwe), an MSc in Intelligence and Security (Bindura University of Science Education - Zimbabwe), and a PhD in History (Stellenbosch University). He has published book chapters and journal articles engaging themes including African border studies, interstate diplomacy, and borderland community livelihoods in southern Africa. He also has growing interests in African sports history, particularly the cue sport of pool. He has been awarded various research awards, including the Lisa Maskell PhD Fellowship (2021- 2023), Erasmus+ PhD Researcher Mobility Grant (2022), SSRC-Next Generation Doctoral Dissertation Research Fellowship (2022), and the Harvard |Cambridge|Paris Universities History Project Research Grant (2023). He currently serves as an Editorial Assistant at the South African Historical Journal. In his 2025 APN-IRF project, Muguti uses the human security and ungoverned spaces concepts to examine a history of uncertainty and vulnerability within Sengwa Island's livelihoods in Lake Kariba – Binga district. The study focuses on a marginal area within an already peripheral border district of Zimbabwe, examining various aspects such as cross-border criminality, law enforcement, and social service delivery.

Dr. Hlengiwe Ndlovu is a Senior Lecturer at the Wits School of Governance, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa. She holds a PhD in Sociology from the University of the Witwatersrand, where her doctoral research examined state-society relations in post-apartheid South Africa. She also has a Master's and Honours in Industrial Sociology and a BA in Sociology and International Relations. Dr. Ndlovu's research navigates the intersections of gender, governance, protest politics, violence, and decolonial feminist thought. She has held academic positions at the University of the Western Cape, University of the Free State, and Nelson Mandela University, and has been a visiting fellow at institutions such as the University of Cambridge and Eberhard Karl's University of Tübingen. She currently serves as the Wits School of Governance's representative on the Faculty Staffing and Promotions Committee, sits on the Transformation Committee, and convenes the Security Studies teaching stream. Beyond academia, Dr. Ndlovu is a prominent public intellectual. A sought-after media analyst and speaker, her work regularly engages public audiences, with commentary featured on platforms such as eNCA, SABC, Sunday World, and The New York Times. She also appears as a political analyst on radio and television, speaking on gender justice, elections, and policy reform. Dr. Ndlovu is committed to bridging scholarship, public discourse, and social justice.

Chukwudi is a geographer, environmentalist, and peacebuilder, with a Ph.D. in Population and Development Studies from the University of Calabar. He has made significant contributions across science, policy, and practice in critical areas such as peacebuilding, climate change, and environmental hazard mitigation, among others. His research has been widely published and presented at prestigious conferences such as the Globelics in Accra, NetSci-X in Tokyo, United Nations University Merit's MEIDE conference in Abidjan, the Conflict Research Society conference in Edinburgh, and so on. Currently, he serves as the Peacebuilding Program Coordinator (Capacity Building) at the Foundation for Partnership Initiatives in the Niger Delta (PIND), where he coordinates the design and implementation of peacebuilding interventions. In addition to his role at PIND, Chukwudi is an adjunct lecturer at the Center for Gender, Conflict and Development Studies, University of Port Harcourt, teaching postgraduate courses on research methodology and peacebuilding advocacy. As an advocate for sustainable societies in Africa, Chukwudi leads the Sustainability Pathways for Africa project, which produces and analyses environmental risks and hazards data in Nigeria. He is a Chartered Member of the Peace Institute (MPI) in Nigeria, and in his spare time, he advocates for the peaceful uses of nuclear technologies in Africa.

Dr. Dickson Otieno Okello is a Lecturer in the Department of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness Management at Egerton University, Kenya. With a PhD in Agribusiness Management, he specializes in entrepreneurship (ILO Certified Trainer), value chain analysis, agribusiness support services, and sustainable agriculture. His research focuses on climate-smart practices, resilience, and the economic impact of agricultural innovations, employing advanced econometric and statistical methods. Dr. Okello has over eight years of experience in teaching, mentorship, and project management, particularly in agripreneurship and community engagement. He has attracted and managed multiple research grants, including projects funded by the World Bank, IFAD, and the Finnish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. His work extends to curriculum development and capacity building for African agribusiness professionals. A prolific researcher, Dr. Okello has published extensively in peer-reviewed journals and supervised numerous graduate theses. He also provides consultancy services for MSMEs, the Private sector, NGOs, and Government Agencies, focusing on business development, value chain optimization, and policy implementation. His contributions to agribusiness education and rural development have earned him awards, including recognition on Egerton University's Vice-Chancellor's List of Honours. Outside academia, he is passionate about community service and youth empowerment in agriculture.

Marion Ouma is a Research Associate with the South Africa Research Chair Initiative (SARChl) on Social Policy at the University of South Africa, where she also completed her PhD.) Both her Bachelor's and Master's degrees are from the University of Nairobi. She is a two-time recipient of the Next Generation of African Researchers (2016 & 2017). She was a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the Nordic Africa Institute (NAI), Uppsala, Sweden. She has held visiting fellowships at NAI and the University of Bayreuth, Germany. Her research interests include social policy, social protection, policymaking, and the political economy of Africa's development. She has published in Critical Social Policy, Africa Development, Journal of Development Studies, with book chapters in The Handbook of African Political Economy, Social Policy in an African Context, and Can Africans do Economics? She has written several op-eds, including in Africa Is a Country.

Dr. Mohamed Khamis Said, a Tanzanian geographer and environmentalist, has dedicated his career to understanding human-nature interactions. Born with a passion for human systems, he pursued geography, graduating with a BAED in Geography from the State University of Zanzibar in 2007, MSc in Natural Resources Management from the University of Dodoma (UDOM), and a PhD from the University of Dar es Salaam. As an academic at UDOM's Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Mohamed employs political ecology to analyze the intricate relationships between society and environmental resources. His research spans social institutions, natural resources management, environmental conservation, climate change, coastal resources, and the Blue Economy. As a prolific scholar, he is driven by curiosity to study, conduct research, consult, and publish extensively. Mohamed aspires to become a distinguished scholar, leaving a lasting impact on environmental and geographical studies through his commitment to understanding and preserving the delicate balance between humanity and the natural world.

Dr. Sanelisiwe Sayi holds a PhD in Languages, Linguistics, and Literature from the University of South Africa. Her doctoral thesis, entitled Female Stereotypes in Selected Zimbabwean Ndebele Novels (1975–2016), explored gender representations in Zimbabwean Ndebele literature. She is currently a lecturer in the Department of Languages, Literature, and Culture at the University of Zimbabwe. Dr. Sayi has published in the areas of gender studies, Indigenous Knowledge Systems, Oral literature, and Lexicography. Her scholarly work has appeared in journals such as the South African Journal of African Languages, Lexikos, and the South African Journal for Folklore Studies. She co-edited the book Power, Politics and Production: Essays on Ndebele Cultural Production in Zimbabwe (2020). Her research is grounded in African-centred theoretical frameworks. Her research work, focusing on gender dynamics in African contexts, advocates for frameworks that promote peace and gender harmony in African communities by placing value on culturally grounded understandings of gender and gendered relations.

Tobias Tseer is a Lecturer in the Department of Organisational Studies and Development at the Simon Diedong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (SDD-UBIDS) in Wa, Ghana. He holds a PhD in Development Studies and specialises in conflict resolution and peacebuilding with a regional focus on Ghana and West Africa. His research has been published in top peer-reviewed journals such as Conflict Security and Development, Conflict Resolution Quarterly, Ethnopolitics, Third World Quarterly, International Annals of Criminology, and The Extractive Industries and Society. His work explores themes including farmer-herder conflicts, gender-based discrimination, educational inequality, and traditional authority in conflict mediation. Dr. Tseer is actively engaged in interdisciplinary research and has collaborated with scholars across Africa on issues of human security, governance, and development. Tseer won an Explorers Club research grant, recognising his innovative contributions to research. Additionally, he has served as a research consultant for several organisations, including the Centre for Democracy and Development in Abuja, Nigeria, Women Economics Empowerment in Northern Ghana (WEENORTH), and Harnessing Youthful Talents for Rural Development (HAYTAFORD).