The Beniba Centre for Slavery Studies at the University of Glasgow and the Bonn Center for Dependency and Slavery Studies (BCDSS) at the University of Bonn have opened applications for their Joint Research Fellowship for 2027/2028.
The fellowship supports an early career scholar, scholar-activist or creative professional, up to ten years after the PhD, whose research addresses racialization, Black studies, the histories of slavery and abolition, indenture, 'Liberated Africans' and/or the afterlife of slavery, with a particular emphasis on the Caribbean. The scheme is aimed at scholars based in the Caribbean, and for this round priority will be given to scholars residing in the Caribbean.
The Fellow will be invited to work in both Glasgow and Bonn, for periods of 3 to 6 weeks each, between September 2027 and June 2028. The start date is open within the 2027/2028 academic year. A lump sum stipend covers accommodation in Glasgow and Bonn, travel from and to the Caribbean and between Glasgow and Bonn, and living expenses for the duration of the fellowship. The Fellow will be asked to give a lecture on their research at each institution.
The Beniba Centre is the first centre in Scotland focused on slavery and its afterlife. It is named after Beniba, a woman who was held in slavery by Robert Cunningham Graham, former Rector of the University of Glasgow (1785 to 1787), and it works through academic research, public events, and engagement with anti-racist activism and reparative justice. In Glasgow, the Fellow will have access to the University of Glasgow Library, Archives and Special Collections and will be invited to take part in conversations and seminars with faculty and postgraduate researchers, including the MSc in Reparatory Justice led in partnership with the University of the West Indies.
The BCDSS is a Cluster of Excellence funded by the German Excellence Strategy. In Bonn, the Fellow will have full access to the library facilities of the University of Bonn and is invited to take part in the Joseph C. Miller Memorial Lectures, research seminars, workshops, conferences and other research activities of the BCDSS research community.
The fellowship is a competitive, peer-assessed award. We thank our colleagues at the Beniba Centre for the collaboration and look forward to receiving applications.