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Paper short abstract:

The last two and half years presented unprecedented challenges to the making of anthropology. Many operated in 'crisis mode', dealing with the pandemic as an exceptional moment. This paper proposes to look at long-term effects of Covid-19 for collaborations, fieldwork and projects.

Paper long abstract:

The last two and half years presented unprecedented challenges to the making of anthropology. Travel restrictions and health safety concerns, among other conditions, heavily impacted on everyone's lives, and also to anthropologists working in and on Africa. Many instinctively operated in 'crisis mode', dealing with the pandemic as an exceptional moment, and assuming that normal operations could sooner or later be resumed. Yet in the meanwhile, the making of the discipline underwent important structural changes, some more or less in line with developments in recent years, others more extravagant. 'Staying put', as noted by many, is far from being neutral; it reinforces the position of those who have, and challenges more those in more precarious positions. This is true within academic systems, and even more so across different countries.

This paper proposes to look at long-term effects of Covid-19 for collaborations, fieldwork and projects. While I share the hope that the pandemic will eventually be overcome, some of the changes are likely to stay. Digital meetings, if at all possible, encourage more oriented exchanges, with less travel burdens, and potentially promise to be more inclusive. Yet, they also exacerbate a sense of déjà-vu, taking away the lived experience and its messiness, the serendipity that is such an essential component of any anthropological work. Staying put also reinforces position privileges, encourages cooperation with already known partners, and impacts on the selection of research themes, much in line with current requirements for obtaining funds.