JIAS - A Home of Ideas
Nestled in the heart of Johannesburg, the Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study is a Global South hub for experimental, groundbreaking, transdisciplinary inquiry and creative practice informed by a commitment to theoretical innovation, social justice, decoloniality, and transformative praxis.
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The Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (JIAS) is committed to fostering artistic creation, cultural critique, and interdisciplinary collaboration. By supporting research, JIAS advocates for the role of art in shaping society, challenging perspectives, and advancing knowledge. JIAS believes in the power of art to inspire change.
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The Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (JIAS) is dedicated to advancing critical scholarship in the social sciences, with a focus on decolonial thought, Global South epistemologies, and the pursuit of epistemic justice. The institute supports scholars, activists, and practitioners in reimagining equitable frameworks for education, research, and social transformation. Committed to inclusivity and intellectual rigor, JIAS serves as a hub for rethinking power, knowledge, and justice from African and Southern perspectives.
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JIAS interrogates the transformative potential of digital technologies as tools for liberation. Grounded in the realities of the Global South, JIAS fosters the development of community-rooted technologies that prioritize local knowledge and participatory design to promote frameworks that serve justice, ecological consciousness, and collective well-being. Through collaborative experimentation JIAS aims to empower communities to harness technology as a force for systemic change.
Host Your Event at JIAS
We offer our unique, intellectually vibrant micro-campus as a destination for workshops, seminars, conferences, book launches, and keynotes. By booking our venues and ensuite accommodation, you become part of a living community dedicated to theoretical innovation, social justice, and transformative praxis. Our facilities are designed to foster the kind of groundbreaking, transdisciplinary inquiry JIAS is known for. They provide the perfect environment for gatherings that aim to challenge perspectives, advance knowledge, and inspire change.
UPCOMING EVENTS
At JIAS, our events bring together leading scholars, researchers, artists, and public intellectuals to engage with pressing issues shaping society today. Through seminars, lectures, dialogues, and public conversations, we create spaces for critical reflection, interdisciplinary exchange, and the exploration of new ideas. Join us at our upcoming events as we continue to foster meaningful discussion and intellectual engagement within South Africa and beyond.
Seminar Invitation: The Colour Line, Democracy and Capitalism in South Africa
The Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (JIAS) warmly invites you to a seminar presented by Dr Mosa M. Phadi.
About the Seminar.
Drawing on the work of W.E.B. Du Bois, Dr Phadi reflects on the enduring significance of the colour line in South Africa and its relationship to the expansion of capitalism.
Du Bois argued that the colour line produced a form of democratic despotism which, in the South African context, he described as "white democracy." He highlighted the paradoxes of modern democracy, observing that democracy can exist alongside growing aristocracy, inequality, and hostility towards darker races.
In this seminar, Dr Phadi explores how Du Bois's insights continue to illuminate the contradictions, exclusions, and inequalities that shape democratic life in South Africa today.
The presentation will be followed by a short conversation and audience discussion.
Event Details
Date: Thursday, 11 June 2026
Time: 15:00 – 17:00
Venue: Johannesburg Institute for Advanced Study (JIAS), 1 Tolip Street, Westdene
Format: Hybrid (In-person and Zoom)
RSVP
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