This series features the Winter 2026 University of Michigan African Presidential Scholars (UMAPS) fellows and their scholarly work. The talks prepared and presented by each visiting scholar are designed to promote dialogue on topics and to share their research with the larger U-M community.

Monday, March 16 | Materials, Resources, and the Just Energy Transition in Africa

Yetunde Ajayeoba (Nigeria) | “Energy band modulations in Molybdenum Disulfide/Zinc Sulfide-based van der Waals heterostructure for enhanced flexible optoelectronic applications”

Bahati Kayaga (Tanzania) | “Gender and Energy Access in Rural Tanzania”

Janet Munakamwe (South Africa) | “Unlocking the Potential of Artisanal & Small-scale Mining (ASM) in the Just Energy Transition: Rethinking a Unified Pan-African Regulatory Framework”

Please register to attend: https://forms.gle/89CYfCjPpTrJAyGEA