Established in January 2020 by a generous donation from the Perivoli Foundation, the Perivoli Africa Research Centre (PARC) represents the University of Bristol's cross-disciplinary commitment to championing transformation in research and partnership to advance Africa's achievement of its own aspirations.

PARC's work suggests that such an approach must include a journey of transformation in the University's partnerships with research and higher education actors and institutions in the continent. The goal must be a recognition and a redressing of the multiple power imbalances that continue to shape global North-Africa research relations – and that serve to perpetuate inequities in the global science and research ecosystem as a whole. These legacies of colonialism harm not only the prospects of individual African scholars, groups or organisations – they undermine the potential impacts of, and wider returns from Africa's academic endeavour for the continent's future.

A fundamental, guiding principle in PARC's work to champion transformation in global North-Africa partnerships is the imperative of centring the perspectives, voices and terms of African scholars, research institutions, and constituencies in the setting of directions and approaches for structural and strategic change.

PARC has the potential, therefore, to galvanise and offer a unique platform for Africa-centred dialogue that explores and charts opportunities for the University's pursuit of restorative justice through new modes of engagement with the continent – and as part of its strategic ambitions for the coming years.