BIPOC Hort is pleased to present Dr. Usman Ibrahim, in conversation with Tracy Qiu.
Dr. Usman Ibrahim will discuss his role at the Ahmadu Bello University Gardens. Often described as a “garden in savanna”, the University Gardens are currently under development to address concerns about rapid and large-scale environmental degradation, pollution, and depletion of natural resources. The University’s goal in formalizing the garden is to spearhead the incorporation of sustainability and environmental literacy in teaching, research, operations, and outreach at the university and in Nigeria through tree planting and a reforestation campaign. The University’s plans to formally establish this garden arise from the its work to arrest further environmental degradation, provide a conducive environment for living and learning, and to protect the major local source of drinking water—Kubanni Dam—from siltation and chemical pollution.
Dr. Ibrahim is the Head of Horticulture Section at Samara College, Ahmadu Bello University, Over the past 10 years, he has been involved in interdisciplinary extension and research programs that support productivity, profitability, and sustainable production of horticultural and field crops in Nigeria. He is the Immediate Past President-in-Council of the Horticultural Society of Nigeria, a member of the founding team for the formation of the Nigerian Public Gardens Association, a member of the African Center for Horticultural Gardens, and a graduate of the Longwood Fellows Program where he was bestowed with the Leadership in Horticulture Award.
Tracy Qiu is an art maker, researcher, gardener, and decolonial thinker interested in decentering and interrupting the ways we think about nature, gardening, plants, and environment. A doctoral candidate at Concordia University studying botanical gardens, coloniality, and decolonization through creative projects, Tracy also teaches and facilitates workshops on racial diversity, equity/inclusion, and decolonization in public gardens. She is a lifelong sewist and craftsperson and a plant-dye enthusiast with an interest in Chinese and settler-Canadian culture and diaspora.
BIPOC Hort extends their gratitude to Bartram’s Garden for hosting the Zoom.