Robert Lieber, Professor of Government and International Affairs at Georgetown University in Washington, DC, delivered the January CIRS Monthly Dialogue on the topic of “Why the Declinists are Wrong About America.” Lieber examined the recurring nature of comments regarding America’s decline, both at home and abroad, and argued that critics have been predicting the fall of the…
On January 23–24, 2010, CIRS held the first of its “Political Economy of the Gulf” working group meetings. The “Political Economy of the Gulf” is a CIRS research initiative that examines key aspects of the Gulf’s contemporary economic and political situations and the region’s long-term transition from an oil-based economy to a knowledge-based one. Ten…
Thomas Friedman, Foreign Affairs columnist for The New York Times, delivered a CIRS Distinguished Lecture on the subject of “The World is Flat 3.0.” The lecture was an extension of the themes in his 2005 book The World is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century. An audience of over 1,400 people attended the event held at the…
Daniel Stoll, Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs at Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service in Qatar, delivered his lecture, “The Jordan River and the Johnston Plan: Lessons for the Obama Administration?” on February 8, 2010, as part of the CIRSMonthly Dialogue series. Dr. Stoll, an expert on the United Nations and multilateral organizations as well as…
Attiya Ahmad, the 2009-2010 CIRS Postdoctoral Fellow and cultural anthropologist, delivered a Monthly Dialogue lecture on the subject of “Explanation is Not the Point: Islamic ‘Conversions’ of Migrant Domestic Workers in Kuwait” on March 8, 2010. Ahmad began the lecture by explaining that the anthropological approach toward research topics is to examine the underlying machinations of seemingly…
The Director of the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy at Georgetown University in Washington DC, Paula Newberg, gave a lunch lecture on March 11, 2010 titled "Reconciling Past and Future: Moving Pakistan and Afghanistan Away from War?" to a group of Qatar-based diplomats and Georgetown University in Qatar faculty and staff. Newberg’s talk focused on…
On March 21, 2010, CIRS convened a Panel presentation on the topic of “Open-Sea Piracy in the Modern World: Perils and Prospects.” The panel was made up of Pottengal Mukundan, Director of the International Maritime Bureau, Roger Middleton, Consultant Researcher working for the Africa Programme at Chatham House, and Daniele Archibugi, Research Director at the…
Judith Tucker, Professor of History at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar and former editor of the International Journal of Middle East Studies, gave the April 7, 2010 Monthly Dialogue lecture on the topic of “Globalization 18th Century Style: The Adventures of Salim the Algerine.” Tucker introduced her biographical research on the…
In partnership with ictQatar, on April 12, 2010, CIRS organized a Distinguished Lecture featuring Michael Nelson, Visiting Professor of Internet Studies in Georgetown University’s Communication, Culture, and Technology Program. Nelson, an expert in the areas of business, culture, and technology, lectured to an audience of 450 people on “The Cloud, the Exaflood, and the Internet of Things--Preparing…
Robert Fisk, award-winning journalist and Middle East Correspondent for The Independent newspaper, gave the annual faculty-appointed Distinguished Lecture on April 20, 2010 on the subject of “State of Denial: Western Journalism and the Middle East.” GU-Qatar student Amna Al-Thani introduced Fisk to a capacity audience of 800 guests at the Four Seasons Hotel in Doha. Fisk began by noting…
Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar, Dean Mehran Kamrava speaks about "A 2020 vision of the Middle East" Click here to download an MP3 of Kamrava's speech In its inaugural International Lecture, CIRS travelled to the Kingdom of Bahrain on April 26, 2010, to offer insights and dialogue with people in the neighboring GCC…
Herb Howe, Visiting Associate Professor at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar and expert in African military conflicts, presented his lecture, “Boots on the Ground, Eyes on the Sky: Dilemmas of Military Humanitarian Intervention in Africa” on May 3, 2010 in the final CIRS Monthly Dialogue of the 2009-2010 academic year. In addition to…