What new information or knowledge did you learn from this presentation?

Everything about this presentation was new to me, from the kidnapping of 276 Chibok girls and women by Boko Haram in Nigeria, to the #BringBackOurGirls (BBOG) movement, the main objective of which is to rescue all of the girls. Particularly interesting was the way in which the BBOG movement was framed. Among others, the movement adopted a motherist and state failure frame, each of which had both positive and negative implications on their objective. For example, the motherist frame emphasizes the experience of motherhood and was used to demand the girls to be rescued, and to place pressure of the Nigerian government to take action. However, the framing was criticized for reflecting gender roles, naturalizing the man-woman divide, and for placing the importance of rescuing the girls on their relationship to others, rather than the importance of the girls in and of themselves.

Are there particular aspects of the presentation you enjoyed or intrigued you and are there others that you think could have been improved?

I drew inspiration from the variety of themes and areas of study Dr. Oriola drew out of the topic. For example, he discussed issues of gender, democracy, religion, social media, international aid, and politics within the context of the BBOG movement. I felt this contributed to a wide range of questions and discussion at the end of his talk, which allowed him to expand on details that may not have otherwise fit within the time limit of the presentation itself. The only aspect of the presentation that I feel could have been improved was the amount of quotes that were read to illustrate points. If fewer quotes were not possible, it would have been useful to have the quotes on a slide so the audience had the option of reading along. Personally, this would have improved by focus.

Are there components of the research that would be applicable or relevant to your own Master’s research?

With regards to presentation format, I appreciated that Dr. Oriola, after an introduction, presented his main arguments, rather than leaving them solely for the end of the talk. Given the complexity of the topic, and the variation of audience experience with the topic, I felt this was an effective choice. Placing my main arguments at the front of a presentation is something I have yet to practice or apply to any of my own presentations, though depending on the audience, I feel this format could be effective.

How well did the speaker respond to questions and is there a question you/ would have asked given the opportunity?

As I have alluded to, Dr. Oriola was very effective in question period; not only did he expand on key themes, he also took the opportunity to discuss the complexity of religion and politics in Nigeria, which, having already seen the presentation, added great value to my understanding of the issues presented. Given the opportunity I would ask Dr. Oriola about how his positionality contributed to his ability to interview such critical, impactful, and seemingly difficult key informants to interview. Relatedly, Dr. Oriola interviewed a handful of very influential women who were responsible for the BBOG movement, including very high political figures. I would be interested to learn whether these participants wanted their names and faces to be presented as a condition for their participation in his research.