A link to the global south

If shouting was allowed on Watson Library’s fourth and fifth floors, it’s feasible that Brian Rosenblum in the Institute for Digital Research in Humanities (IDRH) could be hailed from upstairs by Kodjo Atiso in International Collections, yet their first professional collaboration took place nearly 6,000 miles from campus, in Accra, Ghana. The serendipitous connection was the highlight of several KU Libraries’ efforts over the last year to shrink the distance between the U.S. Midwest and West Africa.

In October 2023, Atiso joined KU Libraries faculty as librarian for Africana and International Studies after previously working as librarian for the Cape Coast Technical University in Ghana, where he directed collection management policies, designed library instruction to focus on information literacy, and provided reference services.

Atiso has similar duties in Watson Library, but his interest in joining the KU Libraries team was rooted in the ability to contribute to the study of African Studies, partnering with campus units like the Kansas African Studies Center (KASC) — one of 10 National Resource Centers for African Studies in the nation — and the African and African-American Studies (AAAS) Department. He has quickly connected with faculty to understand collection development needs and opportunities for library engagement, resulting in a book-buying trip to West Africa in February 2024, to procure materials to support emerging language curriculum.

Important links have also been created with co-workers. Rosenblum welcomed Atiso to the library staff with a dinner last fall and invited him to participate in the African Digital Humanities Symposium, co-hosted by IDRH, AAAS, and a team from the University of Ghana in February. The symposium brought together more than 200 in-person and online participants, all of whom joined speakers from 12 countries for workshops, presentations, and informal discussions about digital humanities in the African context.

Rosenblum, who went to Ghana as a Fulbright Scholar in 2022 has coordinated previous symposiums with KU associate professor of AAAS, James Yékú. The event is important for bringing a global perspective to digital humanities, which traditionally has been centered around the U.S., Canada, and Europe, in terms of funding and research, and has not addressed the needs of people in the Global South. The events also support KU’s existing African Studies programming, and more African Digital Humanities webinars are planned for the 2024-25 academic year.

Atiso is planning an Africa Day experience, to be co-hosted by KU Libraries, AAAS, and the KASC. KU Libraries have put in a bid to serve as the site for the 2026 spring meeting of the African Studies Association’s Africana Librarians Council — librarians, archivists, or documentalists working with materials from and about Africa. Separately, the libraries’ digital publishing team helped AAAS launch “Africana Annual,” a new open-source, peer-reviewed journal hosted by the libraries at journals.ku.edu.

This content first appeared in KU Libraries 2023-24 Annual Review publication.