Call for Submissions for MOJA Journal of Adult Education - Issue 4

The MOJA Journal of Adult Education invites submissions for its fourth Issue, which will focus on Safety, Security and Peacebuilding, and the role of Adult Learning and Education (ALE) in engaging and examining these areas. We welcome contributions from activists, scholars, researchers, practitioners, policy makers, educators, organisations and others. We are interested in diverse experiences and perspectives, and encourage submissions reflecting a wide range of adult learning practices, contexts and approaches. The contributions can be submitted in a range of written formats, such as articles, poetry, interviews, case studies, personal stories, and other creative or reflective pieces. The call is open to contributors from all countries across the African continent and submissions in English or French are accepted.

Background

In a world increasingly shaped by inequality, social fragmentation, conflict, violence, and geo-political and economic insecurity, questions of peace, safety and security have become central to everyday life. Africa is no exception - for many, everyday life is shaped by living with - or in the midst of - conflict, violence, instability and/or war. This occurs at individual and household level, community level, national level, and across nations. These conflicts have negatively affected the way people live in terms of food security, employment and income, gender relations, environmental protection and much more. For many, concerns about violence, exclusion, precarity and survival are woven into daily routines, making peace, safety and security not abstract ideals, but practical and urgent matters that call for collective reflection, learning and action. Within these contexts, peace education plays a vital role in fostering dialogue, critical consciousness and non-violent approaches to conflict, while strengthening capacities for care, solidarity and collective action.

In the upcoming Issue of the MOJA Journal of Adult Education we seek to understand and explore the role ALE plays or can help to play to mitigate these conflicts and instabilities in order to create increased safety, security and peace in and among communities, nations, and ultimately the entire continent. ALE includes, but is not limited to: community learning, popular education, non-formal education, literacy practices, workplace learning and civic education.

Topics of interest may include, but are not limited to:

We recognise that communities across the African continent live with ongoing issues related to peace, safety and security. At the same time, the continent is rich in locally-grounded ways of imagining, negotiating, and building peace, as well as innovative community-based practices that foster safety and security, often beyond formal frameworks or institutions. We invite submissions that help us better understand the following:

• How communities experience and respond to everyday insecurities and conflicts and how these responses contribute to peacebuilding.
• What new and/or emerging community-led activities, initiatives, practices and/or learning processes exist that strengthen safety, security and peace through collective action, care and resilience.
• How activists, community educators and adult education practitioners support processes of conflict transformation, healing and the building of peaceful, safe and secure communities.
• How we can (re)think, (re)imagine and (re)build theory and practice around peace, safety and security from lived experience, local knowledge and everyday practices.

Some key words

Conflict resolution; peace education; violence & non-violence; democracy; human rights; inclusiveness; resilience

Climate justice; resources, competition and capitalism

Home security; psychological security; gender-based violence (GBV); environmental safety

Afrophobia; migration; refugees; oppression; youth: vulnerability and future-building

Cybersecurity; digital access

Acceptable formats

• Non-academic article
• Personal essay/reflection
• Narrative
• Poetry
• Dialogue
• Interview
• Case study
• Review (of a grassroots initiative, community practice, relevant book, report or documentary).

Guidelines

• Submissions should be between 1000-2500 words (exceptions will be made for poetry).
• Submissions should be original, not AI-generated, and not previously published.
• Writing should be in engaging, accessible language suitable for a broad audience.
• Submissions should be in an editable Word document format.
• All submissions should be related to the role of adult learning and education.
• Relevant, quality photographs/images with permission to use and captions should accompany the submission.
• The selected submissions will be published online and in print.
• This call is made to all interested persons in the five sub-regions of the African continent (North, South, East, West and Central Africa).

Abstracts of approximately 250 words are to be submitted on or before Monday 2 March 2026.

In the abstract, briefly explain:

• What is this about?
• Why is it worth writing about?
• What perspective, experience/s or example/s do you bring?
• What might be the key insights, understandings or lessons for readers?

Please send your submission by email to the Editor at editor@mojaafrica.net