About the Workshop

The Global Health Justice Writing Workshop (GHJWW) brought together early and mid career African researchers from across the continent with the aim of strengthening capacity to produce justice oriented and structurally informed global health research. The workshop focused on enhancing academic writing and publication skills while fostering connection within a growing network of justice aligned scholars.

Over the course of the workshop, participants engaged with structural justice frameworks, applied these approaches to their own research and writing, developed revised abstracts and manuscript outlines, gained practical insights into academic publishing, and established sustainable mentorship and peer writing networks. The workshop successfully achieved its intended outcomes and demonstrated strong potential for replication and scale up at the continental level.

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

The Global Health Justice Writing Workshop successfully delivered a high-impact, deeply transformative experience for emerging African health researchers. The workshop aligns closely with the goal of building equitable, Africa-led research capacity and demonstrates the value of continued investment in African-centered scholarly development. We are deeply grateful to British Academy for making this impactful initiative possible and look forward to expanding this model across the continent.

Workshop Objectives

The objectives were to enable participants to:
1. Understand and apply structural justice frameworks in health research.
2. Analyze and transform research abstracts using justice-oriented methodologies.
3. Strengthen manuscript structure, coherence, and relevance to African priorities.
4. Navigate ethical publishing, authorship, and journal selection.
5. Increase research visibility using ORCID and related digital tools.
6. Build mentorship and writing pod systems for sustained progress post-workshop.

Workshop Design and Methodology

The workshop used a highly interactive, practice-oriented design, combining:
1. Conceptual sessions on justice frameworks
2. Applied writing laboratories
3. Mentor-guided small group clinics
4. Peer-to-peer learning
5. Case analysis sessions
6. Manuscript outline development
7. Publishing and ORCID sessions
8. Commitment and accountability systems
Daily sessions were structured to build progressively from concept → analysis → practice → application → future planning.

Workshop Outputs

1. Manuscript Development and Writing Progress
Twenty five revised research abstracts reflecting strengthened justice oriented framing
Twenty five detailed manuscript outlines aligned with target journals and publication standards
Twenty five individualized publishing roadmaps, including identified journals and submission timelines

2. Publication Readiness and Research Visibility
Revised ORCID profiles for all participants, improving research discoverability and digital research identity
Enhanced understanding of journal selection, submission processes, and reviewer expectations

3. Mentorship and Collaborative Writing Structures
Establishment of seven thematic writing pods to support peer learning and accountability
Formalization of twenty five mentor mentee agreements to support continued manuscript development and long term research productivity