Digital Content Associate, MESA Academic Freedom Initiative
MESA
The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) is seeking a part-time contractor to create digital content for its Academic Freedom Initiative.
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Mission Statement
The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) is a non-profit association that fosters the study of the Middle East, promotes high standards of scholarship and teaching, and encourages public understanding of the region and its peoples through programs, publications and services that enhance education, further intellectual exchange, recognize professional distinction, and defend academic freedom in accordance with its status as a 501(c)(3) scientific, educational, literary, and charitable organization.
Annual Meeting
The Middle East Studies Association’s 59th annual meeting will be held in Washington DC from November 22-25, 2025.
The MESA 2025 Call for Papers is now closed. Decisions will be announced by May 1. The hotel room block is now open for reservations.
Advocacy
The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) advocates on behalf of its members on issues that are central to its mission.
This includes statements and letters from MESA's Board of Directors, MESA's Committee on Academic Freedom, the Task Force on Civil and Human Rights, and the MESA Global Academy.
Become a Member
Be a part of a community of scholars who are passionate about the pursuit of academic knowledge on the MENA region. Help MESA defend academic freedoms. Share your research at the annual meeting. Access the best, cutting-edge scholarship in person at the conference or online in our journals.
Join or renew today!
Member Announcements
Advisory regarding U.S. Travel Ban
MESA's Board of Directors and Task Force on Civil and Human Rights have issued a new advisory regarding the latest travel restrictions enacted by the Trump Administration.
MESA 2025 Hotel Reservations
To book your room, please see here.
Issues of IJMES, RoMES, and IMES available
To access, select the Publications tab in your myMESA account then click the publication image. 
Security Alerts for Researchers and Students
There are two active security alerts issued by MESA’s Board of Directors for those embarking on research in Egypt and UAE.
Launching MESA’s Academic Freedom Initiative
MESA has been building out the Academic Freedom Initiative (AFI), a project funded by the Mellon Foundation, to identify and track trends regarding academic freedom and repression on campuses across North America. Two initial datasets focus on recent immigration actions affecting higher education, and adverse employment outcomes for university employees since October 2023.
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MESA Advocacy Resource Center
MESA's Task Force has created a new advocacy resource center for our members to consult in response to the repression of rights on campuses across North America and beyond.
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Ethnographic Experiments from and with the Arab World
Doha Institute for Graduate Studies
Submit your paper for the Ethnographic Experiments from and with the Arab World symposium to be held at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies December 15-16.
Letter expressing alarm regarding the imminent risk of execution of Ahmadreza Djalali, Iranian-Swedish scholar on death row in Iran
Our letter expressing alarm regarding the imminent risk of execution of Ahmadreza Djalali, Iranian-Swedish scholar on death row in Iran and joining global academic & human rights voices demanding justice and his safe return to Sweden.
Book Launch—Naseej: Life‑Weavings of Palestine
Insaniyyat
The Society of Palestinian Anthropologists (Insaniyyat) invites people to join their online book launch of "Naseej: Life-Weavings of Palestine"
Begins July 02, 2025
MESA Board Joint Letter with CAF to University of Utah
MESA expresses grave concern regarding the University of Utah’s signing on 19 May 2025 of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Ariel University, located in the illegal Israeli settlement of Ariel in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The University of Utah has become the first American academic institution to sign a major formal cooperation deal with Ariel University, the establishment of which constituted a violation of international law. This egregious agreement is also in violation of international law, and comes after months of intensified Israeli violence against and repression of Palestinian universities in the West Bank and its destruction of all the institutions of higher learning in Gaza.
Assistant, Associate or Full Professor in Anthropology (Fall 2026)
The American University in Cairo
The Department of Sociology, Egyptology and Anthropology (SEA) invites applications for an Assistant or Associate Professor of Anthropology with expertise in either the Anthropology of Religion and/or the Anthropology of the Environment.
Letter to protest the intensification of Israel’s assaults on the education sector in the occupied West Bank
Our letter vigorously condemning the ongoing and intensifying aggressions against the education sector in the occupied West Bank. We call upon various international bodies as well as the US government to intervene to allow Palestinians to continue their education unimpeded and their universities to function properly in keeping with their mission.
CFP: NAAIMS Webinar Conference on “Islam and AI” (Nov. 20, 2025; abstracts due July 11)
North American Association of Islamic and Muslim Studies
The 54th Annual Conference “Islam and AI: Challenges and opportunities” calls for paper submissions.
Conference “Minority Law in Arab States – Governing Religious Diversity”
AGYA & Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
The international conference "Minority Law in Arab States: Governing Religious Diversity" invites people to join them in Hamburg, July 14-15.
Conference “South-South Comparativism: Histories, Methods, Repertoires” (at Freie Universität Berlin)
Freie Universität Berlin
Participants are invited to attend the two-day conference exploring the promise and challenges of South-South comparativism.
Letter to San José State University regarding the termination of Professor Sang Hea Kil
Our letter expressing concern at the decision of the San José State University (SJSU) administration to terminate the employment of Professor Sang Hea Kil, a tenured member of the Department of Justice Studies, due to alleged violations of university time, manner and place rules.
Lecturer in Arabic
Ohio State University
The Department of Near Eastern and South Asian Languages and Cultures (NESA) seeks to appoint one (1) 100% Lecturer position (non-tenure track) in Arabic culture.
In Memoriam, Peter Chelkowski (1933-2024)
MESA mourns the passing of Dr. Peter J. Chelkowski on October 21, 2024.
Advisory on Travel Ban and Annual Meeting Accommodations from the MESA Board of Directors and the Task Force on Civil and Human Rights
Joint statement from the MESA Board and Task Force regarding the new travel ban, and the steps that MESA is taking in response.
Problem Areas, Disciplinary Boundaries, and Scholarly Practice in the Post-Formative Period
Ghent University
The ERC-project KNOW: Polymathy and Interdisciplinarity in Premodern Islamic Epistemic Cultures (1200-1800) invites abstract submissions for its first international workshop to be held at Ghent University on 2-4 June 2026.
Symposium “Islamic Law in Comparative Perspectives: Milestones, Methods, and Epistemologies” in honour of Professor Nadjma Yassari
Max Planck Institute for Comparative and International Private Law
This event will celebrate the extensive and influential research of Professor Nadjma Yassari (Director of the Swiss Institute of Comparative Law) on Islamic law and the field of comparative law.
MESA Files Amicus Brief in Harvard Lawsuit Challenging Federal Funding Cuts
MESA has filed an amicus curiae brief in support of Harvard University in its federal lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s funding cuts.
Assistant Professor in Political Science with emphasis on the Middle East
The American University in Cairo
The Department of Political Science invites applicants for an assistant professor position in Political Science with an emphasis on the Middle East starting Fall 2025.
Letter to George Washington University protesting the administration’s actions against graduating senior Cecilia Culver because of remarks she made about Palestine during her commencement address
Our letter expressing concern about the decision of the administration of the George Washington University to ban graduating senior Cecilia Culver from campus and threaten to investigate her for possible student conduct code violations.
International Winter School 2026: Call for Applications
The Arab Center for Research and Policy Studies
ACRPS invites applications for the seventh International Winter School (IWS7) titled "The ‘Post-Liberal Moment’: A Paradigm Shift or a Passing Trend?" in Doha, Qatar.
Arab Graduate Students Conference 2026
Arab Center for Research & Policy Studies
The Center invites applications for its Fifth Conference for Arab Graduate Students in Western Universities to be held from 11-13 April 2026, at the Arab Center premises in Doha, Qatar.
Letter to New York University concerning its decision to withhold the degree of graduating senior Logan Rozos and initiate disciplinary proceedings against him
Our letter expressing concern about the decision of NYU to withhold the diploma of graduating senior Logan Rozos and subject him to disciplinary action because of remarks he made about Israel’s war on Gaza during the recent graduation ceremony of the Gallatin School of Individualized Study
LEO Lecturer I - Arabic Language
University of Michigan Middle East Studies
The College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, and the Department of Middle East Studies invite applications for a LEO Lecturer I in Arabic Language for the Fall 2025 Term.