Short Abstract:

This roundtable is the outcome of a collaborative research and teaching project that involved students from Germany and Cameroon. The goal is to jointly reflect on such collaborations as attempts towards commoning knowledge resources and nurturing transboundary solidarity.

Long Abstract:

This roundtable is the outcome of a collaborative research and teaching project that involved students from Germany and Cameroon. It focused on the future-making strategies of urban youths in Cameroon and explored different dimensions, including social networking, job seeking, development initiatives, migration, and return. Central to the project were the goals of collaboration and cross-cultural exchange between students and lecturers in the research process. The project resulted in tangible outputs, such as theses, publications, and lasting friendships. At the same time, it engendered critical reflections on the effects of power dynamics and the challenges of working in a culturally diverse team. We see such research and teaching collaborations as attempts towards commoning knowledge resources and nurturing transboundary solidarity.

This roundtable invites students and lecturers to share their experiences of collaborative and cross-cultural research and/or teaching projects. We encourage roundtable panelists to address some of the following questions:

- In what ways has the experience of collaboration shaped your understanding of the subject of your research or of anthropology more generally?

- What kind of insights have you gained from working together that talk to shared experiences as students or lecturers across different regional contexts?

- Which challenges or power dynamics came to the fore and what impact did they have?

- What are the limits to collaboration or transboundary solidarity?

- In which ways can such collaborative projects contribute towards addressing global challenges and the commoning of resources?

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