Kanyinsola Obayan, a third year Africana Ph.D. student, was granted a 2016 pre-doctoral fellowship for 2 to 3 month’s research in Nigeria during the summer of 2016, courtesy of the West African Research Association (WARA) located at Boston University’s African Studies Center. The grant was in support of her travel to Nigeria as she pursues research under the title, “In Search of 'The Nigerian Dream:' Transnational Migrants and the Politics of Home.”
Obayan is currently investigating questions of nationalism and postcoloniality; transnationalism, diaspora, and globalization in contemporary Nigeria. Although born and partially raised in Lagos, Nigeria, she has spent the majority of her life in the United States. However, she proudly calls Nigeria her home. Through her many years of living as an African outside of Africa, she has become a deeply committed advocate of Africa in her social, professional, and intellectual environments and pursuits. Her life’s passion is to communicate the complexity of African cultural practices and knowledge productions. She holds bachelor’s degrees in International Relations and Global Studies, as well as African and African Diaspora Studies from the University of Texas at Austin.
