Global Development
SOCIAL JUSTICE
Human Rights
SYLVIA BAWA
Associate Professor
Department of Sociology
York University
Global Sociologist with expertise in human rights, development, gender, and Globalization.
About
Ph.D., Queen’s University, Sociology, 2013
M.A., Brock University, Social Justice and Equity Studies, 2007
B.A. (First Class Honours), University of Ghana, Sociology and Psychology, 2004
Hello and Welcome to my website!
I am a global sociologist and Associate Professor of Sociology at York University in Canada with expertise and interests in human rights, postcolonialism, development, gender and globalization. I am also a foodie and big sci-fi fan! Currently, I am the director of the Resource Centre for Public Sociology at York University. I am engaged in international collaborative work, funded by the Canadian Government (SSHRC and CIHR) and York University, as principal and co-investigator on human rights, gender and development and global post-covid recovery. Generally, my work attempts to unravel structural inequalities embedded in orthodox conceptions of empowerment, rights and development. Some of my publications appear in high impact journals such as Third World Quarterly, African Identities, Qualitative Report, Development in Practice, Canadian Journal of African Studies, the International Human Rights of Women, and the Palgrave Handbook of African Women’s Studies (Springer Major Reference Works Series).
I enjoy watching and playing tennis, walking and reading sci-fi (Afrofuturism).
Projects
I have led and currently co-lead international collaborative research projects on human rights, truth and reconciliation and gender and development. I have organized, facilitated and participated in international policy-oriented workshops, roundtables and conferences for diverse audiences.
Research/Dissemination Network on the Canada’s Human Rights Role in Sub-Saharan Africa (CARRISSA)
The Research/Dissemination Network on the Development of the African Union’s African Human Rights Action Plan (AHRAP-NET)
Confronting Atrocity: Truth Commissions, National Reconciliation and the Politics of Memory
Recent Publications
Sylvia Bawa & Obiora Chinedu Okafor (2021) Canada–AU human rights engagements: a TWAIL perspective, Canadian Journal of African Studies / Revue canadienne des études africaines. DOI: 10.1080/00083968.2021.1956983
Bawa S. (2020). Culture, Rights, and African Women’s Futures. In: Yacob-Haliso O., Falola T. (eds.). The Palgrave Handbook of African Women’s Studies. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Bawa, S. (2019). Women and the Human Rights Paradigm in the African Context. In, Reilly, N (2019). (Ed.) International Human Rights of Women, 107-120. Springer Major Reference Works Series
Contact
For questions about working with me, to arrange meeting times, or for media inquiries, please use the contact form.
You can also email me directly at bawa@yorku.ca
Twitter: @Essenbi
2144 Vari HallTel: +1(416)7362100 Ext. 60355
York University, Toronto