Afro futurism and the work of Nnedi Okorafor

In this paper I propose to discuss the work of Nigerian American author Nnedi Okorafor with a particular focus in the Binti Series (2015-2019), sci-fi narratives that "imagine a future" as per her own words.
I start by presenting some of the definitions of Afro-futurism in art, history, culture and knowledge dissemination, paying particular attention to the movements pertaining to the African diaspora.
The first part presents Mike Dery's definition of Afrofuturism (1993) namely as he delves into the legacy of authors like Samuel R. Delany and Octavia Butler.
These introductory references will work as the framing for the analysis of Okorafor's novellas which deconstruct conventional narrative models and character representation whilst showing a direct connection with the discussions on postcolonial challenges and women's emancipation. Technology, spirituality, resistance and ecology come together amid multispecies interactions and the reading of the weight of cultural conventions and collective history in deep connection with the Himba women from southern Africa.
Some other authors that will be considered in this paper are D. Crowley (1994); Ruy Duarte de Carvalho (2004); Michael Bollig (2009); Ytasha Womack (2013).