Negotiating conflict through digital storytelling: post-genocide reconciliation and peace education in Rwanda

Tutor: Carlos Alberto ScolariMany studies show that digital storytelling is a promising tool for education since it helps student understand new concepts and complex issues through its interactive, participatory and immersive techniques. As a result, using digital storytelling in peace education, which serves as an alternative for tackling important issues such as reconciliation and healing process, can be of important value for post-conflict societies. Given the limited amount of research on peace education through digital storytelling in Rwanda, this research proposal aims at analysing in which ways and to what extent digital storytelling can be used for direct and indirect peace education among Rwandan students aged between 13 and 18. In line with this purpose, seven transmedia and multimedia projects related to the Rwandan, Bosnian, Guatemalan and Cambodian genocide have been selected in order to examine the post-conflict reconciliation narratives. Additionally, these projects will be used in the workshops designed to understand students’ interaction with stories and their approach to the use of digital storytelling in peace education. The outcomes of this research will provide a guideline for the implementation of digital storytelling in peace education with the aim of facilitating post-conflict reconciliation

Memetizing genocides and post-genocide peacebuilding: ambivalent implications of memes for youth participationand imaginaries in Rwanda

Data de publicació electrónica: 21-11-2022In contexts where young people feel prohibited from reflecting openly on sensitive political issues, they may explore alternative ways to communicate and negotiate their opinions and beliefs. Internet memes are popular digital artifacts that offer a space for such debates. This research focuses on the Internet memes that were created and used as an unconventional method for discussing post-genocide peacebuilding processes among Rwandan youth. These memes were made in storytelling workshops that involved interacting with transmedia projects and creating stories about peacebuilding and reconciliation processes in Rwanda, Guatemala and Cambodia. Within this context, this study approaches memes as participatory tools that allow (1) youth inclusion in post-genocide peacebuilding, often considered an ‘adult topic’ and (2) the mapping out of the social imaginaries of peace by young people in post-genocide societies. The paper analyzes how and why young Rwandans negotiate peacebuilding processes through memes and the ambivalence of utilizing memes for youth participation. The results suggest that meme-making emerged mainly as a response to intergenerational differences in discussing the genocide and peace-related issues. Humor in the memes unveiled differences in the ways of addressing peacebuilding processes. Detachment from other contexts resulted in more sarcastic articulations, whereas proximity led to more positive reflections on how peacebuilding should unfold in post-genocide societies. While meme-making proved to be useful for sparking discussions and manifesting imaginaries of peace, it also showed how certain dominant discourses about peacebuilding processes are embraced and often not contested within memes due to self-censorship

Narratives of Rwandan youth on post-genocidereconciliation: contesting discourses and identities in themaking

Drawing on ethnographic research conducted in 2019 with secondary school students in Kigali, Rwanda, this paper aims to shed light on the stance of Rwandan youth on recent policies and discussions about post-genocide reconciliation and peacebuilding. This article discusses the narratives articulated by Rwandan youth on three levels: positioning in relation to the Rwandan government, positioning the self and others in their communities and positioning the self in relation to ‘Ndi Umunyarwanda’ (I am Rwandan). The discussion of these narratives is based on the concepts of participatory spaces and positioning theory. The findings show that the legacy of the genocide, as well as the reconciliation process, is being performed through everyday actions by the youth. However, the limitations of participatory spaces prevent Rwandan youth from having their positions communicated, negotiated and diversified

Transmedia storytelling and participation for peacebuilding and peace education: Rwandan youth, digital inclusion, and socio-political context

This dissertation discusses the ways and the extent to which transmedia storytelling and transmedia participation can benefit the peacebuilding processes in post-genocide societies. Drawing on ethnographic research conducted in Kigali, Rwanda during a period of three months between February and May in 2019, this dissertation aims to shed light on the digital practices of young Rwandans. The research included both online and offline ethnography with secondary school students aged between 13 and 19 who participated in transmedia storytelling workshops where they interacted with nonfiction transmedia projects about the genocides in Rwanda, Guatemala, and Cambodia, and created content about topics they found interesting in relation to post-genocide reconciliation and peacebuilding in these societies. Focus group discussions and interviews were also used as methods to gain a deeper understanding of these teenagers’ online activities and approaches to digital technologies. The results show that although young people acquire diverse transmedia skills, their digital inclusion and transmedia participation for peacebuilding are affected by the socio-economic and political context in post-genocide Rwanda.Aquesta tesis analitza les formes i el grau en que la narrativa transmèdia i la participació transmèdia poden beneficiar els processos de construcció de pau a les societats post-genocidi. A partir de la investigació etnogràfica realitzada a Kigali, Ruanda, durant un període de tres mesos entre febrer i maig del 2019, aquesta tesis té com a objectiu aportar llum sobre les pràctiques digitals dels joves ruandesos. La investigació va incloure etnografia virtual i presencial amb estudiants d’educació secundària d’entre 13 i 19 anys que van participar en tallers de narrativa transmèdia, on van interactuar amb projectes transmèdia de no ficció sobre els genocidis a Ruanda, Guatemala i Cambodja, i van crear contingut sobre temes que van trobar interessants en relació a la reconciliació post-genocidi i a la construcció de la pau en aquestes societats. També es van utilitzar entrevistes i grups de discussió com a mètode que permeten aprofundir en la comprensió de les activitats i els enfocaments en línia d’aquestes adolescents sobre les tecnologies digitals. Els resultats mostren que, malgrat que els joves adquireixen diverses habilitats transmèdia, la seva inclusió digital i la seva participació transmèdia per a la construcció de pau es veuen afectades pel context socioeconòmic i polític de la Ruanda post-genocidi.Esta tesis analiza las formas y el grado en que la narrativa transmedia y la participación transmedia pueden favorecer los procesos de construcción de la paz en una sociedad post-genocidio. Basándose en una investigación etnográfica realizada en Kigali, Ruanda, durante un período de tres meses entre febrero y mayo de 2019, esta tesis tiene como objetivo arrojar luz sobre las prácticas digitales de los jóvenes ruandeses. La investigación incluyó etnografía virtual y presencial con estudiantes de secundaria de entre 13 y 19 años, los cuales participaron en talleres narrativos donde interactuaron con proyectos transmedia de no ficción sobre los genocidios en Ruanda, Guatemala y Camboya; asimismo, crearon contenidos sobre temas relacionados con la reconciliación y la construcción de la paz después del genocidio en dichas sociedades. Las discusiones en grupos focales y las entrevistas también se utilizaron como método para alcanzar una comprensión profunda de las actividades en línea de estos adolescentes y su forma de abordar las tecnologías digitales. Los resultados muestran que, aunque los jóvenes adquieren diversas habilidades transmedia, su inclusión digital y su participación transmedia para la construcción de paz se ven afectadas por el contexto socioeconómico y político en la Ruanda posterior al genocidio

Immobilization of glutaminase enzyme from Hypocria jecorina on polyacrylic acid: preparation and biochemical characterization

L-glutaminase enzyme produced from Hypocrea jecorina pure culture and polyacrylic acid (PAA) in the presence Cu+2 ions were composed the ternary complex at pH 7. The properties of free and immobilized enzyme were defined. The effect of various factors such as pH, temperature, heat, and storage stability on immobilized enzyme were investigated. The properties of immobilized enzyme were investigated and compared to those of free enzyme. Optimum pH and temperature of both enzyme were determined to be 8.0 and 50°C, respectively. Kinetic parameters of the immobilized enzyme (Km and Vmax values) were also determined as 0.38 mM of the Km and 10.9 U/L of the Vmax. No drastic change was observed in the Km and Vmax values. Thermal and storage stability experiments were carried out. The thermal stability studies indicated that the immobilization process tends to stabilize the enzyme