A working meeting for the Future Earth Africa Hub took place on 28-29 August 2025 at the Environmental Learning Research Centre, Rhodes University in Makhanda, South Africa. The meeting convened at a pivotal moment, following the foundational and transformative first three-year phase of the Africa Hub Leadership Centre, which was inaugurated in 2023 to facilitate the scientific operations of the Future Earth Global Secretariat Hub in Africa.
The participants included key stakeholders essential to the Hub and Leadership Centre's operations, such as members of its Steering Committee, consortium members, leaders of the sustainability science clusters, and representatives from the Africa Hub Secretariat and Leadership Centre staff. The workshop was organised to conduct a thorough review of the Centre's ambitious initial activities. Since its establishment, the Leadership Centre has been actively implementing a comprehensive set of initiatives organised around three core work packages. These packages focus on establishing governance structures, conducting landscape mapping, building regional and global partnerships and networks, and strengthening African leadership in sustainability science. These were achieved through the establishment of Regional Nodes, the piloting of seven sustainability science clusters and the inclusive engagement of early-career researchers, women, and marginalised groups. As this initial phase comes to an end and the Leadership Centre prepares for its next strategic period from 2026 to 2030, it was essential to pause and reflect on the progress made, the challenges faced, and the lessons learned.
The workshop assessed the progress made in implementing the activities across all three work packages, identified key successes and persistent challenges, and extracted valuable insights and best practices from the implementation experiences. Furthermore, the meeting explored avenues to strengthen collaboration and foster a shared understanding of the Africa Hub’s vision among consortium partners. The discussions refined the strategic focus and collaboratively developed a clear roadmap to guide the Leadership Centre’s work for the subsequent five-year period, ensuring the Hub’s continued relevance and impact on the continent.