Africa Conferences at the University of Texas at Austin

This collection of pages contains valuable information designed to help you get the most out of the conference, with the least amount of delay and frustration. Please check these pages often, print them out, and carry them with you. A full program guide including this information will be available at the welcome table upon arrival at the conference.

Download the Information here (.pdf format)

Chair Instructions

If you have volunteered or been drafted to chair a panel, thank you. We have prepared the following guidelines to help ensure that your panel runs smoothly.

Because of the strong interest and the high number of paper proposals we received, the conference program is very tight, with not much free time between panels. Part of your contributions as a chair will be to ensure that your panel stays on track.

We recommend the following schedule, assuming that there are four papers on your panel: 5 minutes for introduction by the chair, 15 minutes for each paper presentation, 10 minutes for the chair to speak as a discussant, 15 minutes for audience questions and responses, and 15 minutes for the transition to the next panel. You are free to modify this schedule as you see fit, but we ask that you stick to 15 minutes for each paper presentation, and allow enough time for the transition to the next panel.

Also, please keep in mind that we hope to publish selected papers from the conference. Part of your job as chair will be to recommend papers for consideration (including your own). If you have any questions or comments about the format of the panels or your contribution as a chair, please contact us. Many thanks!