Sign in

Ben Radley

@radleyben.bsky.social
129 followers 138 following 74 posts

Associate Professor in International Development at Bath | Editor for Review of African Political Economy (roape.net) | Mining, Energy & Labour | Central Africa & Pacific Islands | www.benradley.com

PostsRepliesMedia
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 30/09/2026
Join the online book launch of the African edition of 'What is the Real Marxist Tradition?', 18:30 GMT 22 Oct. Discuss Marxism's impact in Africa & explore new & radical perspectives for the continent’s political social movements & struggles. roape.net/2026/09/30/w...
roape.net
What is the Real Marxist Tradition in Africa? | ROAPE
John Molyneux’s classic statement of Marxist theory and practice What is the Real Marxist Tradition? was first published in 1984. The short book provided an incredibly sophisticated description of Mar...
012
Reposted by Ben Radley
Duncan Money @mininghistory.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Tomorrow, I'll be launching a report with @actsa-uk.bsky.social about Anglo American's historic role at Kabwe Mine in Zambia, one of the most polluted places on the planet. You can sign up here: bit.ly/UNDENIABLE_K...
bit.ly
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: REPORT LAUNCH: UNDENIABLE Anglo American’s role in the Kabwe sacrifice zone. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meet...
Welcome! You are invited to join a meeting: REPORT LAUNCH: UNDENIABLE Anglo American’s role in the Kabwe sacrifice zone. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the meet...
121
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
Ten open-access articles on US-led imperialism & Africa from the ROAPE archives. A simple archival keyword search for 'imperialism' returns 85 results, so there is plenty more there besides... x.com/ROAPEjournal...
x.com
ROAPE journal (@ROAPEjournal) on X
In the current moment, developing & deepening our understanding of US-led #imperialism is an urgent task for radical forces everywhere. In this spirit, ROAPE offers a curated selection of ten open...
000
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 10/09/2026
This is a pretty solid primer for anyone wanting an overview of latest developments around deep-sea mining in the Pacific Islands region and things to look out for next www.csis.org/analysis/pac...
csis.org
The Pacific Is Ground Zero for Deep-Sea Mining
The race for critical minerals race is moving offshore, and the Pacific is ground zero.
000
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
African workers are deeply entrenched in a global system of migrant-labour exploitation & trafficking. Their experiences – from Gulf households to Myanmar’s scam compounds – expose the same recurring problem: what does a right to leave mean if workers cannot safely use it? roape.net/2026/09/09/a...
roape.net
African migrant workers who cannot return | ROAPE
Somebody in Kampala or Accra or Harare sees a job advertisement. Customer service, or something in IT, somewhere abroad. The pay is better than anything available at home. The recruiter is responsive ...
034
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Pleased to share the first major output from my @leverhulme.ac.uk Research Fellowship, on the political economy of household electrification in Rwanda & Papua New Guinea. A tale of statecraft, derisking & dependency that's free to access & download here 👇🏼 www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....
tandfonline.com
Why household electrification in Rwanda outpaced Papua New Guinea (2000–2025): statecraft, derisking and dependency in the pursuit of universal energy access
At the turn of the twenty-first century, Rwanda and Papua New Guinea (PNG) ranked among the world’s least electrified countries. Reflective of a broader trend across the Global South, both countrie...
031
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
Michael Roberts on soaring US corporate profits linked to general suppression of workers' wages all mostly based on a growing AI bubble, in which for Roberts "the likelihood of an AI stock market bust remains high". thenextrecession.wordpress.com/2026/09/01/a...
thenextrecession.wordpress.com
AI and the profits boom
As the central bankers of the world met at Jackson Hole, Wyoming for their annual get together to discuss issues affecting the world financial sector and monetary policy, US statistics for corporat…
010
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
Excellent on-the-ground reporting from Mar-Vic Cagurangan, on resistance from leaders in Guam, American Samoa and Northern Mariana Islands to US plans to kickstart deep-sea mining in their coastal waters www.theguardian.com/environment/...
theguardian.com
US territories hit out at Trump plan to explore deep sea mining in the Pacific
US agency releases plan to lease millions of hectares of seabed off the coast of the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam
000
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
An important piece by ROAPE's Leo Zeilig on the murder of Professor Jason Arday, drawing two political parallels – one to Black Lives Matter and another to when antisemitism was denounced by the French author Émile Zola at the end of the 19th century. roape.net/2026/08/24/t...
roape.net
The murder of Professor Jason Arday  | ROAPE
On Sunday 16 August I joined the vigil for Professor Arday in London’s Trafalgar Square in the summer’s heat, packed tight with thousands of protestors marking their respect, holding bunches of flower...
010
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
ROAPE's Leo Zeilig on the murder of Professor Jason Arday, drawing two political parallels – one to Black Lives Matter and another to when antisemitism was denounced by the French author Émile Zola at the end of the 19th century. bsky.app/profile/roap...
000
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 24/08/2026
We break our annual shutdown to bring this urgent piece of writing from ROAPE's Leo Zeilig. "Professor Arday is dead. Murdered. Yet again another Black person has been killed – pilloried in a public execution orchestrated by a profoundly racist press & organised fascists" roape.net/2026/08/24/t...
roape.net
The murder of Professor Jason Arday  | ROAPE
On Sunday 16 August I joined the vigil for Professor Arday in London’s Trafalgar Square in the summer’s heat, packed tight with thousands of protestors marking their respect, holding bunches of flower...
243
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
In New Zealand, or fancy coming over? Am co-convening the panel 'Extractivism & beyond: anti-extractivist organising & post-extractivist futures' at NZ Development Studies' biennial conference in December @vicuniwgtn.bsky.social. Abstract submissions by 31 August: www.wgtn.ac.nz/sgees/about/...
wgtn.ac.nz
DEVNET 2026 Conference | Te Kura Tātai Aro Whenua / School of Geography, Environment and Earth Sciences | Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington
On behalf of the DEVNET National Forum and the Conference Planning Committee, we warmly welcome you to Wellington for the 2026 DEVNET Conference.
000
Reposted by Ben Radley
Aidan Barlow @aidanbarlow.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
1/ 📄 New paper, and the first from my @leverhulme.ac.uk project at @uniofbath.bsky.social: 'Waste not, want not: Materialities, identity, and politics in Zambia's Black Mountains'. Out now, open access, in Resources Policy. 🧵
133
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 11/08/2026
It's election day in the Cook Islands on Wednesday, and deep-sea mining seems a big political issue and talking point. Front page news & most everyone has an opinion on it.
062
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 29/07/2026
International Seabed Authority biannual talks close with, once again, no mining code to permit commercial exploitation in international waters. US position seems increasingly out of step with most. oceanographicmagazine.com/news/deep-se...
oceanographicmagazine.com
Deep-sea mining talks end without a framework... again - Oceanographic
Talks at International Seabed Authority end with deep-sea mining framework incomplete, gaps unresolved and compliance inquiry ongoing.
000
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 28/07/2026
An extraordinary new novel from the extraordinary and prolific @LeoZeilig - a mix of memoir and fiction that tells of a world on the cusp of radical change. Read an extract here: roape.net/2026/07/24/t... Then order it here: editorhousefacility.com/books/the-wi...
roape.net
The Winter Circus | ROAPE
The Present Unknown to many in the Global North, insurgent forces now held the power in the Global South, in Africa, in lands once the playthings of imperialist armies – the French, British and Americ...
000
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Hi everyone 👋🏼 Who are the major IR &/or IPE scholars writing about any or all of the below, mainstream or critical: a) collapse of the liberal order b) shift from unipolarity to multipolarity c) intensifying US-China competition Any suggestions very welcome - thanks!
000
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
The Trump administration has proposed a deep-sea mining lease sale in federal waters near American Samoa, marking what would be the world’s first attempt to commercially mine the seabed. In an overseas US territory. Where else? oceanographicmagazine.com/news/first-d...
oceanographicmagazine.com
First deep-sea mining lease 'being forced on Pacific communities' - Oceanographic
Trump has announced the world's first proposed commercial deep-sea mining lease sale in Pacific waters near American Samoa.
041
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 23/07/2026
Some thoughts on deep-sea mining in the Pacific which, in spite of all resistance, looks like it's coming our way soon(ish). Was fun to write this with superstar @cdsbath.bsky.social student Imogen Eagles based on some research we did together this year. www.developmentresearch.eu?p=2630
developmentresearch.eu
The Shifting Geopolitics of Deep-Sea Mining in the Pacific Islands Region: an Industry Poised to Emerge?
By Ben Radley and Imogen Eagles The ocean’s seabed contains vast deposits of minerals deemed critical for green transition technologies, military defence systems and AI hardware, among other uses. …
032
Reposted by Ben Radley
EADI @eadi.bsky.social · 21/07/2026
"There is a concern held by civil society observers (..) that moratorium positions represent more of a ‘wait and see’ attitude from regional governments, as opposed to a firm stance against the industry." ✍️ @radleyben.bsky.social & Imogen Eagles in our latest blog www.developmentresearch.eu?p=2630
developmentresearch.eu
The Shifting Geopolitics of Deep-Sea Mining in the Pacific Islands Region: an Industry Poised to Emerge?
By Ben Radley and Imogen Eagles The ocean’s seabed contains vast deposits of minerals deemed critical for green transition technologies, military defence systems and AI hardware, among other uses. …
112
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 20/07/2026
This is a huge book! At a simply ludicrous price - it makes mine look cheap! I wrote a chapter in it about cobalt nationalism & structural transformation in Indonesia 🇮🇩 & the Congo 🇨🇩. DM me if interested & I'll send you a pre-print. www.e-elgar.com/shop/gbp/han...
e-elgar.com
Handbook of Resource Nationalism
‘This is a much-needed collection for understanding the pressing intersections of sovereignty, nationalism and resource politics. Geographically, theoretically and empirically diverse, it is both an i...
011
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 14/07/2026
🚨New journal issue alert! Volume 53 Issue 188 June 2026 War Pages: 129-279 Issue Editor: Ray Bush All articles, briefings and debates available to access, read and download for free from anywhere in the world 👇🏿 mailchi.mp/3d77c8c31fc4...
mailchi.mp
ROAPE, Volume 53 Issue 188
021
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 10/07/2026
A 10-minute US propaganda video on 'Why the Cook Islands are exploring their deep ocean' which I think managed to avoid any mention of the real reason why: to mine it. Quite impressive. nz.usembassy.gov/the-opportun...
nz.usembassy.gov
The Opportunity Matters - Why the Cook Islands Are Exploring Their Deep Ocean
Why the Cook Islands Are Exploring Their Deep Ocean
100
Reposted by Ben Radley
@charleshb@mastodon.sdf.org @charleshb.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Guerrilla History w/ Adnan( @adnanhusain.bsky.social )Husain & Henry Hakamaki "Mining the Congo w/ Josaphat Musamba, Germain Ngoie Tshibambe, & Ben( @radleyben.bsky.social )Radley (AR&D Ep.10)" podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/m...
podcasts.apple.com
Mining the Congo w/ Josaphat Musamba, Germain Ngoie Tshibambe, & Ben Radley (AR&D Ep.10)
Podcast Episode · Guerrilla History · October 31, 2025 · 2h 33m
001
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 04/07/2026
The US continues to go hard as it seeks to kickstart deep-sea mining. Last week, the US ambassador to New Zealand, the Cook Islands, Niue and Samoa commented: "Critical minerals, and particularly in the Cooks, is either 1A or 1B of my priorities." www.miningweekly.com/article/us-e...
miningweekly.com
US envoy says Cook Islands minerals are a top priority
The new US ambassador to New Zealand and several Pacific island nations said on Friday that securing Cook Islands seabed minerals was a top priority, and that China's push for influence in the Pacific...
010
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
Guam is a US territory in the Pacific where Trump hopes to scale up deep-sea mining fast. This is how the US deals with Guam's efforts to resist: "The US won't even stick around when we're giving our statement. They literally get up and walk out of the room." www.postguam.com/news/local/u...
postguam.com
US snubs Guam at UN decolonization talks
Every time Guam's representatives finish addressing the United Nations Fourth Committee on decolonization, the United States delegation walks in. The message, according to Guam's top decolonization of...
010
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
The Cook Islands is pushing forward with deep-sea mining in its sovereign waters. Here, Te Ipukarea Society pushes back, asking "if the costs outweigh the profits, who really stands to benefit, and who gets left to deal with the environmental fallout?" www.cookislandsnews.com/internal/opi...
cookislandsnews.com
Te Ipukarea Society: Will deep-seabed mining make Cook Islanders rich? - Cook Islands News
For years, Cook Islanders have been told that the minerals on our seabed will make our nation rich. But a growing body of independent evidence shows that deep seabed mining is not the economic miracle...
010
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 19/06/2026
Detailed analysis on how the US is expediting the process to start deep-sea mining by removing social and environmental regulatory safeguards. From @mongabay.com news.mongabay.com/2026/06/expe...
news.mongabay.com
Experts say ‘bare bones’ US laws are unfit to regulate nascent deep-sea mining industry
This is part 2 of a two-part series examining the U.S.’s efforts to begin deep-sea mining in federal waters. Part 2 examines the regulations that would govern the industry. Part 1 explored the process...
0129
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Thanks to @regstud.bsky.social for funding our new research network on Uneven & Combined Transitions, w @lorena-lombardozzi.bsky.social, @susannewman.bsky.social & others not on here! Website, mailing list & webinar series to come in early 2027! Full info here: www.regionalstudies.org/news/uct-ejgs/
011
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 18/06/2026
Another big step in the US' unilateral push to launch a deep-sea mining industry, as plans for domestic processing facilities announced. oceanminingintel.com/news/industr...
oceanminingintel.com
Glomar Minerals And Cobalt Blue Name Four Finalists For First US Polymetallic Nodule Processing Facility - Ocean Mining Intel
Glomar Minerals and Cobalt Blue Holdings Limited have shortlisted four sites in Louisiana, North Carolina, and Texas for Project Infinity, a facility that would become the first US polymetallic nodule...
000
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 04/06/2026
A reminder that ROAPE is looking for two affiliates to join the journal’s Editorial Working Group for a year starting from September 2026. Please apply by 9 June - all details are in the post! roape.net/2026/05/12/r...
001
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
Introducing an open access special issue on reparations & global health, Lebohang Liepollo Pheko argues that if the 19th century was the era of abolition & the 20th century of decolonisation (however incomplete), then the 21st century must be the era of repair. roape.net/2026/06/10/t...
roape.net
The body keeps the score | ROAPE
Before there was a Commission, there were generations who died too young – not because of bad genes, but because of stolen land, unpaid labour, and a minority world that extracted everything it could ...
052
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
🚨New special issue on mining, green transitions & uneven development in the global South. This thread links to the 18 contributions, introduced here along with my fellow guest editors @cdsbath.bsky.social Roy Maconachie, @yixiansun.bsky.social & Aidan Barlow: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
110
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 06/05/2026
Writing for roape.net, @sofiannaceur.bsky.social argues that the notion of ‘border management’ is rooted in counterinsurgency & pacification tactics, & embodies nothing but merging migration control & labor extraction into a single, neocolonial concept. roape.net/2026/05/06/t...
164
Reposted by Ben Radley
Development Studies Association @devcomms.bsky.social · 19/03/2026
Why does studying global development and international relations often feel stuck in the past? ✨ New paper urges a shift beyond stereotypes towards a fuller understanding of Africa. Cynthia Kamwengo, Newnham College & @radleyben.bsky.social , @cdsbath.bsky.social buff.ly/eLkpxLr
022
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
An excellent and timely intervention from @drlandislife.bsky.social, deconstructing self-determination narratives around Senegal's recent move to pass homophobic legislation by highlighting the internal political dynamics & external US interests at play. roape.net/2026/03/17/b...
roape.net
Bodies under surveillance in Senegal’s governance crisis | ROAPE
Let us be honest about what happened on 12 March 2026. Senegal's National Assembly voted to raise the maximum prison sentence for same-sex relations to ten years and to criminalise the "promotion" or ...
296
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
A powerful interview and testimony from Momodou Taal in @roapejournal.bsky.social, kicked out of the US for his pro-Palestine activism, connecting the Palestinian struggle to a longer history of Black, African and anti-imperial resistance roape.net/2026/02/25/o...
roape.net
Opposing genocide in the twenty-first century: an interview with Momodou Taal - ROAPE
Has opposing genocide become a threat to public safety? At a time when imperial offensives no longer bother to cloak themselves in justificatory rhetoric, doctoral student and activist Momodou Taal is...
021
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 25/02/2026
ust a reminder that I'll be talking on green imperialism in the Congo tomorrow at 1PM GMT as part of a @devcomms.bsky.social & @eadi.bsky.social webinar series. The link to register for the event can be found below... bsky.app/profile/radl...
011
Reposted by Ben Radley
Development Studies Association @devcomms.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
DSA-EADI Working Group Webinar Series 2026: Talk by @radleyben.bsky.social about the dynamics of green imperialism in the Congo. 📅 26 February 2026 @eadi.bsky.social Find out more and sign up here: buff.ly/Yyy13jm
022
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
In a few weeks' time, I'll be talking online at a @devcomms.bsky.social-@eadi.bsky.social webinar about green imperialism in #Congo 🇨🇩, drawing on some of the ideas I wrote on the topic a few years ago (www.scienceopen.com/hosted-docum...). You can sign up here: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/dsa-eadi-w...
032
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 09/02/2026
In a few weeks time, I'll be talking online at a @devcomms -@EADI webinar about the dynamics of green imperialism in #Congo 🇨🇩, drawing on some of the ideas in a paper I wrote on the topic a few years ago (scienceopen.com/hosted-documen t?doi=10.1080/03056244.2023.2277616 ). You can sign up here:
scienceopen.com
000
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 04/02/2026
Some important analysis in @ROAPEjournal on how recent DRC-US agreements tie Kinshasa to Washington's strategic priorities, coming the day after Glencore announced it's selling 40% stake in its DRC copper & cobalt mines to a US government-backed group. roape.net/2026/02/04/t...
roape.net
The price of peace: US strategy and the DRC’s critical minerals - ROAPE
Antonia Baumgartner argues that behind the promise of peace, a set of recent US-backed agreements have reshaped how the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s minerals, infrastructure, and political choic...
000
Reposted by Ben Radley
EADI @eadi.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
Registration is open for the 1st webinar on 26 February! "Green imperialism, sovereignty, and the quest for national development in the Congo", with @radleyben.bsky.social www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/dsa-eadi-w...
eventbrite.co.uk
DSA-EADi Webinar Series 2026: Talk by Dr. Ben Radley
Green imperialism, sovereignty, and the quest for national development in the Congo
133
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
Some excellent fresh empirical analysis here that succinctly paints a very clear picture bsky.app/profile/roap...
011
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
Writing for ROAPE, and drawing on original empirical data from eight African countries, Robin Jaspert argues that the profits reaped out of Africa flow into the hands of foreign capitalists mostly located in the global North. roape.net/2026/01/14/i...
011
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 09/01/2026
Our 2025 offering of ROAPE's best reads for African radicals roape.net/2026/01/09/r...
1117
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 22/12/2025
Missed the announcement of the release of our new special issue on #Fanon at 100? Frantz Fanon at 100: class struggle and the future of African liberation Find the journal alert and all the contents, free to access & download anywhere in the world, here: mailchi.mp/09af158365d9... #Fanon100
0128
Ben Radley @radleyben.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
@roapejournal.bsky.social ending 2025 with a bang! A new special issue on the revolutionary Frantz #Fanon (1925–1961) stuffed full of contributions that critically reflect on his life & legacy. #Fanon100: class struggle and the future of African liberation bsky.app/profile/roap...
010
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
2/2 🧵 ✨ The entire Frantz Fanon special issue is available to read and download for free — the perfect festive deep dive 🎄🔥 👉 buff.ly/6ZACRRN 💡 You can also suscribe to support #ROAPE as an fully open-access journal. #Fanon100 #AfricanLiberation #Decolonisation
07645
Reposted by Ben Radley
Review of African Political Economy @roapejournal.bsky.social · 18/12/2025
1/2 🧵 🚨 Just in time for the holidays! We’re thrilled to share ROAPE Special Issue 186, Vol. 52, celebrating the centenary of Frantz Fanon’s radical life, work and legacy 🎄🔥 Editorial: #Fanon100: Class Struggle and the Future of African Liberation buff.ly/gASaoZD
roape.net
Frantz Fanon at 100: class struggle and the future of African liberation - ROAPE
Chinedu Chukwudinma, Christopher J. Lee and Bettina Engels introduce special issue 186, Volume 52 of the journal, dedicated to honouring the centenary of the Martiniquais-Algerian revolutionary…
14023