Toyin Ajao

Toyin Ajao Listen^ⓘ(born 13 July 1978)^[1] is a Nigerian scholar, feminist activist, and healing researcher-practitioner whose work focuses on restorative healing, conflict transformation, and Afro-feminist approaches to social change.^[2][3][4][5] She is the founder of Ìmọ́lẹ̀ of Afrika Centre (ìAfrika), a non-profit working on the collective wellbeing of marginalised African communities by addressing intergenerational and collective trauma through integrating indigenous and contemporary healing methodologies.^[3][6]

Born in Ikirun, Osun State in 1978, Ajao holds a PhD in Political Science from the University of Pretoria, with a focus on conflict transformation and New Media.^[3][7] She received an MA in Conflict, Security, and Development from King’s College London^[3][7] and a B.Sc in Accounting from Obafemi Awolowo University.^[3][8]

Ajao intersects Afro-feminism, healing justice, Ubuntu philosophy, critical consciousness, conflict transformation, and neuroscience in her restorative healing work within civil society, queer and feminist spaces in Africa.^[3][2][7] She was named one of the “10 African scholars to watch” in 2024 by The Africa Report^[7] alongside Simukai Chigudu, and Naminata Diabate. The University of Exeter also recognised her as an “Inspirational Black Scholar” alongside Audre Lorde and Kimberlé Crenshaw during Black History Month in 2024.^[2]

Ajao is an alumna and research associate at the African Leadership Centre, King’s College London.^[3][4][7] Her feminist activism has addressed gender, sexual, and technological rights, as well as women’s leadership.^[7][8] She has worked with organisations such as the Women's Technology Empowerment Centre (W.TEC) and blogged about issues of gender inequality, systemic oppression, and women’s experiences in patriarchal societies, earning her two international awards, including the BlogHer International Activist Award, 2009.^[8][9]

Her research has been published in Routledge, Palgrave, MacMillan, Matatu, Kujenga Amani, and by the African Women's Development Fund, addressing themes such as conflict transformation, citizen journalism, digital activism, mental health policy, LGBTQ+ rights and collective wellbeing in Africa.^{[10][11][12][13][14]}

She founded Ìmọ́lẹ̀ of Afrika Centre (ìAfrika) in 2020, where she leads projects that incorporate indigenous healing traditions and ancestral knowledge with contemporary restorative strategies to address intergenerational trauma and strengthen community resilience.^[3][4][5] She bridges activism and academia by interlinking indigenous knowledge, Afro-feminism, peacebuilding, and healing justice.^[3][7]

• #EndSARS Organizing: Lessons and Opportunities for Nigeria’s Future Governance. Digital Technologies, Elections and Campaigns in Africa edited by Duncan Omanga, Admire Mare, and Pamela Mainye. Routledge: London & New York, 2024: 191-209.
• Ushahidi’s Nonviolent Technological Impact in Kenya’s 2008 Post-Election Violence. Youth and Non-Violence in Africa’s Fragile Contexts edited by Akin Iwilade and Tarila Marclint Ebiede. Palgrave Macmillan Switzerland, 2022: 163-188.
• Religious Fundamentalism and Historical Analysis of Diverse Sexual Orientations and Gender Identities in Nigeria. Project of The Initiative for Equal Rights (TIERs) and Education as a Vaccine (EVA), with support from the Wellspring Philanthropic Fund. Co-authored with Chioma Ogwuegbu and Lydia Ogundare, 2022. PDF
• Citizen Journalism and Conflict Transformation: Exploring Netizens’ Digitized Shaping of Political Crises in Kenya. In the Routledge Handbook of African Media and Communication Studies, edited by Winston Mano and Viola C Milton. Routledge: London & New York, 2021: 155-165.
• Normalising Mental Health Needs in Nigeria: A Wake-Up Call. King’s College, London, 2022.
• The Healing Matrix of African Women-led Mental and Emotional Wellbeing. In AWDF Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Knowledge Series, AWDF Publication, 2021.
• Zimbabwe’s Cyber-shutdown: A counter-productive economic decision or a politically retrogressive move? 2019, Kujenga Amani, The Social Science Research Council.
• Citizen Journalism and Conflict Transformation in Africa: The Ushahidi’s Response to Kenya’s 2008 Post-Election’ Violence. 2017. Coauthored with Dr. Cori Wielenga in Matatu Brill online Books and Journals, African Studies, Volume 49, Issue 2, pages 467 – 486.
• #FeesMustFall Uprising 2015: The Emergence of Youth Agency in South Africa’s Largest Post-Apartheid Protests. 2016, Kujenga Amani, The Social Science Research Council.
• Ushahidi Crowdsourcing Platform: A People-Centred Approach to Conflict Transformation in Kenya. 2014, Kujenga Amani, The Social Science Research Council.
• Boko Haram and the Necessary State of Emergency for Transforming the Intractable Conflict in Nigeria. 2014, in the African Studies Association, Pambazuka, and Sahara Reporters online publications.
• The Human Security Implications of Anti-gay Law on Sexual Minority in Nigeria. 2014, in Strife, Pambazuka, and Sahara Reporters online publications.

• Funmi Olonisakin – Founding Director of ALC and scholar of leadership and peacebuilding in Africa
• Fatima Akilu – Nigerian psychologist focused on mental health and countering violent extremism
• Bisi Adeleye-Fayemi – Nigerian feminist activist, writer, and co-founder of the AWDF
• Prentis Hemphill – Writer, embodiment practitioner, and healing justice practitioner
• Cara Page – American organizer and cultural worker in healing justice
• Naminata Diabate – Scholar of African literature and gender studies
• Awino Okech – Professor of Feminist and Security Studies at SOAS

• African Leadership Centre
• King's College London
• Ìmọ́lẹ̀ of Afrika