Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin - Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences - Institute of Asian and African Studies

Positions /Professional Activities

Since 1994: Professor of African Literatures and Cultures at Humboldt University, Berlin.

1993/1994: “Lehraufträge” at Dept. of African Studies, Mainz University; Dept. of English, Hannover University.

Dec. 1982 – May 1993: Teacher, Freelance Writer, Researcher and Cultural Activist in Harare, Zimbabwe. Status: Permanent Residence Permit as wife of Volker Wild, with two children.

  • 1983 – 1987: Teaching German as a Foreign Language at Zimbabwe Germany Society, Harare; Examiner for Goethe Institute.
  • 1983  - 1985: Writing on Zimbabwean Literature for German newspapers; Interviewing Zimbabwe writers and poets (with book publication 1988: Patterns of Poetry in Zimbabwe).
  •  1985 – 1992: Cultural activities such as organising writers’ workshops, panel discussions, lecture series etc. esp. on women’s writing; founder member of Zimbabwe Women Writers, 1990; board member of Zimbabwe German Society.
  • 1987-1989: Field research for PhD dissertation on social history of Zimbabwean writing.
  • 1986 – 1992: Researching and scientific writing/publishing on Zimbabwean literature and women’s writing in Africa; conference participations in Zimbabwe, Namibia, Germany, UK, USA.
  • 1988-1992: literary executor of Dambudzo Marechera (died in 1987); founder member of Dambudzo Marechera Trust; collecting and editing unpublished manuscripts and biographical research and writing on Marechera with project funding from German Foreign Office.

1974 – 1982: Teaching French and German at High Schools and in Adult Education in Essen and in Nürnberg (1978-182).

 

Fellowships/Lectureships:

Oct-Dec/1997: Research visit at Dept. of Comparative Literature, Indiana University.

Febr/March 2001: DAAD Lectureship at Dept. of African Literatures, Université de Yaounde, Cameroon.

Oct 2002-Feb 2003: Research Fellow at Center for Cultural Studies, UCLA, Santa Cruz.

March/April 2011: Research and Exchange Visit at English Department, Stellenbosch University, South Africa.