CCAS Newsletter Fall 2009

Fall2009

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CCA,SNNWS CCAS TeamLeadsMedical Partnership Proj ectfor Refugeesin SytiaandJordan AssistantProfessorRochelleDavis'sresearchfocuses ;^!'CAS of war. refugees in the Arab world and the consequences on I conductingresearchwith MAAS studentOmar Shakir \znVnile on the war in Iraq, shebecameawareof how the burgeoningrefugee populationsin Syria and Jordanhaveput a sffain on local healthcare providers.Since2003 Syria alonehastakenin over onemillion Iraqi refugees.The lntemational Crisis Group estimatesthat 57 percent of these Laqis are affectedby chronic medical conditions, and of of the particular concem are the untold mental health consequences violence, prolonged war, and displacementthey have experienced.

Jordan hosts some 550,000 Iraqi refugees, many of whom are impoverishedwith limited accessto services.

Respondingto theseurgent health care concems,Dr. Davis and Mr. Shakirconceived planned"andconductedvolunteermedicaland mental health taining projects over the past summer in Syria and Jordanaimed at sffengtheningthe capacityof govemmentaland nongovemmentalbodiescrurentlyadministeringthe healthcareneedsof Iraqi andPalestinianrefugees.

The projects brought U.S. medical and mental health care volunteersfrom acrossthe county to offer lectures,workshops,and other fiainings to their counterpartsin Syria and Jordan.Activities covereda variety of topics relevantto the medical andpsychological needsof Iraqi andPalestinianrefugees;examplesincludeestablishing community support groups with haqi oufteachvolunteers,a large psychiatic nurses'exchange,taining in expressivearts therapy,a lecture on the effects of violence and sexualtauma on adolescent development, ffid a workshop focusing on self-care for medical professionals working with refugees.

Among the volunteersto Syria were 11doctors,two nurses,three counselors/therapists,and two pharmacists. Fifteen volwtteers participated in the Jordan mission, including eight doctors, four a businessconsultant,a social worker, and a counselors/therapists, public health specialist.Participantsfrom GeorgetownUniversity includedDr. Nahmin al-Zubaidi,EndocrinologyProfessorat the GU School of Medicine, Schadi Semnani and Adam Coogle, MAAS students who volunteered as franslators,and Georgetown alums Dr. Kenneth Herbst and Christina Flemming. The volunteen in Syna offered42 actlines to over 600 Synanand Palestinianhealth careprofessionalsas well as 180 Iraqi and Palestinianrefugees.In Jordan,25 ftaining or parfirershipactivitieswere offeredto about500 participants.

"The project was driven by the particular needs of the mental Center for Contemporary Arab Studies

Georgetown University

Workshop participants learn about treating psychological trauma.

CsNrrsn Npws I -2 CCAS'sDr. RochelleDavisand Omar Shakirleadmedicalpartnership projectfor refugeesin SyriaandJordan

PusLrcATroNs Nsws 3-4 Dr. SamerShehatapublishesnew book on textile workersin Egypt 4 Announcingour new editedvolumeon educationin theArabworld

Ournsncn Nsws 5 The summerteachertour to Egfpt provedhot but wonderful! to teachingthe Middle Eastin 6-7 Educatorsconsidernew approaches Juneworkshop

Punr.rc EvpNrs 8-9 ExpertsdiscusscurrentMiddle Eastproblem areason three panels

Acnopurc Nsws 12 MAAS studentAvaLeonetakeshonorablemention in essaycontest 13-15Facultynews

Washington DC 20057-1020

http://ccas.georgetown.edu

202687 5793

Center News and medical health care providers who administerto refugeesaswell asthe specific specializationsof the American health care professionals," saidDr. Davis.

In Synu, Dr. Davis coordinated the workshops and lecflres in partnenhip with severalgovemmentalandnon-govemmental organizations,including the United Nations High Commissionerfor RefugeesGTNHCR), theUnited NationsRelief andWorksAgency (tiNRWA), the Syrian Minisffies of Health and Higher Education, and a variety of independentNGOs. The Syrian Embassyin Washingtonhelped facilitate the work from the outset.In Jordan,Mr. Shakir set up and led theprogram,which wasthencoordinated

by Mohammadal-Moum en,a2009graduate of Stanford University, and AbdulRahman Chaballout, a 2008 graduate of Comell University. They also parhreredwith a host of intemationaland domestic organizations, including the Noor Al-Hussein Foundation, the lntemational Medical Corps (nyIC), IINHCR, and CARE Intemational.

Responding to both the content and quality of the activities,participantsreflected positively on their experiences. "The level of the lecturer was wonderfi;l and so was the translator,"said one participant after a workshop on insomnia and pain management."The information given was easyto understandand to relav to others."

Others spoke of a need for supplemental training. According to one participant, "It was good to put many ideas in our minds, but it was so short.We needmore training."

I-INHCR representativeRenata Dubini commented that "the support provided by this health caremission hasbeeninvaluable to capacity building in Syra and we are looking forward to continuing this collaboration."

Inspired by colleagueslike Dubini and building on the experiencesof last summe!

Dr. Davis and Mr. Shakir hope to organue and carry out further medical parftrership projects and potentially establish annual events.

New Facesat CCASIKelli Harris, MarinaKrikorian, and DnRodneyCollins CAS is pleased to welcome two society in North Africa, especially as it new staff members, Ms. Kelli illuminatesthe formation of contemporary Harris and Ms. Marina Krikorian. male subjectivities. and its Qatar Post-DoctoralFellow for the In his doctoral research, Dr. Collins academicyear,Dr. Rodney Collins. approached this nexus through an Ms. Harris replaces Jenna Beveridge examinationof the political and economic as the Academic Program Coordinator links betweenthe coffee trade, the public for the MAAS program. She attendedthe coffeehouse(qahwa sha'abiya),and manUniversity of Virginia, where shemajored hood in Tunis. Tunisia. The research in Middle Eastemstudiesandhistory.From entailedtwoyearsoffieldwork inTunisand 2006 to 2008, she lived in Jordan,where resultedin a historicalethnographyentitled she taught English at a school in Amman. "From Coffee to Manhood: Grounds for Ms. Harris worked in Georgetown's Exchangein the TunisianCoffeehouse,ca.

DeparfrnentofArabic and Islamic Studies 1898-2009." for a year beforecoming to CCAS. During his tenure as the Qatar PostMs. Krikorian replaces Hala Shah as Doctoral Fellow, Dr. Collins is preparing the Center's Information Officer. Before his dissertationfor publication in addition coming to CCAS, she worked as the to severaljournal articlesandcontributions Adminisfator for the Advocacy Project, to edited volumes. He is also involved a Washington, D.C.-based human rights in several innovative editorial initiatives non-profit. She has a B.A. in political with the joumal Cultural Anthropologlt, science with a minor in Middle Eastem in which he is focusing on the themesof studies from the University of California, cities and urbanismas well as genderand Berkeley, and an M.A. in Middle Eastern sexuality. studies from the American University Dr. Collins has consulted with the of Beirut, where her researchfocused on World Monuments Fund, served as an the relationship between the Armenian intemational relations officer for the diaspora in Lebanon and the Armenian Coptic Evangelical Organization for homeland.

Social Servicesin Cairo, Egypt, conducted Dr. Collins recently received his Ph.D. researchamong intravenous drug users in from the Department of Anthropology at New York City, and was a PeaceCorps Columbia University. His work analyzes volunteer in the Adamawa province of the complex circuitry of market-state- Cameroon.

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Kelli Harris, Academic Program Coordinator

Marina Krikorian,

Information Officer

Dr. Rodney Collins, Qatar Post-Doctoral Fellow

CCAS News

Fall2009

Publications News

CCAS ProfessorPublishesNew Book on Textile Workers in Egypt CAS Assistant Professor Samer Shehatarecently publisheda book entitled Shop Floor Culture and Politics in Egtpt (SUNY Press, 2009).

Part of the SUNY series on the social and economic history of the Middle East, the book is about textile workers in Egypt and is based on fieldwork he undertook in two factories in Alexandria.

Dr. Shehataworked asa "winding machine operator" for ten months in both factories, and spent additional months leaming about the companies' histories and their organizational structures. Dr. Shehata's rich writing provides a sense of what work was like in the factories-its daily rhythms and occasional dramas-while exploring theoretical questions of labor, class formation, and identity.

Mimi Kirk interviewed Dr. Shehata

sorts of questionsabout the United States, life in America, social science,and other subjects. This made getting to know people somewhateasierand smoothedmy entranceinto the factory. And, after many monthsspenton the shopfloor, working on the machines,using the workers' facilities, and socializng with people outside of work, many workers felt comfortablewith my presencein the factory.

But there was also considerable confusionaboutmy project and what I was doing in the factory at leastinitially. Many people, and not just workers, thought I was interestedin the machinesor technical issuesregardingmanufacturing,even after I explainedwhat I was studying.Engineers and managementwere alsoconfusedabout my research, but for different reasons.

Manvwere incredulousthat someonefrom the United Stateswho waspursuinga Ph.D. and was from a significantly different class How did you get accessto the factories? background than the workers would want Itwasn'teasy.Tryingto getpermissionto to spendtime on the hot and humid shop undertiakeresearchinanyfactoryisdifficult, floor and get to know workers, let alone and bying to do this work on a machine.

Dr. Shehatas book is based on nearly ayear of fieldwork in two Egyptian factories.

There were also other empirical questionsI wantedto address.For example, although there is alarge literature inArabic and English about Eglptian working class history labor unions, and strikes, there are remarkably few accounts of daily life within Egyptian factories. Part of the reason for this relates to the first question you asked about access:it's remarkably difficult to get accessto do this type of research. And it's also extremely timein Egypt or in any "f was the first social scientist I What arethemain consuming. sem i- aut hor it ar ia n research questions What are your main findings? meny of the workers regime that imposes you ask?

There are many, but for one, I argue restrictions on social At most the abstract that the social organizationof production had ever met, and as an in the factories-including company rules and procedures, hierarchy, and This was complicated somewhat of a curiosiry.tt I research concemed relations of authority-and shop floor fi,rther in my case socialclass,inequality, culture profoundly shape what it means because I wanted to and the process of to be a "worker" and how this identity is conduct researchin state-ownedfactories. class formation. I was interestedin what understood.This is important becausethe specificallypublic sectortextile firms. social class is, how class happens,and social organization of production is not I eventuallymanagedto gain accessand how it is experienced.More concretely,I predetermined.ln other words, how work carry out my research,but I was delayed was interested in investigating workers' andthe factory areorgarizedarecontingent an entire year as I tried to navigate the experiences at work and the impact of and could always be arranged differently govemment bureaucracy and regulations these experienceson their understandings with significantly different consequences surroundingresearchclearance.In the en4 I of themselves,their interests,and others.I for what it meansto be a worker. gainedaccessthe way many things are done looked at this by studying the labor process I also argue that the realm of everyday in Egypt andelsewhere:informally,through (e.g.,work on the winding machine,what life-the taken-for-granted, banal, and personalcontacts. was required of workers, how work was seemingly trivial realm of face-toHow did the workers react to you and supposedto be done, how it actually got face interaction-is anything but trivial. your research? done, etc.), struggles on the shop floor Important social processesand structures, I was the first social scientist many between shift supervisors and workers like social class, are produced and of the workers had ever met, and as an (the exercise of power and practices reproduced in the course of daily life in Egyptian-American, I was somewhat of of resistance), and the "orgarizalional often routinized activity. Thus, we need a curiosity. This led people to ask me all cultures"of thepublic sectorfirms. to pay more attention to the everyday. Of

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CCAS News * Fall 2009

Publications News course,thereis a bias,at leastin political science, that makes this type of focus unusual.In that discipline, there tendsto be greater interest in formal institutions (e.g., unions), collective action (e.9., strikes), and more dramatic events (e.g., labor militancy) than the realm of the everyday.

Another important argumentrelatesto the "objectivity" of the research.Often when social scientists ask questions about qualitative research or studies participant-observation/ based on ethnography, they are asking about its "objectivity" and the "validity" of the "findings." For example, in my case the concern would be about whether my presencein the factory changedthe social dynamics of the shop floor, and as a consequencecolored or tainted my

findings. I argue that this conceptionof researchis fundamentally inappropriate for the human sciences and is based on an overly simplistic model of the natural sciences(in fact, there'sa debate about whether it's even appropriatefor the natural sciences!).Researchersare always fundamentally implicated in the knowledge they produce through their choiceof researchquestions,the theories they employ, and their use of particular methods,and the key is neither to deny nor ignore this, but to be consciousand explicit about theseissuesand critically reflect upon them.

Finally and more concretely, over the last few years Egypt has witnessed an unprecedented number of strikes and labor action. In 2008 alone there were over 600 labor protests,including

174 sit-ins and I22 strikes, according to the Land Center for Human Rights, an Egyptian NGO. The protests have touched almost all economic sectors, from textile workers to tax collectors. doctorsand nursesto circus employees.

Understanding these strikes in the context of the socioeconomic changes that have taken place in the country over the last two decades,which are largely a result of the government'sneoliberal economic policies, in addition to an awareness of the working conditions of the majority of Egyptians-and hopefully this book has contributed to the latter-can help us make senseof this important reality. * You can read the first chapter of professor Shehata'sbook online at:http.ll www. sunypress. edu/pdfI 61891.pdf.

AnnouncingNew CCAS EditedVolumeon Education in the Arab World CAS recently teamed up with Routledge to publish an edited volume entitled Trajectories of Education in the Arab World: Legacies and Challenges. Contributions to the volume originated from two conferences on the subject, one hosted by CCAS in 2006, and one hosted by Georgetown's School of Foreign Service in Qatar in 2007. Dr. OsamaAbi-Mershed,Assistant Professor of History at Georgetown, served as the chair of both conferences and the editor of the volume. Volume contributors include Dr. Andrd Elias Mazawi of the University of British Columbia, Dr. Malika Zeghal of the University of Chicago, and Dr. Munir Bashshurof the American University of Beirut, among others.

Routledge describes the volume as follows: Trajectories of Education in the Arab World gives a broad yet detailed historical and geographicaloverview of education in Arab countries. Drawing on pre-modern and modern educational concepts,systems,and practices in the Arab world, this book examines the impact of Western cultural influence,

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the opporfunities for reform, and the sustainabilityof current initiatives.

The contributors bring together analysesand casestudiesof educational standards and structures in the Arab world, from the classicalIslamic period to contemporarylocal and international efforts to redefinethe changingneedsand purposesofArab educationin the contexts of modernization, multiculturalism, and globalization. Taking a thematic and chronological approach, the first section contraststhe traditional notions, approaches,and standardsof education with the changesthat were initiated or imposed by European influences in the nineteenth century. The chapters then focus on the role of modern state-based educationalsystemsin constructingand preserving national identities, cultures, and citrzenries and concentrate on the role of education in state-formation and the reproduction of sociopolitical hierarchies.The successof educational reforms and policy-making is then assessed, offering perspectiveson future trends and prospects for generating institutional and or ganizationalchange.

This book will be of interest to

graduate and postgraduatestudents and scholarsof education,history Arab and Islamic history and the Middle East and North Africa.

To purchase a copy of the volume, please contact Mimi Kirk at mek75@ georgetown.edu. ..'

Trajectoriesof Education in tbe Arsb World is part of the Routledgeseriesentitled'Advances in Middle East and Islamic Studies."

CCAS News

Fall2009

Outreach News

TeacherSnrdy-Tourof Egfpt- Hot but Wonderfull -

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rom July 6 to 18, 15 elementary and secondary school teachers from the District of Columbia.

Maryland, New York, North Carolina, and Virginia enjoyed a study-tour of Egypt. The outreach program and Hands Along the Nile Development Services,Inc., a nonprofit that sponsors exchange programs between the United Statesand Egypt, organizedthe trip. CCAS Assistant Professor Samer Shehata and Director of Educational Outreach Zeina Azzam Seikaly accompanied the group.

Each morning during the group's stay in Cairo, teachers met over a buffet breakfast at the hotel in a special room, where Dr. Shehata gave onehour lectures. These covered numerous subjects in depth, such as Egyptian society, economics, geography,govern- Teachers Sandra McWhirter and Arjunia Oakley at the Ibn Touloun Mosque in Cairo. ment, modern history domestic and regional politics, and U.S.-Egyptian Islamic Cairo, the Al-Ahram Center for Alexandrina, an impressive library that relations. The group visited many Political and Strategic Studies, and was dedicatedin 2002 and is perceived notable places in Cairo, including the Khan al-Khalili. as the "rebirth" of the ancient library pyramids, the Egyptian Museum, a A one-day train trip to Alexandria of Alexandria. A spectacular four-day job-skills training program for women offered insights into the Greco-Roman excursion to Upper Egypt included in "Garbage City," the Wissa Wassef heritage of the area. After lunch at a tours in Aswan of the High Dam, Philae carpet and pottery school, Ibn Touloun local fish restaurant,the group made a Temple (for the goddess Isis), Kom Mosque, the Citadel, the Coptic Quarter, special trip to the famous Bibliotheca Ombo (for the gods Horus and Sobek), and Edfu (for the god Horus). The group sailed to Luxor on a cruise ship, and everyone was excited to cross the lock in Esna on the way; traveling on the Nile River was itself a pleasurable experience. In Luxor the group visited the Valley of the Kings, the Temple of Hatshepsut, the Colossi of Memnon, and Luxor and Karnak Temples.

Everyone on the study-tour learned a great deal about ancient and modern Egypt, the prominenceof the Nile River in Egyptian life, and the culture and people of this important Arab country.

Many had not visited Egypt before and were thrilled to be fulfilling a lifelong goal. The intense summer heat was manageablewith shadyareas,hats, light clothing, skin cream,and lots of waterand it also meant that fewer tourists were at the famous sites. We had many of theseplaces almost to ourselves,and Dn Samer Shehata, who accompanied the group, poses at the Alexandria train station. we appreciatedthem all immensely. i-' CCAS News * Fall 2009

Outreach News

Educators Consider New Approaches to Teaching the Middle East rom June 22 to 26, 2009, the outreach program hosted 24 teachers for the annual weeklong summer workshop. This year the participants came from the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia, as well as from an American school in Oman and a high school in North Carolina.

As in previous years, the program explored multidisciplinary approaches to learning and teaching about the Middle East and North Africa. Scholars and experts offered presentationsabout a number of topics in an interactive setting where attendees could ask questions, test assumptions,and gain ideas about integrating new content into their curricula.

Several speakers examined Middle Eastern society and culture. Sara Scalenghe(Indiana University) spoke on women and genderin the region,with a specialfocus on the custom of veiling.

"We need to historicize the veil," she said, starting with ancient civilizations and working up to the presentday, and noting that it is not unique to Islam.

She referred to the Qur'anic suras that mention the hijab and explained that there is wide interpretation of them. Dr. Scalenghe also discussedIslamic law and its sources, and touched on numerous issuessuch as polyg?my, adultery, divorce and family law, and inheritancelaws.

Politics of "The Knowledge: Education and Authority in the Middle East and North Africa" was the title of Fida Adely's (Georgetown University) presentation. She discussed the long history of education in the region, especially in the Islamic empire, up to the presentday. Education,she said, becomeskey in debatesabout tradition,

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Former Senator Chuck Hagel (&Nebraska) K-12 teachers.

lectures about U.S. policy in the Middle East to

culture, Westerninfluence,colonialism, economic development, and nationbuilding. Within the field of education, Dr. Adely touched on the important issuesof access,genderequity, quality, the relationship of education and employment, schools as a locus of opposition to governments, and the consequences of the youth bulge in the region.

Food writer Amy Riolo addressedthe culinary cultures of the Arab world, which shedescribed as influencing-and constantly being influenced by-many other cultures. Historically, cuisine in Arab/Islamic civilization has been regarded variously, such as as an art form or as part of multisensory experiences (with other stimuli such as music and beautiful gardens). She discussedspicesand the tradeof foods across vast swaths of Africa, Europe, and Asia, paving the way for the introduction and cross-fertilization of

many crops and styles of cooking. Ms. Riolo also explored Ottoman courtly cuisine and the important Persian influenceson Arab cooking.

(Georgetown Gregory Orfalea University) spoke on "Arab American Literature:Before and After 9/11." He defined such writing as any literature by or about Arab Americans in a nonstereotyped way. He discussed the waves of immigration from the Arab world from 1870 until the present and provided many examples of writers in each wave. such as Gibran Kahlil Gibran, Amin Rihani, Mikhail Naimy, Sam Hazo, D.H. Melhem, Hisham Sharabi, Edward Said, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Mohja Kahf, among others.

Before the workshop, all the attendees had received a copy of In the Country of Men, a novel by Hisham Matar, and had read it so that they could discussit during Mr. Orfalea'ssession.He asked the teachersto break into small groups and addressquestionsabout the novel's setting, characters, political context, and how the voice of the protagonist developsas he grows up.

Local, regional,and global political experiences were also salient topics in the workshop. Manal Jamal (James MadisonUniversity)gavea presentation

CCAS News

Fall2009

Outreach News on the Islamist revival in the Middle East today, describing it as a fairly recent phenomenon that started in the 1960s, with the Muslim Brotherhood active in the 1970s and 1980s. She enumerated some of the factors that contributed to its development, such as the failure of the Arab nationalist state, the Arab defeat in the 1967 war, and the Iranian revolution of 1979.

At present, she said, there is a lot of variation among Islamist movements, and examined those in Egypt, Lebanon, and the PalestinianTerritories.

The session with Waleed Hazbun (Johns Hopkins University), entitled "Exploring the Politics of Globalization in the Arab World Through the Lens of Tourism," brought a fresh perspective on how states become integrated in global networks, flows, and markets.

He said that international tourism is an important yet understudied aspect of globaltzatton, especially as borders and distance matter less in the contemporary "de-territorialized" world. Dr. Hazbun presented case studies from Tunisia, Jordan,and Dubai which illustrated some of the goals of the tourism sectors-such as attracting foreign investment, reinforcing peace treaties, or stimulating commerce and the flow of goods and capital. He said

that many people perceive the Dubai the twentieth century as a result of model of tourism as blurring the real sectarianismor the interestsof the state. and the imagined,thus creatinga tourist After the American invasion of 2003, destination detached from its local he said, the statesectorwas devastated, context. civil society was hard hit, and security Jean-FrangoisSeznec (Georgetown of civilians disappeared.Almost five University) spoke on the Middle million Iraqis have beendisplacedsince East and the global economic crisis the war, most of whom have migrated (or, "why is the price of gas going up to Svria and Jordan as well as other when the economy countriesin the region. is down!"). With " This workshop...allowsus The final workshop the global demand to discovercommonalities session focused on for oil much lower the historical context between ourselvesand than before.he said of U.S. policy in those in the Middle East." that even oil-rich the region.

Dr. states like Saudi Michael Hudson Arabia and Iran (Georgetown Uniare facing difficulties versity) spokeabout in balancing their budgets. The ripple the issuesand developmentsthat have effectsfor other statesinclude declining shaped American interests, such as labor remittancesand sovereignwealth oil, the emergenceof Zionism, and the funds. Dr. Seznec elaborated on the Cold War and containing Communism. case of the "Dubai miracle," referring His presentation was followed by a to Dubai's thriving financial sector and special appearanceby The Honorable role as a crossroadsfor trade.

Chuck Hagel, the former U.S. Senator A sessionon Iraqi societyby Nabil al- (R-Nebraska) who now teaches at Tikriti (University of Mary Washington) Georgetown's School of Foreign examinedthe social, demographic,and Service. Senator Hagel discussedU.S. political aspectsof Iraqi ethnicities as policy in the Middle East and pointed well as the country's history over the to the Arab-Israeli conflict as the root last several centuries. Dr. al-Tikriti cause of many problems in the region. said that there have been many forced He noted that using force "is not always migrations within and out of Iraq in the answer"; rather, a wise balance of all instruments of power is neededsuch as force, trade, development assistance,diplomacy, education and exchangeprograms,and the objectives ofjustice through training in the rule of law. SenatorHagel noted that President Obama used the words "occupation," "humiliation," and "intolerable" when he referencedthe Arab-Israeli conflict in his Cairo speech, a fact that made Arabs favorable to the president's approach.

The teachersreceived a thick binder of resources and enjoyed networking with each other each day over a Middle Eastern lunch. Their evaluations of the workshop were most favorable; one noted, "This workshop not only allows us to discover commonalities between ourselvesand those in the Middle East but also challengesus to delve deeper and learn more. Thank you so Food writer Amy Riolo discussesEgyptian cuisine and its importance to the country's society. much..."

CCAS News

Fall2009

Public Events

ExpertsDiscussCurrent Middle EastProblemAreason Three CCAS Panels his fall, the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies decided to I I focus a number of its events on particularly troubled areas in the region-Iraq, Iran, and Yemen. Experts thoughtfully addressed each area in three separatepanels, one on opening the Iraqi oil fields, one on Iran's precariouspolitical position,and one on Yemen'scurrentpolitical crisis.

fF

Mn Rick Vierbuchen of ExxonMobil

speaks about the opening of the Iraqi oil fields.

Iraq September 17, 2009, a On distinguished panel of oil specialists spoke about "The Implications of the Opening of the Iraqi Oil Fields." Iraq currently possessesthe third largestoil capacity in the world, behind Russiaand Saudi Arabia, but its potential is largely undevelopedand underutilized.

Mr. Rick Vierbuchen, Vice President of ExxonMobil Upstream Ventures, delivered an industry perspective on the main hindrances to the successof the burgeoning Iraqi oil industry. The problemshe discussedinclude security challenges,a lack of coordinated infrastructure that optimizes resource usage, and a shortage of equipment, skilled workers, and technology.

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Mr. Vierbuchen noted that as we are only at the beginning of the bid process,it is too early to judge Iraq's ultimate success.He then pointed out improvements necessary for success, such as hydrocarbonlegislation, a stable tax structure, and strengthenednational security.

Dr. RaadAlkadiri, Senior Director for Country Strategiesin the Markets and

Country StrategiesGroup atPFC Energy, argued that the current bid processhas failed Iraq. Dr. Alkadiri spoke about the country's two main challenges in this venture: failing politics and a lack of institutional capacity. He noted that Iraq must determine what shape its state will eventually form and whether it will focus on regional interests or centrahzationof power; this is critical, he said, to deciding how oil revenue shouldbe divided.

Former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, Iraq, and the United Nations, Zalmay Khalilzad, rounded out the panel by questioninghow oil would play into regional geopolitical issues.

Echoing Dr. Alkadiri, he statedthat Iraq must decide the kind of state it will be and how revenue should be shared.The constitution,he said. should be used as

a way to increasedialogue about these matters.

The panel ended with the consensus that moving ahead will take a lot of courage for lraq, but that ultimately the country will be successfulin improving oil development.

Iran At the September 30, 2009, panel rrlran-Domestic Tensions and International Challenges," Dr. Mehran Kamrava,Interim Dean of Georgetown's School of Foreign Service in Qatar campus, Dr. Hooshang Amirahmadi, Director of Rutgers University's Center for Middle Eastern Studies, and Dr. Herman Franssen, President of International Energy Associates, Inc., discussed various reasons for Iran's current unstableposition.

Dr. Kamrava outlined developments leading to Iran's present state. He discussed the precarious balance among Iran's religious traditionalists, conservativepragmatists,and reformists, suggestingthat this balance was upset in last summer's election, which in turn disrupted the "elite cohesion" necessary for authoritarian endurance.

As a result, he said, "all elements point to an impending change in the Iranian political process."Yet, he urged audiencemembers not to underestimate Ahmedinejad's popularity, street-level credibility, and charisma.

Concentrating on U.S.-Iran relations, Dr. Amirahmadi said that Iran may be "the most important critical foreign political challenge" the Obama administrationwill face. He said that the current paradigm of U.S.-Iran relations is obsolete, and he expressedcautious optimism about Obama'spolicy of open diplomacy. Dr. Amirahmadi warned that as long as Iran is viewed as a problem maker instead of a problem solver, it will be impossible to work with the Islamic state. However, great change

CCAS News

Fall2009

will occur in U.S.-Iranian relations if that perception changes,he said.

Dr. Herman Franssen discussed Iran's current and potential energy consumption and production. Highlighting the continuing importance of oil in modern society, Dr. Franssen said that "oil is crucial, and thus Iran's oil is crucial." With respect to Iran's nuclear ambitions, Dr. Franssen expressed doubt over the effectivenessof potential sanctions, because China, Japan, and India, the largest importers of Iranian oil, would not support them.

A common theme that ran through the three speakers' presentations was a call to rethink the way the United States deals with Iran. Each speakeraddressed Iran's unrealized potential, with Dr. Franssennoting that "[it] is a 3,000 year Rutgers University's Dn HooshangAmirahmadi old society, and we ought to deal with Richmond each presented their views [it] with the respect[it] deserve[s]." on the topic in an hour-long program.

Dr. Schmitz focused on the idea of Yemen Yemen as a failed state. He noted that A panel of three specialists on Yemen's economy is more diversified Yemen convened October 19, 2009 in than many assume,and as such, "rather the CCAS boardroom to discuss the than speaking of an economic collapse, country's current crisis in an event we should be talking about an economic entitled "Yemen on the Brink?: An transition." Dr. Schmitz also looked Assessment." Dr. Charles Schmitz of at Yemen's political situation, refuting Towson University, Dr. Abdu Sharif theoriesthat emphasizethe weaknessof of the Yemen Heritage and Research the Yemeni state.For instance,he noted Center in Mclean, Virginia, and Dr. that "the idea that the state can't control Sheila Carapico of the University of the tribes is false. There'san articulation

Dn Sheila Carapico of the University of Richmond addresses international

CCAS News * FalI 2009

assistance to Yemen.

takes on the topic of U.S.-Iran relations.

of power with the tribes."

Dr. Sharif then discussed various theories about why Yemen's conflict is occurring. While some say that the state's shift from providing services to maintaining the regime has caused unrest, others argue that the Yemeni conflict is a proxy conflict, in which clashes between Saudi Wahhabis and Iranian Shiites are being played out.

"Whatever the interpretation," said Dr. Sharif, "the conflict has gotten ugly since it started in mid-August." He then spoke about roadblocks to improvement of the situation, and what the U.S. should do to ameliorate it.

Last, Dr. Sheila Carapico examined Yemen from the standpoint of international assistance. She noted that Yemen receives an "amazingly low" amount of aid, particularly in comparison to other poor countries.

A current debate in the development community is whether to fund Yemeni education, water projects, and health care or state-strengthening programs such as the police and the military in order to fight piracy and terrorism. The U.S. generally supports the latter. While areas like education are "what Yemenis need," according to Dr. Carapico, the fear is that primarily funding them may undermine or simply not support the central state and exacerbatethe problem of state failure. *

Public Events Other Events Voices of Palestine: Summer 2009 Film Series The JerusalemFund and the Centerfor ContemporaryArab Studies presented their annual summer film series highlighting recent documentary and feature films from and about Palestine that explore the social, cultural, and political complexities of Palestinian life and identity. Films included Pomegranatesand Mynh, Young Freud in Gaza, Slingshot Hip Hop, Salt of this Sea, Made in Palesting and more.

Last Chance: The Middle East in the Balance September9, 2009 Journalist David Gardner discussed his book Last Chance: The Middle East in Balance (I.B. Tauris, 2009) with its messages to the West, including recommendationsto stop propping up Arab autocratsand rejecting democratic elections outcomes it doesn't like.

Instead,says Gardner,Arabs should be allowed to decide their own futures in whatever form thev wish.

A Road to Mecca: The Journey of Muhammad Asad September22, 2009 CCAS showed this enlighteningand engaging documentaryfilm that traces Muhammad Asad's spiritual journey from the Arabian desertsto the United States and his legacy as a modern thinker who sought to be a mediator between the East and the West. This unique portrait of contemporary Islam challenges deeply rooted Western prejudicesby revealingthe core beliefs of a profoundly humanereligion.

Amreeka: D.C. Premiere September25, 2009 Amreeka, a feature film, tells the adventures of Muna, an indomitable 2009 marked the fourteenth vear of the woman from the West Bank who moves Arabian SightsFilm Festival. to the promised land of small town Illinois with her teenageson, Fadi. In A Conversation with Ekmeleddin America, as her son navigates high Ihsanoglu: Secretary General of school,Muna works hard and dreamsof the Organization of the Islamic a new life. Amreekawon severalawards Conference at the Cannes and Sundance Film September29, 2009 Festivals.The film was co-sponsoredby The Organization of the Islamic CCAS and National Geographic,among Conferenceis the second largest interother organizations. governmental organization after the United Nations and serves as the collective voice of the Muslim world, striving to safeguard and protect its interests in the spirit of international peaceand harmony. Since taking office in January 2005, Secretary General Ihsanoglu has focused on building bridges of trust and understanding between the Muslim World and the West.

Poetry Reading by Acclaimed LebanesePoet Talal Haidar October L 2009 Acclaimed Lebanese mystical poet Talal Haidar recited his work and was accompanied by the accomplished soprano Ghada Ghanem, who has put his poemsto song.

Dr. Richard Falk speaks about the Goldstone Report and its role in the Israeli-Palestinian PeaceProcess.

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Gaza after the GoldstoneReport October5. 2009 Dr. Richard Falk spoke about the role of the Goldstone Report in the Israeli-Palestinianpeace process. The Goldstone Report investigated human rights abuses during the Gaza War

CCAS News

Fall2009

Academic News (December 27, 2008 to January 19, 2009), and was boycottedby the Israeli government. Dr. Falk was appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to be SpecialRapporteuron the Occupied PalestinianTerritories.

Iraq, Morocco, Syria, and Yemen, among others.The festivalshowcased films that demonstrate the range and commitment of today's Arab directors, a number Reporting in Middle East Conflict of whom attended Zones: Journalist Orly Halpern on their film's screenings.

Ethical Dilemmas and Identity Issues Films included FranOctober 27. 2009 gaise, Hassan & Morcos, Freelance journalist Orly Hal- Laila's Bixhday, London peffi, who has written for such pub- River, and The Long lications as the Christian Science Mon- Night. itor, Ha'aretz, and The Forward, spoke about her extensive experiencereport- Growing up in World ing in Middle East conflict zones, War II Palestine: The including Baghdad,Gaza,and Lebanon, Diary of Sami Amr and her interestin Jewish communities November2, 2009 who live amongArabs.

Dr. Kimberly Katz of Maryland's Towson Arabian Sights Film Festival University discussedher October 2009 recently released book The FourteenthAnnual Arabian Sights from the University of Film Festival, co-sponsoredby CCAS, Texas Press, A Young offered a dynamic and diverse selection Palestinian'sDiary, 194I of the newest, most provocative, and 1945: The Life of Sami Journal i st Ms. Orl y experiences in Middle inspiring films from Algeria, Egypt, 'Amr.

H al pern speaks about her reporti ng East conflict ?ones.

Academic News

MAAS SnrdentsAwardedFLAS Fellowshipt he Foreign Language and Area S t udies ( F LA S) F e l l o w s h i p s are merit-based awards that support in-depth language and area studies for either a full academicyear or summer. Funded through the U.S. Department of Education's Title VI grant, the FLAS Fellowshipsinclude a full tuition award as well as a stipend to students pursuing intermediateto advancedArabic, Hebrew, Persian,or Turkish study. The FLAS Fellowships are extremely competitive and are open to all graduate students at Georgetown.MAAS studentsreceived five of six summer 2009 awards and eight of nine 2009-2010 academic year awards.Congratulationsto all the awardees!

CCASNews

Fall2009

SUMMER 2OO9 ChristopherAlkhoury Vanessade Bruyn SamuelDolbee CassandraFiler FahadMalaikah Mark Rodney

Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic Arabic

MAAS MAAS MAAS MAAS MAAS Ph.D.,Arabic andIslamic Studies

ACADEMIC YEAR 2OO9.2OIO Timothy Edge Julia Fitzpatrick Cory Julie SiamakKordestani LawrenceMcMahon Aaron Reese Christina Satkowski SchadiSemnani Andrea Wegner

Arabic MAAS Arabic MAAS Arabic MAASIPh.D.,Govenrment PersianM.A., PeaceandSecurityStudies Arabic MAASiPh.D.,History Arabic MAAS Arabic MAAS Arabic MAAS Arabic MAAS

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Academic News

MAAS CandidateThkesFlonorableMention in HANDS EssayContest CAS graduate student Ava Leone won an honorable mention in the 2009 Hands Along the Nile Development Services (HANDS) essay contest, surpassing over 800 other entries and earning a $500 prrze.

HANDS, a nonprofit striving to further socioeconomic development in Egyptian communities through dialogue and exchangebetweenEgyptians and Americans, asked contest participants to address the question "How is community development in the Middle East importantto the U.S.?

Why is it particularly crucial to focus on Egypt?"

In her essay, entitled "Community Development in Egypt: In the Interest of Us A11," Leone argues that true development is best achieved by forging ties between ordinary people, not just between nations via political Ava Leone (left) sits with a friend in Palestine. leaders. She also advocates equality in the Middle East with the between the West and the Middle East understandingthat we, too, will dealings, something in developmental imagined be changed. lacking. she says is often "I the essay submissions that many of Leone's insight comes from both her would take an uncritical view of what process," MAAS academicfocus on development she says. is a very complex from firsthand experience. After and a cautionary "I decided to advocate graduating summa cum laude from development." approachto community the University of Alabama, she moved to Cairo, where she interned for the She writes: Egyptian newspaperAl-Ahram Weekly.

It was in Cairo, she says, that she East is Middle often Aid to the justified by drawing a straight began to understandthat "projects and policies don't always affect people's poverty and line connecting lives as planned": political extremism. In fact the and is not so simple, connection Development assistanceis still its perpetuation jeopardizes promote too often viewed as a gift from honest exefforts to True a rich man to his poor neighbor. change between equals.

That attitude has led to serious not commence dialogue does mistakes that serve only to inpartner fears the because one Egyptians' suspicions two crease other, but rather because In sevAmerican motives. of equalsmeet with the expectation government U.S. This eral cases, can of shared benefit. interventions have reinforced only happen if we aim to effect existing power structures and positive change in communities

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served to further alienate those most in need of assistance.

These failures resulted primarily becauseprograms were conceived through an assessmentof American-rather than Egyptian-needs.

After living in Egypt, Leone moved to Palestine,where she has since spent a gteat deal of time. She studied at the Hebrew University and taught methods of nonviolent resistance in the West Bank. Leone is also currently in Palestine, working with an organization striving to cultivate entrepreneurial skills in youth and doing field research for her thesis, which will addressthe effectsof NGOs on Palestiniancivil society.

To read the full text of Leone's http://www. essay, please visit handsal ongtheni l e. or gl event s/ EssayContest.htm.,l

CCAS News ' Fall 2OO9

FacultFN"ws

Faculq News Gdbor

Agottott

taughtat

Georgetown's McGhee Center for EasternMediterraneanStudiesin Alanya, Turkey, during the fall semester.The first English language Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire, which he coedited and coauthoredwith Dr. Bruce Masters, was publishedin early 2009 by FactsOn File. The paperback and the Germanlanguageeditions of Dr. Agoston's Guns for the Sultan (Cambridge University Press, 2005) were also published in 2009. In addition, he published numerous scholarly articles since his last update, including "Information, Ideology,and Limits of Imperial Policy: Ottoman Grand Strategy in the Context of Ottoman-HabsburgRivalry" in The Early Modem Ottomans: Remapping the Empire, editedby Virginia H. Aksan and Daniel Goffman (Cambridge University Press, 2007); "The Image of the Ottomans in Hungarian Historiography," Acta Orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 61, l-2 (2008); "The Ottoman Challenge: The Conquest of Constantinopleand Military Expansion in Europe,1350-1550s,"in TheMedieval Worldat War,editedbyMatthew Benneth (Thames & Hudson, 2009); and "Where Environmental and Frontier Studies Meet: Rivers, Forestsand Fortifications along the Ottoman-HabsburgFrontier in Hungary" rn Ottoman Frontiers. edited

by Andrew Peacock(Oxford University Press, 2009). This past summer Dr. Agoston was askedby Dr. YehudaElkana, Presidentand Rectorof CentralEuropean University in Budapest,Hungary to join the Advisory Board of the University's Center for Hellenic Traditions and present a distinguished lecture in the 2009-2010 academic year. He was also invited by ProfessorKate Fleet, director of the Centre for Ottoman Studiesat the University of Cambridge and editor of the newly establishedTurkish Historical Review (Leider/Brill), to serve on the Review's five-membereditorial board.

year appointmentto serve on the U.S. Department of State's International Economic Policy Advisory Committee; Presidential Envoy for Arab-Israel Affairs Senator George Mitchell's request to recommend to him "New Initiatives for Furthering the Prospects for Ending the Arab-Israeli Conflict"; and Deputy Presidential Envoy David Hale's request for him to analyze the impact and implications of President Obama'shistoric speechto the Arab and Islamic worlds in Cairo; Delivered: five four-hour lectureson "The Arabian Peninsula and Gulf in Regional and World Affairs" to U.S. defense attachds, security assistance officers, and representatives of the U.S. Central Command en route to the Arabian Peninsulaand Gulf regions,Afghanistan, Pakistan,and one or more CentralAsian countries; the keynote address to the Annual Meeting of the Order of St. John in support of the Order's East Jerusalem Eye Hospital Mission; seven lectures on "Myths and Realities: America and Arabia" to the Annual University Student Summer Internship Program at George WashingtonUniversity's Elliott School of InternationalAffairs; and the keynote address on "The Changing Nature of American Interestsin the Middle East: Implications for U.S. Policies" at the University of Montana's international conference on "New Avenues for U.S. Middle East Policy;" Briefed: the U.S. SenateSelectCommitteeon Intellisence

on "Recent Developments in the Arabian Peninsula"; the U.S. House of Representatives'Subcommittee on International Appropriations staff on "Qatar"; and the National War College Middle EastProgram'sClassof 2009 on "Qatar and Saudi Arabia"; Published: "The United Arab Emirates:An Example of Political Engineering," in Revisiting UAE History(Abu Dhabi: UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs' Center for Documentation and Research); "GulfU.S. Relations" in Gulf Yearbook2008 (Dubai: Gulf Research Center); essays on (1) "HH Shaykh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan," President, United Arab Emirates and Ruler of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi; (2) "HH ShaykhMuhammad bin Zayed al-Nahyan," Deputy Supreme Commanderof the UnitedArab Emirates Armed Forces and Crown Prince, Emirate of Abu Dhabi; (3) "HH Shaykh Rashid bin Muhammad al-Maktoum," Vice-President, United Arab Emirates, and Ruler, Emirate of Dubai; (4) HRH Prince Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdalaziz Al Sa'ud, Chairman, Kingdom Holding, Riyadh, SaudiArabia; and (5) "HE Adel A. al-Jubair," Ambassador of Saudi Arabia to the United Statesand Foreign Affairs Advisor to HM King Abdallah bin Abdalaziz Al Sa'ud in Biographical Encyclopedia on the Modem Middle East, edited by Andrea Henderson and Laura Avery (Farmington Hills, Michigan: Thomson/Gale Publishers).

He also had accepted for publication

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John Duke Anthor/ since March

2009, Accepted:

CCAS News

Fall2009

has,CCAS a two-

Director Dr. Michael Hudson meets with HH Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah, in early Novemben

I Dr. Shavkh Sultan bin Mohammed AI

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FacultFN"ws

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MAAS Academic Program Coordinator Ms. Kelli Flarris and MAAS Interim Director Dr.JeanFrangois Seznec mingle at the CCAS Advisory Board meeting in October.

conferenceorganizedby college interns at the PalestineCenter,Washington,on Arab perspectives on Palestine-Israel diplomacy; and at a conference on authoritarianism and Islamism in the Middle Eastat the University of Montana, Missoula, September 30-October 2, on the applicability of the Lebanese consociationalmodel to other deeply divided societiesin the Arab world. He also participated in a symposium for advanced doctoral students working on Middle East politics, which was co-sponsored by the Danish Institute of International Studies and the AlAhram Center for Political and Strategic Studies in Copenhagen on October 8 and 9, and he presentedthe Chancellor's Distinguished Lecture at the American University of Sharjah on November 8, entitled "Shifting Sands: The New Balance of Power in the Middle East."

Dr. Hudson was an observer for the Carter Center's Election Observation Team during the Lebaneseparliamentary election on June 7, and accompanied SFSInterim DeanDr. Carol Lancasteron visits to Kuwait and QatarOctober12-15.

On November 8, he had an audiencewith HH Dr. Shaykh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Ruler of Sharjah. On that sametrip to the Gulf, Dr. Hudson visited Omanon November 10, andhadmeetings with HE Dr. Rawya Al Busaidi, Minister of Higher Education; HE Mr. Sayyid Badr Al Busaidi, Secretary General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Dr. Omar bin Abdulmunim Al Zawawi. His Majesty the Sultan'sSpecialAdvisor for External Liaison. Dr. Hudson conveyed the news that Dr. Barbara Stowasserhas been appointedto the Sultanateof Oman Chair in Arab Studies at CCAS and discussed future academic cooperation with Oman. CCAS Advisory Board member Peter Baumbusch hosted a dinner in Dr. Hudson's honor in Abu Dhabi on November 11, which was attended by a number of business executivesand officials from the UAE.

an essay on "Iran and GCC Strategic Courtrooms," will appear in the Dynamics" in Industrialization in the University of California, Berkeley Law Gulf: A Socioeconomic Revolution, School's lournal for Middle Eastem and edited by Jean-FrangoisSeznec and Islamic Law. }i4s. Erakat completedher Mimi Kirk (London and New York: research and first draft of this article Routledge, forthcoming), the edited during her tenure as a visiting scholar volume emerging from CCAS's 2008 at CCAS in 2007 and 2008. Ms. Erakat symposium. Dr. Anthony Served: as a alsorecentlypublishedan articleentitled scholarescort and principal advisor for "OperationCastLead:The ElusiveQuest a delegationof U.S. Central Command for Self-Defensein InternationalLaw" in officers which visited Oman in addition RutgersUniversity Law School'sRutgers to a delegationof American Fortune 100 Law Record.In mid-October,shejoined energy corporation senior executives, a BADIL lZochrot delegation to Serbia to which he spoke on "Qatar and Saudi and Kosovo to study the conflict that Arabia"; as the principal master'sthesis tore apart the former Yugoslavia and advisor for CCAS 2007 graduateNathan created a massive refugee population. al-Karazi: as a consultant on "America The delegationwas comprisedof Jewish andArabia" aswell asa panelistwith HH Israelis, Palestinian citizens of Israel, Queen Noor, Al-Arabiyya Washington residentsof the WestBank, U.S. citizens, correspondent Hisham Melhem, and and refugees from Lebanon and Syria. others for the nationally televised PBS The group drafted recommendationsfor program, "Dennis Wholey's 'This is the implementation of the Palestinian America"'; and as the principal facilitator right of return to original homes, towns, and moderatorfor the eighteenthAnnual and villages.

Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference on "Fresh Visions and Old Realities: Michael Hudson madea Implicationsfor Arab-U.S.Relations." number of presentations in the past published months, including at the annual Al Noura Erakat recently an article demonsfrating bias against JazeeraForum in Doha, Qatar,on March Palestiniansand Arabs in U.S. federal 15; at the CCAS Annual Symposium, rl .r'r )aSSOOn taught a courts in cases involving the Arab- "Palestine & the Palestinians Today," JIl0sepn Israeli conflict. The publication, en- on April 2 and 3 on the Obama graduatecourseon the "Modern History titled "Litigating the Arab-Israeli Con- Administration's approach to the of Iraq" during the fall semesteqand is flict: The Politicizationof U.S. Federal Palestine-Israelconflict; at a July 16 currently working on a book on the Ba'th

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CCAS News

Fall2009

Faculty N"ws systemin Iraq for CambridgeUniversity Press. The book, based on the Ba'th documents of Saddam Hussein's era) attempts to understand how the Ba'th operatedin different spheresof life, the structure of the regional command, and the operationsof some of its branches.

Jean-Frangois Seznec

cotaught the Georgetown McDonough School of Business course on foreign internshipsin Dubai in late March 2009.

He also gave a number of lectures and briefings from the late spring through the fall, including two lecturesat the National DefenseUniversity, one for the Reserve Officers Training Conference and one on "Persian Gulf Issues" for a panel on energy security at the university's 2009 energy symposium. He also spoke on "Industrralization in the Gulf' at the World Bank; addressed "Energy and TradeRelationsbetweenChina and Saudi Arabia" at a conferenceof the National Bureau of Asian Research;lectured on "The Effect of the World Economic Crisis on the Gulf' at the Brookings Institution; spoke about "The Middle East and the Global Economic Crisis" at the Carnegie Endowment for Democracy;and briefed the board of international advisors of the Zurich Insurance Company in Washington, D.C. and in Barcelona on "Developmentsin the Gulf in Light of the World Economic Crisis." In September Dr. Seznecserved as part of a group of expertswho helped inform the new U.S. Ambassador to Saudi Arabia about the country. He was also an outside auditor for an IMF report on Oman in 2020. He continuedto participatein the Workshop on Democratization in the Middle East that is run by the CarnegieEndowmentfor Democracy,for which he wrote a paper on SaudiArabia that will be publishedas part of the group's report by the end of 2009. He also published a paperentitled "Energy and Trade Relations between China and Saudi Arabia: A Continuing Evolution" in The New Energy Silk Road: The Growing Asia Middle-East Energy Nexus, a publication of the National Bureau of Asian Researchthat emergedfrom the conferencementioned above. He continued to edit. with Mimi CCASNews

Fall2009

Kirk, the proceedingsof CCAS's 2008 conference on "Industrialization in the Gulf." The book, including Dr. Seznec's introduction and paper,was acceptedfor publicationby Routledgeand will be in print in 2010.In addition,he traveledto Bahrain and met, togetherwith the Board of Directors of the American Bahrain Friendship Society (of which he is a member), with numerous government officials and merchants.He also traveled to the UAE to advise a U.S. company on investment potential in industrial projects in the Gulf. In addition, Dr. Seznec joined the Board of Directors of the Stimson Center for a three-year period. He was recently interviewed and quoted by numeroustelevision and radio programs, newspapers,and news organizations.Theseincluded The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, the Associated Press, Reuters, Bloomberg, Radio Canada,and TV Argent in Montr6al. He also taped a show for A&E Television on the Saudi royal family, which has been distributed worldwide. Dr. Seznec became the interim director of the MAAS program while Dr. Judith Tucker is in Qatar for the 2009-2010academic year.

Samer

Shehatfl

to the United States, he was able to spend a few weeks in Cairo conducting interviews for an article he is preparing about Egypt's role in regional politics following the Gaza war. In September Dr. Shehataparticipatedon a panel about ethnography and political science at the annual American Political Science Association conferencein Toronto, and in October he presenteda lecture about understandingsof religious freedom and democracy at a conference in Amman that was sponsoredby the Project on Middle East Democracy,the Centre for Strategic Studies at Jordan University, USIR and Georgetown's Center for Democracyand Civil Society.Afterward, he traveled to Beirut to conduct more interviews about Egypt's role in regional politics. During the last few months Dr. Shehata has provided commentary and analysis for a number of media outlets, including BBC TV (Arabic), Al JazeeraEnglish, and an episode of the Diane Rehm show devoted to President Mubarak's visit to Washington, D.C. last August. In October, SUNY Press published his book, Shop Floor Culture and Politics in Egtpt.

participated in

a conferenceinApril entitled"Democracy and Development in the Middle East" at Princeton University in honor of his Ph.D. supervisor,Dr. John Waterbury.In July he servedas the "faculty expert" for the Georgetown-sponsorededucational trip to Egypt for teachers organized by CCAS Educational Outreach Director Zeina Seikaly. As faculty expert he traveled with the group to Egypt and was responsiblefor a seriesof lecfuresabout Egyptian history politics, and culture, which he delivered in the mornings, usually at breakfast,before the teachers would begin their day. Dr. Shehataalso presented a lecture to the same group (and other teachers)in June, before the group traveled to Egypt, as part of a conference on Egypt organized by Ms. Seikaly. While in Egypt he also served as an occasionaltour guide during long bus trips (due to traffic!) around Cairo and Alexandria.After the group returned

CCAS adjunct instrucror Ms. Noura Erakat gives a presentation at a recent event.

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