In 2019 the Nelson Mandela University Council took a decision to put in place a transdisciplinary institute for ‘Mandela Studies’ as at once a hub and an engine for ideas, lines of enquiry, and modes of engagement with the world. The decision was rooted in the persuasion that carrying the name ‘Nelson Mandela’ is not enough; that the name brings with it a responsibility to offer something unique. Fulfilling this responsibility hinges on the University’s capacity to shape its work, and build an international reputation, around ‘Mandela Studies’.
The Council proposal was clear that by ‘Mandela’ is meant far more than a significant individual and biography in history. Instead, ‘Mandela’ must be understood ultimately as a social figure still under construction. Scholarly work for an institution carrying the name requires engagement with the processes of construction, positioning as a key player in those processes, and a continuing demonstration of the value (the power, the utility) of the figure to the work of making a just society.
For the University, ‘Mandela Studies’ must embrace (and integrate) two frames of signification. The one references a literature, a discourse, a realm of research and a publishing industry focused on the life and times of the historical figure Nelson Mandela. The University must have something to say in this space. It must have something valuable to contribute. The other frame of signification references that deeper and more transformative space of the social figure. The University must ensure that this figuring infuses its imaginary, its curricula, and its praxes.