Largest Annual Gathering of Middle East Scholars to Take Place Virtually: Oct 5 - Oct 17, 2020
Sessions Will Address the Uprising in Lebanon, the U.S.’s Changing
Role in the Middle East, the Arab Spring 10 Years On, and How the
Coronavirus Pandemic is Reshaping the Higher Ed Landscape in the U.S.
Washington, DC — The largest annual gathering of Middle East scholars will take place from Oct. 5 through Oct. 17, 2020 when the Middle East Studies Association (MESA) hosts its annual meeting. The meeting will take place virtually for the first time in MESA’s 54-year history, and will draw scholars from all over the world to discuss the most pressing issues facing the Middle East, as well as the field of higher education.
“Our annual meeting is a rare opportunity to hear directly from the world’s foremost experts on the Middle East—scholars who are rooted in the region with a deep, nuanced political and cultural understanding of its people and institutions,” said MESA Executive Director Jeffrey Reger. “We hope journalists will take advantage of this opportunity to get trustworthy analysis and commentary on the latest developments in the region.”
Sessions that may be of particular interest to journalists include:
- A New Era in the Islamic Republic: Politics in Iran and Perceptions in Washington (Oct. 5)
- Ordinary People in Extraordinary Times: Lebanon’s October Revolution Between “Dream” and “Reality” (Oct. 6)
- Presidential Panel: Middle East Studies and the Academy in the Time of COVID-19 (Oct. 11)
- Responding to COVID-19 in the MENA Region: Insights on Education and Communication Challenges (Oct. 13)
- Understanding the Millennial Generation of the Middle East (Oct. 14)
- International Relations of the Middle East: A Decade After the Arab Uprisings (Oct. 16)
- The Stories They Tell: Building Archives of Arab America (Oct. 17)
You can view the full program here.
To request a complimentary press pass or more information, contact Yasmin Hamidi at yasminhamidi[at]gmail.com.
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The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) is a non-profit learned society that brings together scholars, educators and those interested in the study of the region from all over the world. From its inception in 1966 with 51 founding members, MESA has increased its membership to 2,700 individuals and serves as an umbrella organization for nearly sixty institutional members and thirty-nine affiliated organizations.
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