BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//Center for International and Regional Studies - ECPv6.15.15//NONSGML v1.0//EN
CALSCALE:GREGORIAN
METHOD:PUBLISH
X-WR-CALNAME:Center for International and Regional Studies
X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Center for International and Regional Studies
REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H
X-Robots-Tag:noindex
X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H
BEGIN:VTIMEZONE
TZID:Europe/Moscow
BEGIN:DAYLIGHT
TZOFFSETFROM:+0300
TZOFFSETTO:+0400
TZNAME:MSD
DTSTART:20100327T230000
END:DAYLIGHT
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0400
TZOFFSETTO:+0300
TZNAME:MSK
DTSTART:20101030T230000
END:STANDARD
BEGIN:STANDARD
TZOFFSETFROM:+0300
TZOFFSETTO:+0400
TZNAME:MSK
DTSTART:20110326T230000
END:STANDARD
END:VTIMEZONE
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20111009T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20111010T180000
DTSTAMP:20260409T034751
CREATED:20140924T165353Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20210902T085451Z
UID:10000902-1318147200-1318269600@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Sectarian Politics in the Gulf Working Group I
DESCRIPTION:On October 9–10\, 2011\, CIRS convened the first of its “Sectarian Politics in the Gulf” Working Group meetings. Participating in the research initiative were several experts on the issue of sectarian politics in the Middle East region in general and the Gulf in specific. This first gathering took the form of a brain-storming session\, where the participants debated the importance of overall thematic issues pertaining to the project. One of the main objectives for the meeting was to identify gaps in the literature. Although sectarian issues are not new to this region\, exclusive and detailed academic studies are still lacking and need to be addressed. Often\, there are individual studies written on individual countries\, but an overall comprehensive look at sectarianism in the Gulf is glaringly lacking. For many people in the Gulf region\, sectarianism is still a taboo subject and so has not been addressed with the necessary academic rigor. At the conclusion of the research initiative\, each participant will write a paper on their particular field of expertise. CIRS will gather these individual papers and prepare them for publication. \n \n \nOne important issue that was raised was contestation regarding the term “sectarianism” and whether or not this should be qualified and broadened to include “identity politics\,” as ethnicities and tribal linkages are often bound up together. Although each of these has a different set of variables\, they are difficult to separate along clear lines. Traditionally\, sectarianism has had negative connotations in its ability to segregate people along religious lines. To unpack the term\, it is necessary to submit to the idea that any form of identity\, whether sectarian or otherwise\, is always fluid\, negotiated\, and changes from one area to another and one historical period to another. \n \n \nThe participants agreed that it was important to point to how sectarianism can be politically manipulated and how governments or others have had a direct hand in quelling or inciting sectarian strife at particular historical periods. Sectarianism therefore\, plays a crucial role in the politics\, economy\, and social infrastructures of most\, if not all\, countries in the Gulf. As such\, some of the speakers argued for the need to locate sectarianism – as we understand it today – in its historical context to question whether it is a modern phenomenon that has its roots in colonial exploitation of regional differences or a feature much more ancient. Such segregation based on sectarian identification has had lasting effects\, especially in the Gulf region\, on rentier politics regarding how a state’s wealth is distributed and to which sectors of society. \n \n \nThe obvious sectarian struggles in the region play out between the Shia and Sunni communities as they vie for political power. However\, the participants argued that it was important not to view these as homogenous entities\, but to point to their internal differences. Further to examining the more prominent sectarian divisions\, the participants argued for the need to highlight some of the less visible sectarian struggles that have been taking place for many years and that go undetected by the larger power players. For example\, there are very few studies on the socio-politics of minority groups such as Sunni and Jewish communities in Iran. \n \n \nOther issues\, such as how sectarianism can be a transnational as well as international concern were clearly demonstrated with the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 and the political turmoil that ensued affecting domestic\, regional\, and international relationships. Currently\, in the wake of the Arab Spring\, with rise of new media and social networking\, the idea of a more globalized world has been created\, but it is also one where people are more aware of their differences. In Bahrain\, for example\, sectarian struggle has become top of the agenda of political discourse in the Gulf as other countries with the same sectarian divisions attempt to pacify or coerce the subversive elements in their societies. \n \n \nThese are just some of the issues that the participants addressed over the two-day meeting and which they will narrow down over the course of their next visits to CIRS and the Georgetown University in Qatar campus. \n \n \n  \n \n \n\nClick here for the working group’s agenda\nClick here for the participants’ biographies\nRead more about the research initiative \n\n \n  \n \n \nParticipants in the “Sectarian Politics in the Gulf” research initiative are:\n \nRogaia Abusharaf – Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarMohammad Akbar – American University of KuwaitAbdulaziz Al Fahad – Kingdom of Saudi ArabiaMohammed Al Ghanim – Georgetown UniversitySultan Al Hashmi – Sultan Qaboos UniversityGhanim Al Najjar – Kuwait UniversityZahra Babar\, CIRS\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarLois Beck – Washington University in St. LouisJohn T. Crist – CIRS\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarKristin Smith Diwan – American UniversityMichael Driessen – CIRS\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarKhaled Fattah – Lund UniversityFanar Haddad – University of LondonMehran Kamrava – CIRS\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarLaurence Louer – CERI\, FranceMari Luomi – CIRS\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarRoel Meijer – Radboud University\, The NetherlandsSuzi Mirgani\, CIRS\, Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in QatarGwenn Okruhlik – Trinity UniversityLawrence Potter – Columbia UniversityGuido Steinberg – German Institute for International and Security Affairs  \n \n \n  \n \n \nArticle by Suzi Mirgani\, CIRS Publications Coordinator
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/sectarian-politics-gulf-working-group-i/
CATEGORIES:Focused Discussions,Regional Studies
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2014/09/events_16606_11181_1411577633-1.jpg
END:VEVENT
BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20111010T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20111010T190000
DTSTAMP:20260409T034751
CREATED:20141023T113749Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240314T105113Z
UID:10000940-1318269600-1318273200@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Mari Luomi Lectures on Unsustainability in Qatar and the GCC
DESCRIPTION:Mari Luomi\, one of the 2011-2012 CIRS Postdoctoral Fellows\, gave the inaugural CIRS Monthly Dialogue lecture of the Fall 2011 semester. She lectured on the topic of “Natural Resources and Environmental Unsustainability in Qatar and the GCC” to an audience of academics\, students\, ambassadors\, and interested members of the general public. \n \n \nLuomi introduced the topic by noting that her research was geared towards suggesting a new conceptual framework for understanding the relationship between sustainability\, political economy\, and development in the states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). She defined the term “sustainability\,” as “the use of natural resources in a way that allows for welfare for humans and the environment\, presently and in the future.” \n \n \nOutlining the main argument\, Luomi said that “the Gulf monarchies’ dependence on fossil fuels\, on fossil fuel revenues\, and on social contracts based on these revenues produces unsustainability.” Major issues such as\, economic growth\, population increase\, and pressures to diversify the economy in the region\, all add tremendous pressure on economic\, social\, and environmental sustainability. In the GCC states in particular\, the rentier set-up and the need to preserve the social contract between government and citizens is a unique factor leading to long-term unsustainability. She explained that “if we step back and look at the broader challenges that the GCC states are currently facing to the ‘business-as-usual’ ways of conducting their development\,” it would be counter-productive to continue with the current model. “We must not forget\,” Luomi said\, “that we are living in a harsh\, but\, at the same time\, very fragile environment.” \n \n \nIndicators of unsustainability include greenhouse gas emissions\, of which “the GCC produces 2.5% of global carbon emissions.” In Qatar\, “we are looking at a society and economy that has the highest per capita emissions in the world\,” Luomi said. A second indicator of unsustainability is the idea of an “ecological footprint\,” which measures human consumption in relation to the Earth’s resources\, with “the Qatari footprint representing six times the biological capacity of the world – so we are living six times over the world’s current capacity here on average\,” she explained. In an attempt to tackle these high energy consumption and carbon emission rates\, the Qatari government has made efforts to address the problem by viewing “environmental development” as one of the main pillars that form the Qatar National Vision 2030 plan. \n \n \nLuomi concluded the lecture with suggestions regarding how the GCC states could encourage their societies to be more sustainable: “What we need for things to move onward is political will and determination.” She argued that it was necessary to have open debates on the environmental impacts of current natural resource consumption patterns as well as a well-grounded infrastructure for transmitting the message of sustainability through educational campaigns\, recycling initiatives\, and the encouragement of public transport\, among other practical enterprises. \n \n \nLuomi summed up the lecture by highlighting the simultaneous privilege and responsibility we have as residents and citizens of Qatar. Currently\, there is an “illusion of plenty” that is incompatible with a sustainable future. She said\, “here\, economically\, we have the possibility to continue consuming business-as-usual\, but the moral question is\, if we can\, should we?”  \n \n \nArticle by Suzi Mirgani\, CIRS Publications Coordinator. \n \n \nMari Luomi is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the CIRS for the academic year 2011-2012. She holds a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies from Durham University. She has previously worked in various positions for the Middle East Project and the Programme in the International Politics of Natural Resources and the Environment of the Finnish Institute of International Affairs.
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/mari-luomi-lectures-unsustainability-qatar-and-gcc/
CATEGORIES:Dialogue Series,Environmental Studies,Regional Studies
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2014/10/events_21866_16696_1414679911-1.jpg
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR