Dr. Fatoumata Seck of Stanford University is a literary scholar who studies African literature, including Senegalese graphic comics. As a multilinguist, she offers insights into the importance of cultural translation at a time of increasing xenophobia, and the power of satire in the face of hegemonic economic policies.

Dr. Lamia Balafrej of UCLA is an art historian specializing in the medieval Islamic period. Her work illuminates the connection between slavery and technology, which remains an important feature of the global economy today.