Academics, policymakers, activists and intellectuals from the Middle East, Europe and the United States will gather March 3-5 at Princeton University to discuss new realities and challenges confronting the Arab world five years after uprisings that began a period of unrest and uncertainty in the region. All the events are free and open to the public.
At 5 p.m. Thursday, March 3, five leading researchers will discuss “The Political Economy of Growth and Aid in the Arab World” during a panel discussion and Q&A in Friend Center 101.
The conference "After the Uprisings: The Arab World in Freefall, Fragmentation or Reconfiguration?" will be held Friday and Saturday, March 4-5 in Dodds Auditorium, Robertson Hall. Thirty-five speakers will appear on nine panels focusing on three related dimensions of the situation across the Middle East, especially in Arab countries:
* How have socio‐economic and political conditions changed since the uprisings started five years ago, and how has such change been perceived by ordinary citizens?
* Has the demand for social justice been expressed in the activities and policies of governments, political groups and civil society as a whole, and have any moves towards democratization promoted this demand?
* How are regional and international political relations evolving, and is any change a consequence of continuing injustices perceived by groups of citizens on the ground?
Keynote speakers will be:
Dr. Tarek Mitri, director of the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut. He has led several ministries in the Lebanese government and served as special representative of the UN Secretary General and head of the UN Support Mission in Libya from 2012 to 2014.
Dr. Fawwaz Traboulsi, political activist and commentator, columnist, author, and currently visiting professor of history and politics at the American University of Beirut. He has written on Arab history, politics, social movements and popular culture.
The panel discussion on “The Political Economy of Growth and Aid in the Arab World” is co-sponsored by the Mamdouha S. Bobst Center for Peace and Justice, the Project on Middle East Political Science, the Niehaus Center for Globalization and Governance, the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies Workshop on Arab Political Development, and the Woodrow Wilson School for Public and International Affairs.
The conference is co-sponsored by the Mamdouha S. Bobst Center for Peace and Justice, the American University in Beirut Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs, and the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies Workshop on Arab Political Development in collaboration with The Project on Middle East Political Science and the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.
Please register for the panel discussion and the conference by Feb. 25. Members of the media who would like to attend should contact Wendy Brill at wendyb@princeton.edu.