Evelyn Namakula Mayanja – The Conversation

A man waves the Uganda flag at opposition leader Bobi Wine’s final campaign in Kampala ahead of the country’s January 2026 election. Badru Katumba/AFP via Getty Images

January 14, 2026

Uganda’s autocratic political system is failing its people – and threatens the region

Evelyn Namakula Mayanja, Carleton University

The youth-led struggle for democracy in Uganda reflects a broader continental reality: young Africans want better leadership.

U.S. President Donald Trump meets with Congo’s Foreign Minister Therese Kayikwamba Wagner, second from right, and Rwanda’s Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe, second from left, in June 2025, in the Oval Office at the White House. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

July 21, 2025

Congo and critical minerals: What are the costs of America’s peace?

Evelyn Namakula Mayanja, Carleton University

Is the U.S.-brokered peace agreement between Rwanda and the DRC a genuine path to sustainable peace, or a continuation of U.S. President Donald Trump’s coercive diplomacy?

M23 rebels patrol in Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo, Jan. 29, 2025. The rebel group announced it had taken control of the city in late January. (AP Photo/Brian Inganga)

February 12, 2025

M23’s capture of Goma is the latest chapter in eastern Congo’s long‑running war

Evelyn Namakula Mayanja, Carleton University

Creating sustainable peace in Congo requires giving justice to the victims of war crimes and preventing the illicit trade in minerals.

International human rights mechanisms alone cannot offer reliable solutions to racism, including racism affecting racialized migrants. Protestors support migrant worker rights in front of the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, in Toronto, in August 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christopher Katsarov

April 13, 2023

Overcoming racism depends on respect for every person’s dignity

Evelyn Namakula Mayanja, Carleton University

Dignity is at the centre of many rights-based declarations, but to eradicate racist policy and practices, we must commit to noticing each other’s personhood in new ways.

A youth cries during the funeral procession of a child who was killed during protests against new President Dina Boluarte in Andahuaylas, Peru, on Dec. 12, 2022, after what some believe was a coup to illegally oust her predecessor. (AP Photo/Franklin Briceno)

December 19, 2022

Young people around the world can save democracy — but they need our help

Evelyn Namakula Mayanja, Carleton University

If we don’t support youth’s struggle for democracy, there’s little chance of a peaceful, secure, sustainably developed and environmentally friendly future.

Contact Evelyn for