Elsje Fourie

Elsje Fourie is associate professor of Globalisation & Development Studies

So long, and thanks for all the reads
Column

So long, and thanks for all the reads

"I still believe the world is becoming a better place, although I might not proclaim it quite as confidently as before"
You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone
Column

You don’t know what you’ve got ‘til it’s gone

I’ve seen some academics, virtually overnight, go from attacking Western development aid to lamenting its decline
Dull is alright
Column

Dull is alright

A little corner of the internet has given me a glimmer of hope recently
What happens when novels go global?
Column

What happens when novels go global?

Are 'global novels' lacking in rich locally-relevant details?
Our inbox problem
Column

Our inbox problem

“Take that!”, you cry, clicking it through to your junk mail folder
“I can’t promise I’ll never again read the abstract instead of the article”
Column

“I can’t promise I’ll never again read the abstract instead of the article”

Colleagues observe that many students don’t want to read anymore
Orange Juice Politics
Column

Orange Juice Politics

"I was struck by how gamely - how earnestly - the Maastricht mayor answered questions"
ChatGPT: Between fear and unbridled optimism
Column

ChatGPT: Between fear and unbridled optimism

Others felt deeply uneasy, wondering if we’d reached what The Spectator magazine has called “the end of writing”
The Stories We’ve Told
Column

The Stories We’ve Told

"It's not only a shameless ‘plug’ for our (open access) publication"
We bicker a lot, as such couples tend to do
Column

We bicker a lot, as such couples tend to do

"I’ll keep banging this drum to draw attention to the causes my colleagues know I care deeply about"
Being There (Again)
Column

Being There (Again)

"Being there has shown me the tiredness in the eyes of an eighteen-year-old greenhouse worker five hours into bending over a row of basil plants in the sweltering heat"
Getting virtual mud under my fingernails
Column

Getting virtual mud under my fingernails

"It’s enough to make you want to hide under the duvet until spring shows up"
Once Upon a Time, We Were Students
Column

Once Upon a Time, We Were Students

"I’ve passed into the realm of The Other, just as I once pushed some of my predecessors there"
When it makes sense to be foolish
Column

When it makes sense to be foolish

"I started using creative non-fiction to share my academic research. Yes, it’s been scary as hell"