University President Ben Vinson III, Ph.D., opened the conference with remarks celebrating Zeleza’s extensive career and profound influence on African and diaspora scholarship.

“As president of Howard University, I am deeply honored that our university can serve as a gathering place for this moment,” Vinson said. “We have been a site that has consistently convened scholars and thinkers from around the world to reflect on topics of great consequence to the Black experience.”

“This career that we’re celebrating today has not only shaped multiple fields of inquiry into Black life, but he has also shaped lives, institutions, and dare I say continents,” added Vinson. “It is in that tradition of recognizing those contributions but also – over the next several days – building upon those contributions … that’s the essence of Howard and also the essence of this career,” added Vinson.

This career that we’re celebrating today has not only shaped multiple fields of inquiry into Black life, but he has also shaped lives, institutions, and dare I say continents.”

The conference featured several thematic panels addressing core areas of Zeleza’s scholarly contributions, from Pan-Africanism and conflict resolution to gender studies and higher education.

The panel “Pan-Africanism and African Renaissance,” chaired by Sipho Sithole, explored African freedom movements and the evolving concept of African identity. Presenters included Anaheed Al-Hardan, Mkawasi Mcharo Hall, Shomarka Keita, and Oluwakemi Damola Adejumo-Ayibiowu.

Subsequent discussions examined critical themes such as peace and conflict resolution. Led by Krista Johnson, panelists like Muema Wambua and e. christi cunningham discussed African conflict dynamics and post-intervention challenges.

An afternoon session chaired by José Jackson-Malete highlighted knowledge production and higher education, featured insights on decolonizing knowledge from Geoffrey Kimotho and transformative Ph.D. training initiatives from a group of scholars from Michigan State, Makerere, and Howard Universities, including Provost Anthony Wutoh.

The evening concluded with a screening of “Zeleza: Zones and Zests,” a documentary produced by Ndirangu Wachanga of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater that offered intimate reflections on Zeleza’s life and scholarship.

Day 2: Global Perspectives, Activism, and the Future of African Scholarship

The second day commenced with a powerful keynote by Funmi Olonisakin of King’s College London, exploring global perspectives informed by Zeleza’s scholarship. She lauded his intentionality in his work, as well as his capacity to “translate” across “time and space.”

“For those of us scholars coming behind the Paul Zelezas of this world, take these kinds of attributes, attitudes, and behaviors as key lessons. Working together across spaces,” Olonisakin said. “The challenge for us and those coming after us is to see really that the African condition is not one we can leave to those who are sitting in the rooms of politics and everyday policy decision-making. It is the business of those involved in thinking, in scholarship, in translating that thinking and scholarship into meaningful steps and actions that others can build around.”

Discussions continued, focusing on women’s activism and the workers’ movement, chaired by Nathalie Frédéric Pierre. Presenters like Norman Aselmeyer and James Mwita illuminated the intersections of gender, labor struggles, and social justice.

Economic history and development studies formed another significant panel, chaired by Ademide Adelusi-Adeluyi. Scholars such as Edward Luwanja and Babajide A. Tella discussed African economic futures, historiography, and sustainable development.

The panel on “Creative Writing and Digital Humanities,” chaired by Michael Ralph, explored Zeleza’s literary contributions. Presentations from Melvin E. Page and Violet Khama Gumbwa highlighted his narrative skill and engagement with postcolonial themes.

How do we engage on the [African] continent and in the diaspora in ways that reinforce progressive change, rather than we become a fifth column for the exploitation and oppression of our own people?”

A fireside chat featuring renowned scholar Amina Mama from the University of California-Davis and Zeleza himself concluded the conference, providing reflective insights into contemporary scholarly debates around identity and diaspora.

As the chat closed, Zeleza spoke to a concept he phrased the “mutuality of empowerment.” “How do we engage on the [African] continent and in the diaspora in ways that reinforce progressive change, rather than we become a fifth column for the exploitation and oppression of our own people?” Zeleza posited. “We have to raise the costs of disempowerment and raising those costs [means] being mindful and being mutually engaged from a respectful vantage point, and understanding each other’s histories – their complexities, their contradictions, their interconnections.”

The International Conference in Celebration of Professor Paul Tiyambe Zeleza’s 70th birthday was sponsored by Howard University’s Department of African Studies, the Center for African Studies, Moorland-Spingarn Research Center, Department of Political Science, Department of English, and the Center for Women, Gender, and Global Leadership.

Conference chair and African Studies department head Mohamed Camara spoke to Zeleza's monumental contributions to global academia. “It is said that it takes a village to raise a child, so it took a village to raise the proverbial child whose life work we are celebrating today,” Camara said. “But that African saying also says that it takes a child to build a village … so the proverbial child whose life work we are celebrating here helps us to welcome the global village of friends, relatives, colleagues who are joining us from across the world.”