Digital Dissent and Democratic Futures: Youth Agency and Physigital Resistance in Kenya
Monday, November 30, 2026 | 5:00 PM |聽Gasson Hall聽| Registration to come
This year鈥檚 holder of the Gasson Professorship is Elias Omondi Opongo, S.J. Fr. Opongo was recently named Vice Chancellor of Catholic University of Eastern Africa following a distinguished scholarly career in peace studies and international relations at Hekima University. He is a peace practitioner with a focus on conflict resolution, reconciliation, humanitarian assistance, transitional justice and state-building. Most recently, he is the author of Decolonizing NGO Peacebuilding and Liberal Peace Agenda in Northern Uganda (2026) and co-editor of Elections, Violence, and Transitional Justice in Africa(2023) among many other books and articles. His Ph.D. in Peace and Conflict Studies was awarded by University of Bradford (UK). Fr. Opongo participated in the 2025 Venice Seminars on Democratic Resilience, cosponsored by the Clough Center and was a member of the Working Group on Democracy, Governance and Education (2023-2025), chaired by Jonathan Laurence for the Boston College Program on Global Ethics and Social Trust. Fr. Opongo鈥檚 Gasson Lecture is called 鈥淒igital Dissent and Democratic Futures: Youth Agency and Physigital Resistance in Kenya.鈥�
Elias Omondi Opongo, SJ is a Senior Lecturer at the Hekima University Institute of Peace Studies and International Relations, in Nairobi, Kenya. He is a peace practitioner with a focus on conflict resolution, reconciliation, community peacebuilding, humanitarian assistance, transitional justice, post-conflict reconstruction, and state-building. Most recently he is the co-editor of Elections, Violence, and Transitional Justice in Africa (2023) and has published many books, chapters, and articles on the complex causes of conflict today, especially in Africa. He received a Ph.D. in Peace and Conflict Studies from the University of Bradford (UK).聽
James Keenan, S.J., is a moral theologian who serves as Canisius Professor and Director of The Jesuit Institute at Boston College. He is a specialist in virtue ethics and the history of theological ethics.
Campus Map and Parking:
Parking is available at the nearby Beacon Street and Commonwealth Avenue Garages.
Boston College is also accessible via public transportation (MBTA B Line - Boston College).