About

The Chinese in Africa/Africans in China (CA/AC) Research Network is the world's largest independent, interdisciplinary, research network dedicated to China-Africa engagements. Established in 2007, the network currently hosts over 1,000 members around the world (on our combined listserv and WeChat groups). Our members include experts from academia, diplomacy, media & communications, the arts & humanities, and international development.

The Network's mission is to help move the global conversation about China-Africa forward in a critical and constructive way while developing a transnational community of scholars and practitioners who value dialogue, equity, and inclusiveness. Our primary goals are to facilitate intellectual exchange, promote academic research, and share information about engagements between China and the African continent. 

We host a website, a listserv, and a WeChat group; we organize panels at international conferences, host our own CA/AC conference every few years; we run workshops for early career scholars and writing for public audiences; we organize other China-Africa events around the globe through our Local Network Chapters; we facilitate the publication of members' research in the media, online and open access platforms, and academic journals and books; and we work closely with other China-Africa, Africa-Asia, and transregional groups and networks.

OUR MISSION

The mission of the CA/AC Research Network is to promote debate and cutting-edge research and ideas about China-Africa issues by supporting and encouraging the work of international scholars, students, media professionals, and practitioners who are engaged in this growing field. We do this through our various networking activities, workshops, events, and conferences.

The CA/AC Research Network provides the only independent and international platform for real-time discussions, interactive debates, and insightful knowledge-sharing. We foster exchange and discussion about the growing relationship between Chinese and Africans through an active community of researchers and experts in a Google group listserv and a WeChat group. Beyond our network, we also offer knowledge, experience, and expertise from the field to both academic communities and wider interested publics through publications and podcasts. Finally, through our website, we hope to share these resources with all interested parties, but particularly with students, scholars, and the general public.

In addition to providing two dynamic interactive virtual platforms where members meet, debate, inquire, and stay in touch, the CA/AC Research Network organizes conferences, workshops, and events around the world. These events have spurred dozens of publications, including special issues of African & Asian Studies Journal, Journal of Contemporary China, African Studies Review, the Journal of Current Chinese Affairs, Journal of African Cultural Studies, and the Journal of Chinese Overseas, amongst others. In addition, we provide the media with nuanced analysis and informed perspectives based on extensive field research.