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.

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Annual Meeting  


The Middle East Studies Association’s 58th annual meeting will be held virtually from November 11-15, 2024.

Submissions to the Call for Papers are now closed. Program decisions will be announced in May.

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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.

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Become a Member

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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!

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Member Announcements

MESA 2024 Call for Papers

If you submitted for MESA's 58th Annual Meeting to be held virtually in the fall of 2024, please check back in May for decisions from the Program Committee. In the meantime, please see the full call for papers and submission instructions here.

Applications Sought for IJMES Editor

The MESA Board of Directors invites applications and nominations for the next editor of the International Journal of Middle East Studies (IJMES) for a five-year term beginning July 1, 2025. Application review will begin June 2024, and continue until a new editor is identified. For more information, go here.

Applications Sought for RoMES Editor

The MESA Board of Directors invites applications for the next editor of the Review of Middle East Studies (RoMES) for a five-year term beginning July 1, 2025. Application review will begin August 2024, and continue until a new editor is identified. For more information, go 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.

MESA Board Joint Statement with CAF regarding the ongoing genocidal violence against the Palestinian people and their cultural heritage in Gaza

The Board of Directors of the Middle East Studies Association and its Committee on Academic Freedom condemn in the strongest possible terms the ongoing attack on Gaza by the state of Israel, resulting in the widespread destruction of the built environment and civilian infrastructure of the Gaza Strip with the apparent intention of erasing Palestinian heritage, thereby amounting to cultural genocide.

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Letter to the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate Judiciary Committee regarding the Center for Security, Race and Rights at Rutgers University-Newark Law School

Our letter expressing concern regarding the effort by Republican members of the Judiciary Committee to smear and delegitimize the Center for Security, Race and Rights at Rutgers University-Newark Law School and the executive director, Professor Sahar Aziz.

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Call For Papers: “Locating Palestine in the Arab Americas”

Khayrallah Center for Lebanese Diaspora Studies

This workshop seeks to expand on existing conversations and open new ones on the importance of Palestine in the wider American mahjar (land of migration), inviting contributions from scholars, writers, and activists. We particularly encourage applications from those working in Spanish and Portuguese language contexts with the aim of placing Latin America and the Caribbean into closer dialogue with Anglophone North America.

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Histories of Photography from the Struggles for Independence: practices, circulations and aesthetics

National Institut of Art History of Paris

This symposium welcomes researchers, curators and photographers from all geographical areas. Proposals may concern any post-colonial period from the 19th to the 20th century. Abstracts in english or french (approx. 500 words) must be sent by May 31, 2024 at the latest, with a short biography, affiliation information, and a bibliography (for researchers)

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NEH Institute on Born-Digital Scholarly Publishing

Brown University Library

Brown University Digital Publications invites applications for participation in an NEH Institute on Advanced Topics in the Digital Humanities, Born-Digital Scholarly Publishing: Resources and Roadmaps. The three-week hybrid Institute will take place virtually July 8–19 and in person at Brown University July 22–26, 2024. Participant travel, lodging, and per diem expenses will be covered for the in-person component.

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MESA offers several ways to stay connected: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, as well as listservs and trusty email notifications. To find out more, please follow the link below.

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