• To identify archival and memory work as one of a number of potential sites of African reparations.

• To promote the grounding of approaches to archival and memory work within the historic and contemporary context of African-heritage record creating communities. 

• To recognise the archive as an intergenerational repository of both joy and trauma; identifying archival approaches acknowledging the spectra of feeling associated with memory work.

Applications open: 26th August 2025

Interviews: (tbc)

Workshops commence: 23rd October  2025 (every Thursday thereafter)

Final workshop: 11th December 2025

Practical placement (tbc more info at interview stage)

8 × 2hr workshop sessions held over 8 consecutive weeks. Up to 10 days practical placement (optional) completed within one-year of the workshop sessions.

Accredited certificate awarded by the University of the West Indies Department of Library and Information Studies (DLIS). Verifiable digital badge issued by Decolonising the Archive (DTA). Both are issued only on successful completion of all 8 workshops and the practical placement.

The option to audit just the workshop sessions without engaging in the practical placement exists. Participants selecting this option will not be assessed and therefore would not be eligible to receive certification.

The primary mode of delivery for workshop sessions is online, however in the interests of facilitating more human connection, Decolonising the Archive will be making a hybrid physical space at London’s Africa Centre available for UK-based participants able to attend in person for at least two taught sessions.

Participants outside of the UK are encouraged to consider supporting in-person spaces for others in their locality where this is feasible.

Placements: Participants will be offered accommodation and placed in a region to conduct relevant practical work. More details to be shared once shortlisted.

Participants are expected to attend all taught sessions and participate fully in any themed session discussions and activities.

The course has been designed to minimise the need for advance reading of supporting material and the setting of assignments outside of taught time. However, where this is marked as essential, students will be expected to complete any set reading/watching/listening in preparation for course sessions as well as any work arising from taught sessions.

In addition to the taught sessions, students will be expected to complete a short reflective essay/oral/visual assignment reflecting their understanding of the material shared and its relevance to their own research/practice/praxis.

No formal qualifications are required for workshop admission, however, participant selection will be based on the following:

Experience

• Community development/activism

• Memory work

Skills

• Able to express ideas coherently orally, in writing and other media;

• Literacy

• Critical thinking

• Individual and group study skills

• Time management

Theoretical presentation/provocation, critical analysis of practical case studies, group discussion, individual study and (optional) practical engagement.

The programme is aimed at people who want to make a change in the world with their practice and recognise the limitations of ‘traditional’ approaches to archives. It might be that this recognition has come about through a lived experience of tensions within institutional settings.

ITRA is designed by people with a reverence for the practical application of African and indigenous knowledge systems. If this resonates with you in a memory work context then you should consider enrolling.

The programme is a blend of didactic and non-didactic delivery. If you are able to appreciate a balance between lecture-style provocation and self/group-led discussion and discovery as well as practical activity then you may be a good fit for the programme.

No. the programme runs three times per year, so if you are not available for the forthcoming intake, please contact us on dtaworkspace[at]gmail[dot]com for dates of future intakes.

Yes. There is an option to audit the taught sessions alone without the practical component, however this will not result in an accredited certificate. Only those who opt to complete the practical element of the programme and associated work will receive a certificate from the University of the West Indies and a digital badge of completion issued by DTA.

Yes and no. Those deemed to have completed the programme in its entirety by the course leadership team, including the practical element, will be eligible to receive an accredited certificate in approaches to reparative archiving, issued by the University of the West Indies and a digital badge of completion issued by Decolonising the Archive. This is not an academic qualification in a traditional sense (it is not a Bachelors, Masters, Diploma or PhD for example) but it is a tangible recognition of your study and commitment issued by two recognised organisations, one of which is a globally recognised academic institution.

Due to geographical and capacity limitations, the hybrid space offered by DTA will be in a Central London location. Hybrid programme sessions will be run at least twice during the duration of the programme, the remaining sessions will be online only.

DTA have operated a policy of supporting access to learning whenever possible for some time now. Our model for achieving this involves dedicating a portion of programme fees to the funding of supported spaces for those unable to pay. If you are interested in applying for a supported place on the programme then please contact dtaworkspace[at]gmail[dot]com for more information.

We ask that before applying, all applicants carefully consider the information provided both on this page and at the application and interview stages and take the opportunity to clarify all queries you may have about the programme, its delivery, its completion and its relevance to your individual practice. Tackling the subjects at the core of the programme asks for a level of commitment, resilience and patience as each cohort explores and comes to its own understanding of what reparative memory work means for them. There is a cooling-off period between the initial application to the programme and the end of the first orientation session where a refund of course fees will be given, less administration fees of ——which cover the processing of applications, applicant interviews, communications etc. Once a refund has been processed, participants will not be able to access the remainder of the programme. Requests for refunds received after the end of the initial orientation session will not be considered as beyond this cut-off point, all programme fees are non-refundable.