Events & Activities
The Center for International and Regional Studies sponsors public lectures by leading experts in international affairs as well as research-focused Working Group meetings, among other scholarly events.
“The FIFA World Reducing Islamophobic Attitudes? The Effect of Mohamed Salah and the World Cup 2022”
Salma Mousa
October 18, 2021
6:30PM Doha Time
About the Lecture: Can exposure to celebrities from stigmatized groups reduce prejudice? To address this question, we study the case of Mohamed Salah, an elite soccer player. Using data on hate crime reports throughout England and 15 million tweets from British soccer fans, we find that after Salah joined Liverpool F.C., hate crimes in the Liverpool area dropped by 16% compared with a synthetic control, and Liverpool F.C. fans halved their rates of posting anti-Muslim tweets relative to fans of other top-flight clubs. An original survey experiment suggests that the salience of Salah’s Muslim identity enabled positive feelings toward Salah to generalize to Muslims more broadly. Our findings provide support for the parasocial contact hypothesis—indicating that positive exposure to out-group celebrities can spark real-world behavioral changes in prejudice.
This lecture is part of “Building A Legacy: Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022” research initiative
“Activism in Exile Diasporic Communities in the Wake of the Arab Uprisings”
September 30, 2021
This event was part of the collective project “Ten Years On: Mass Protests and Uprisings in the Arab World”. For this project, CIRS is partnering with the Arab Studies Institute, Princeton’s Arab Barometer, George Mason’s Middle East and Islamic Studies Program, Georgetown’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, AUB’s Asfari Institute, Arab Council for the Social Sciences, Brown University’s Center for Middles East Studies, UC Santa Barbara’s Center for Middles East Studies, Harvard’s Center for Middle East Studies, University of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, Birzeit University, Standford’s Center for Democracy, Development, and Rule of Law, AUC Affiliates, The Global Academy (MESA Affiliated), and the Institute of Palestine Studies. Read More
“Islamists and the Arab Uprisings”
Speaker: Abdullah Al-Arian
June 2, 2021
This event is part of the collective project “Ten Years On: Mass Protests and Uprisings in the Arab World”. For this project, CIRS is partnering with the Arab Studies Institute, Princeton’s Arab Barometer, George Mason’s Middle East and Islamic Studies Program, Georgetown’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, AUB’s Asfari Institute, Arab Council for the Social Sciences, Brown University’s Center for Middles East Studies, UC Santa Barbara’s Center for Middles East Studies, Harvard’s Center for Middle East Studies, University of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, Birzeit University, Standford’s Center for Democracy, Development, and Rule of Law, AUC Affiliates, The Global Academy (MESA Affiliated), and the Institute of Palestine Studies. Read More
“Disciplinary Woes and Possibilities: Political Sciencce in the Context of the Uprisings”
April 27, 2021
This event is part of the collective project “Ten Years On: Mass Protests and Uprisings in the Arab World”. For this project, CIRS is partnering with the Arab Studies Institute, Princeton’s Arab Barometer, George Mason’s Middle East and Islamic Studies Program, Georgetown’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, AUB’s Asfari Institute, Arab Council for the Social Sciences, Brown University’s Center for Middles East Studies, UC Santa Barbara’s Center for Middles East Studies, Harvard’s Center for Middle East Studies, University of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, Birzeit University, Standford’s Center for Democracy, Development, and Rule of Law, AUC Affiliates, The Global Academy (MESA Affiliated), and the Institute of Palestine Studies. Read More
“The Impact of Climate Change on Agriculture in South Asia”
Speakers: Vaibhav Chaturvedi and N.H. Ravindranath
Moderator: Anatol Lieven
April 19, 2021
“Everyday Energy: Approaches to Lived Experiences”
Speakers: Jennifer Wenzel, Dominic Boyer, Sara B. Pritchard
Moderators: Firat Oruc, Trish Kahle, Victoria Googasian
April 7, 2021
The Center for International and Regional Studies (CIRS) at Georgetown University in Qatar is pleased to launch its newly formed Energy Humanities research initiative with a webinar titled “Everyday Energy: Approaches to Lived Experience.” The Energy Humanities initiative is a new project under the CIRS Environmental Studies thematic cluster, and aims to provide new understandings of the influence and impacts of energy in everyday lives and stimulate new conversations in the scholarship.
“The Amazingly Idiosyncratic History of Passports”
Edward Kolla
March 29, 2021
When COVID19 hit, many inveterate travelers like myself were dazed by how quickly something we took for granted had disappeared. Gone, suddenly, was our ability to grab our passport, hop on a plane, and be in a new country—sometimes even without the hassle of getting a visa. But something else we took for granted, back in those halcyon days, was the very need for passports to enjoy international mobility. Though ubiquitous and seemingly all-necessary, passports are something of a historical fluke. While travel documents of all sorts date back to the start of recorded history, the story of how we arrived at these little booklets—which, by the way, are totally uncodified in international law—is quirky, complex, and counter-intuitive.
“The FIFA World Cup: Football, Citizenship, and National Identity 1930-2022”
Gijsbert Oonk
March 21, 2021
Gijsbert Oonk, Director of the Sport and Nation research program at Erasmus University Rotterdam, discussed his study exploring the relationship between national belonging, acquiring citizenship, and migration. Taking high profile examples from international sports events, he unveiled the complexities behind the question: who may represent the nation?
This lecture is part of “Building A Legacy: Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022” research initiative
“Teaching the Arab Uprisings”
February 25, 2021
First Panel: 12pm (EST)
Second panel: 1:15pm (EST)
This two-part event was the second panel of the collective project “Ten Years On: Mass Protests and Uprisings in the Arab World”. For this project, CIRS is partnering with the Arab Studies Institute, Princeton’s Arab Barometer, George Mason’s Middle East and Islamic Studies Program, Georgetown’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, AUB’s Asfari Institute, Arab Council for the Social Sciences, Brown University’s Center for Middles East Studies, UC Santa Barbara’s Center for Middles East Studies, Harvard’s Center for Middle East Studies, University of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, Birzeit University, Standford’s Center for Democracy, Development, and Rule of Law, AUC Affiliates, The Global Academy (MESA Affiliated), and the Institute of Palestine Studies. Read More
“The Away Game: Qatar’s Search for Football’s Next Superstars”
Sebastian Abbot
February 14, 2021
This lecture was part of “Building A Legacy: Qatar FIFA World Cup 2022” research initiative
“Reflections on Mass Protests and Uprisings in the Arab World”
January 25, 2021
This two-part event was the first of the collective project “Ten Years On: Mass Protests and Uprisings in the Arab World”. For this project, CIRS is partnering with the Arab Studies Institute, Princeton’s Arab Barometer, George Mason’s Middle East and Islamic Studies Program, Georgetown’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, AUB’s Asfari Institute, Arab Council for the Social Sciences, Brown University’s Center for Middles East Studies, UC Santa Barbara’s Center for Middles East Studies, Harvard’s Center for Middle East Studies, University of Exeter’s Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies, Birzeit University, Standford’s Center for Democracy, Development, and Rule of Law, AUC Affiliates, The Global Academy (MESA Affiliated), and the Institute of Palestine Studies. Read More
Dialogue Series
CIRS’s Dialogue Series is designed to present interested community members with a forum for quiet, thoughtful dialogue with scholars about their latest academic endeavors and their research agendas. CIRS invites a leading scholar to discuss his or her latest work and research interests with community members.
Focused Discussions
Through its Focused Discussions, CIRS provides an intellectual forum for academics, diplomats, and opinion-leaders to engage with both students and the public on a particular topic of interest.
Panels
CIRS organizes panels throughout the year where small groups of scholars gather and discuss current issues in global affairs.
Distinguished Lectures
Several times a year, CIRS has the honor of inviting distinguished authors, academics, and respected public figures to visit Qatar and engage with the community.
CIRS Faculty Lectures
The Center for International and Regional Studies invites faculty members from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar to deliver a variety of public lectures on topics of their expertise.
CIRS Faculty Research Workshops
The Center for International and Regional Studies invites faculty members from the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar to deliver a variety of workshops on topics of their expertise.