Professor Yash Pal Ghai | Photo via the NMS

Kenya’s Constitution: Origins, Objectives and Impact by Professor Yash Pal Ghai, Nov. 19 2016 @ Nairobi National Museum

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Professor Yash Pal Ghai | Photo via the NMS
Professor Yash Pal Ghai | Photo via the NMS
Date: Saturday, November 19, 2016
Venue: Louis Leakey Auditorium, Nairobi National Museum
Time: Refreshments for sale at 3:15pm; Talk at 4:00pm

Donation: Ksh 200 Student, Ksh 400 KMS member and Ksh 500 Guest (MPESA no: 400800 Account no: 6571570019)
Tickets: 0724 255299, 2339158 or info@kenyamuseumsociety.org

Yash Ghai will discuss why Kenya needed a new Constitution and briefly describe the process, including the hurdles that faced it. He will describe what the new Constitution tries to achieve, taking issues like national unity, respect for diversity, integrity, popular participation and social justice.

He will also give an interim progress report on these issues, and the resistance the Constitution faces, especially from government and politicians, as well as from continued corruption.

About
Yash Pal Ghai is Kenyan. He studied law at Oxford and Harvard and taught in Dar es Salaam, where many distinguished East African lawyers were his students. Later he taught at universities in Sweden, the UK and Hong Kong, and as visiting professor in many more.

In Kenya he chaired the first phase of the constitution making process from 2000 to 2004. Much of the fruit of that stage of the process can be seen in the Constitution adopted in 2010. Yash Ghai has advised on constitution making in 20 or so other countries.

parliament-of-owls

Book Launch: Parliament of Owls – A Collection of Poems by Adipo Sidang’, Nov. 17 2016 @ Goethe Institut

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parliament-of-owls
Date: November 17, 2016
Venue: Goethe Institut Auditorium

About
A collection of Poems by Adipo Sidang’

Parliament of Owls, published under the Contact Zones Series established by the Goethe-Institut Kenya and Native Intelligence, is a collection of poems by Adipo Sidang’ one of the most talented Kenyan poets of his generation. In the words of Tony Mochama (writer), “Parliament of Owls heralds the arrival of a new emperor on the African poetry scene … and this emperor, Adipo Sidang’, is hooting the naked truth”.

– The collection of poems will be discussed by Dr. Tom Odhiambo (literary critic) and Khainga O’Okwemba (poet and journalist).

reading-in-unusual-spaces

Reading in Unusual Spaces: The Romance of the Great Outdoors, Nov. 12 2016 @ Olepolos Country Lodge

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reading-in-unusual-spaces
Date: November 12, 2016
Venue: Olepolos Country Lodge
Time: 10 am – 1 pm
Admission: KES 500 for Lunch

About
The Romance of the Great Outdoors

Reading in Unusual Spaces is a new literary series aimed at taking literary discourse and experiences to public spaces such as amusement parks, forests, markets and shopping centres. Each session is based on a specific theme.

In our third and final session in 2016, literature enthusiasts will engage with the public at Olepolos Country Lodge to experience “The Romance of the Great Outdoors”.

Curated by Tony Mochama

ngugi-poster

An Evening of Readings with Prof. Ngugi wa Thiong’o, Nov. 10 2016 Pawa 254 Hub

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ngugi-poster
Date: November 10, 2016
Venue: Pawa 254 Hub, Mageuzi Theatre
Time: 5.30 – 8.30 pm
Tickets: KES 300

About
Pan-African writers’ collective, Jalada Africa shall host an evening of readings, conversation, and performances based on a fable, Ituĩka Rĩa Mũrũngarũ: Kana Kĩrĩa Gĩtũmaga Andũ Mathiĩ Marũngiĩ (The Upright Revolution: Or Why Humans Walk Upright) by the eminent author and scholar Prof. Ngugi wa Thiong’o.

The fable has been translated into 55 languages, making it the single most translated short story in the history of African writing.

The event will feature a two-part conversation between Jalada’s Managing Editor, Moses Kilolo, and Prof. Ngugi wa Thiong’o on identity, languages, translations, and the role of the writer in times of political upheaval.

Translators will share insights on the process and challenges of writing and translating in local languages in a digital world.

Dramatized multilingual readings will re-imagine the fable for the stage, as a way of celebrating the power of cultural diversity in imagining better worlds.

Music by Dempsey.

Conversations with African Writers: Khainga O’Okwemba in Conversation with Hilda Twongyeirwe & Elizabeth Kabui, Oct. 21 2016 @ Goethe-Institut Nairobi

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Date: Friday, October 21 2016
Venue: Goethe-Institut Nairobi
Time: 6:00 – 8:00 PM
Admission: free

About
In this session, Khainga O’Okwemba (President, PEN Kenya) will be in conversation with the founder of FEMRITE, Hilda Twongyeirwe and Kenya’s award-winning writer Elizabeth Kabui (winner of the Burt Award, 2014).

space

Space – A Digital Art Festival, Oct. 4-8 2016 @ Goethe Institut and the Shifteye Gallery

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space
Dates: October 4-8, 2016
Venues: Goethe Institut and the Shifteye Gallery

About
New technologies and digitalization are influencing how modern societies run – everything from how we access goods and services to how we socialize are continuously being transformed. Computers and mobile phones are often considered necessary tools that are highly valued both at work and at home. With the good comes the bad – our online lives leave us vulnerable to potential security threats as well as open us up to challenges to our personal and societal well-being.

The Goethe-Institut Kenya, in collaboration with Mbithi Masya and Youth Knows No Limits (YKNL), is organizing a Digital Art Festival with the objective to create a forum for dialog, exchange and presentation of digital art.

Five artists have been asked to consider how we consume and interact in/with the digital sphere and how these influence or are influenced by traditional value systems and global trends. Through their medium of choice, they have been encouraged to bring their perspective and style in the exploration of digital possibilities to comment on the social and psychological implications of digital technologies.

The participating artists include Awuor Onyango, Bazil Ngode, Chris King, Melisa Allela and Lenny Njagih as well as Musa Omusi. The festival programme consists of screenings, talks, workshops, an exhibition of the artworks as well as the performance of “Winterreise” by the German artistic research and production collective Institut für angewandtes Halbwissen.

Find an overview of all the events happening during “Space – A Digital Art Festival” on Goethe Institut-Nairobi Facebook event Page

financial-potential

Discussion: The Financial Potential of Kenya’s Music Industry, Sept. 28 2016 @ Goethe Institut Auditorium

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financial-potential
Date: September 28, 2016
Venue: Goethe Institut Auditorium
Time: 6 pm
Entry; Free

Details
The Goethe-Institut Kenya together with the pan-African music portal Music In Africa will be hosting two panel discussions titled ‘Music Policy in Kenya’ and ‘Kenyan Music’s contribution to the economy’.

The second discussion will bring together panelist from key segments of the industry to explore the commercial potential of Kenyan music, realities, challenges, opportunities and industry’s contribution to the Kenyan economy.

Our panelists will be:
Mike Strano: Founder, Phat! Entertainment
Tim Rimbui: Producer & Founder Waabeh.com
June Gachui: Artist and IP Lawyer
George Gachara: Managing Partner HEVA Fund

Music In Africa is an initiative by the Goethe-Institut together with the Siemens Stiftung and partners from across Africa.

Admission is free.