A special screening of Miguel Llansó's Crumbs (2015) accompanied by a talk with with Felwine Sarr.

Felwine Sarr is a Senegalese humanist, philosopher, economist, novelist and musician. He is the Anne-Marie Bryan Chair in French and Francophone Studies at Duke University and wrote Afrotopia (University of Minnessota Press, 2019, tr. by Drew S. Burk). At Imagine, we will speak to Sarr about alternative creative and economic African futures for the world.  

Afrotopia is a vibrant meditation and poetic call for an African utopian philosophy of self-reinvention in the 21st century. Felwine Sarr urges the continent to set out on its own renewal and self-discovery — to create an active utopia by reflecting on its vast mythological universe and ancient traditions, nourishing a cultural reinvention, and embracing green technologies that tackle climate change and demographic challenges. Through a reflection on contemporary African writers, artists, intellectuals, and musicians, Sarr elaborates Africa’s unique philosophies, shared values, and communal economy as well as concepts deeply rooted in ancient traditions and landscape.  

In our conversation with Sarr, they will discuss alternative futures for the world, coming out of Africa. What can Africa teach the world? How can its unique set of values contribute to a better future for a world ridden by climate change, colonialism and racism?  

This event is a collaboration with the Fund for Ethnology in Leiden, the Research Centre for Material Culture of the Wereldmuseum and the Institute for Cultural Anthropology and Development Sociology of Leiden University.