About the Workshop

ARUA Microbiome Workshop 2025

May 26-30, 2025

Stellenbosch Institute for Advanced Study
10 Marais Road
Stellenbosch, South Africa

Purpose and Vision

The ARUA Workshop 2025 is a focused research and training event designed to advance Africa-led innovation at the intersection of microbiome science, computational biology, and sustainable agriculture. Taking place at Stellenbosch University in late summer 2025, the workshop aims to catalyse interdisciplinary collaborations and capacity building across African institutions. By fostering a new generation of scientists equipped to engineer microbiomes under climate uncertainty, the initiative supports a broader vision of environmentally resilient food systems across the continent.

A Collaborative Framework

This workshop is a collaboration between Imperial College London and a network of ARUA member universities in South Africa and Nigeria, with facilitation from the Nigeria Academy of Science and the Academy of Sciences South Africa. The programme builds on established research projects such as the Microbiome Green Revolution, Digital Microbiome, and the Leverhulme Holobiont Centre, extending their relevance to the African context. It brings together around 40 participants, including principal investigators, PhD students, and early-career researchers, to co-create solutions and research priorities tailored to regional agricultural challenges.

Training for Real-World Impact

Training is a cornerstone of the workshop, with daily sessions focused on essential computational and analytical skills for microbiome research. Participants will engage with open-source, low-cost tools and methods, learning reproducible computing, bioinformatics pipelines, and AI-powered modelling techniques. Crucially, the training is grounded in the practical application of these tools to participants’ own datasets, ensuring that the skills gained are immediately relevant to their ongoing work.

Long-Term Outcomes

The workshop is designed not as a standalone event, but as the foundation for a long-term, cross-continental research consortium. Through shared learning and the development of collaborative research proposals, it aims to unlock funding opportunities from UK-Africa research partnerships, regional science councils, and international foundations. In doing so, it strengthens institutional ties and supports the growth of a distributed network of microbiome scientists working toward sustainable development goals.

Strategic Importance

As the impacts of climate change continue to disrupt agricultural systems worldwide, Africa faces a unique set of ecological and infrastructural challenges. By investing in microbiome engineering and interdisciplinary training, this initiative addresses both the scientific and societal dimensions of climate resilience. The ARUA Workshop 2025 represents a crucial step toward enabling African-led innovation at scale, supporting not only academic advancement but also practical solutions for food security and environmental stewardship.