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DTSTART:20210101T000000
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220905T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220905T170000
DTSTAMP:20260412T044020
CREATED:20220927T071743Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240313T131600Z
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SUMMARY:Affects of Energy Transition Working Group II
DESCRIPTION:On September 5\, 2022\, the Center for International and Regional Studies held a second working group under its research initiative on Energy Humanities. The meeting was organized as a hybrid event\, which allowed for both in-person and virtual participation. The convened scholars received critical feedback and commentary on the draft chapters that they had submitted prior to the meeting. \n\nAnimesh Chatterjee initiated the discussion with his paper titled\, “Everyday Experiences of Energy in Colonial Calcutta’s Domestic Spheres\, c. 1875-1940s.” He explained that in late-nineteenth and early twentieth century Calcutta\, appeared in Calcutta as both a source of illumination in public and domestic spaces\, and as a complex metaphor in the intellectual articulations of contemporary social and political thoughts. Using the metaphor of braiding\, Chatterjee’s article provides a contemporary recollection of colonial and nationalist debates over electric use in domestic and public spaces and looks at ways in which historical narratives influence these affective engagements. The paper examines and analyzes differing positions of address and representations of electricity both as a symbol of material and cultural progress\, and as a symbol of “Western” modernity and material culture harmful to the Bengali individual\, family\, and society. Overall\, the paper highlights how electricity accentuated heterogenous views on modernity\, nationalism\, and culture within Bengali society. \n\nEwan Gibbs then led a discussion on his paper\, “Lives in Energy: Understanding Testimonies from Britain’s Coal\, Power\, and Oil Sectors.” Gibbs argued that across various energy sectors\, including coal\, oil\, gas\, and nuclear\, workers engaged in energy generation have a common view of their centrality to the British economy but also share a sense of invisibility in dominant public debates. These trends have magnified through the privatization of electricity since the 1990s\, concurrent with the broader impacts of deindustrialization\, which have left skilled manual workers peripheral to Britain’s economic imaginary. This paper addresses the role of labor in energy histories using worker testimonies collected in life-story oral histories from Scotland\, England\, and Wales. Gibbs aims to shed light on workplace experiences since the middle of the twentieth century\, a period marked by major changes in Britain’s energy economy including the building of large new power stations under public ownership\, the contracting significance of coal mining and burning\, and the beginning and maturing of new form of generation including North Sea oil and gas extraction and the nuclear project. His paper assesses how workers in varied energy sectors constructed their relationship to their workplace and locality and dealt with the contradictory affective dimensions of place attachment.  \n\nAnne Pasek shifted the discussion to contemporary energy affects with her paper\, “Unalienating Carbon: Affect and Labor in Emerging Carbon Sequestration Markets’ Theories of Value.” Her article looks at the process of carbon removal\, particularly in the biochar and regenerative agriculture communities. Using the framework of affect and work Pasek argues that carbon removal in these industries is effortful\, manual\, and impactful. Through their labor\, practitioners not only bring tangible changes in the landscapes and materials they work with but are themselves affected by the work they do to intervene in the climate system. Using the documentary media produced about the artisanal communities\, as the source material\, Pasek’s paper explains how affect plays a central role in both driving and sustaining the work done by these communities and how it shapes their apprehensions and relations to the carbon cycle. \n\nVictoria Googasian then discussed her paper titled\, “Infrastructural Character: Space Opera’s Energetic Imaginary.” Using three space operas examples–Star Trek Discovery\, Dune\, and Nova–as case studies\, Googasian’s paper explores how these texts diverge from the genre’s tropes of endless imperial expansion and human power over material environments. These novels imagine human futures that depend on vast reserves of energy\, but they depict characters who are materially embedded in their energy systems and are characterized by embodied vulnerability. The three texts are used to further examine the role of these infrastructural characters during the energy transitions taking place in these literary works. \n\nThe participants will revise their draft papers based on the feedback received during the discussions. CIRS will work with the faculty leads of the project\, Professors Firat Oruc\, Trish Kahle\, and Victoria Googasian to submit the final for publication as a journal special issue. \n\n\nTo view the working group agenda\, click here\n\n\n\nTo read the participants’ biographies\, click here\n\n\n\nRead more about this research initiative\n\n\nParticipants and Discussants:  \n\n\nZahra Babar\, CIRS – Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nMisba Bhatti\, CIRS – Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nAnimesh Chatterjee\, Technische Universität Darmstadt\n\n\n\nEwan Gibbs\, University of Glasgow\n\n\n\nVicky Googasian\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nTrish Kahle\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nSuzi Mirgani\, CIRS – Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nFirat Oruc\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nAnne Pasek\, Trent University\n\n\n\nElizabeth Wanucha\, CIRS – Georgetown University Qatar\n\n\nArticle by Misba Bhatti\, Research Analyst at CIRS
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/affects-of-energy-transition-working-group-ii/
LOCATION:Education City\, Al Luqta St\, Ar-Rayyan\, Doha\, Qatar
CATEGORIES:American Studies,CIRS Faculty Research Workshops,Environmental Studies,Regional Studies
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/EH_WG_II_Sept-5_photofeatured.jpg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220913T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220913T190000
DTSTAMP:20260412T044020
CREATED:20220906T071638Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230326T122734Z
UID:10001472-1663092000-1663095600@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Football and the State in the Middle East
DESCRIPTION:This panel discussion was the second event being hosted to highlight the research conducted under CIRS project Football in the Middle East\, the outcome of which is a new book edited by Professor Abdullah Al-Arian published by Hurst/Oxford University Press. The panel looks at how football is affecting states\, governments\, and societies across the region.  \n\nModerator: Suzi Mirgani (Center for International and Regional Studies at Georgetown University in Qatar) \n\nPanelists: Niki Akhavan (The Catholic University of America)\, Craig LaMay (Northwestern University in Qatar)\, and Abdullah Al-Arian (Georgetown University in Qatar) \n\nLocation: CIRS Conference Room\, Georgetown University in Qatar
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/football-and-the-state-in-the-middle-east/
LOCATION:Education City\, Al Luqta St\, Ar-Rayyan\, Doha\, Qatar
CATEGORIES:Panels,Regional Studies
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220921T180000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220921T190000
DTSTAMP:20260412T044020
CREATED:20220921T100939Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20240313T131230Z
UID:10001474-1663783200-1663786800@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Russian Foreign Policy Towards the Middle East
DESCRIPTION:Moderated by GUQ Professor Mehran Kamrava\, the event discusses Russia’s motives in the Middle East\, examining its growing role in the region and its efforts to defend its national interests. The discussion addresses both domestic and external drivers of Moscow’s foreign policy\, tracing the historical evolution of Russia’s presence in the region within the last 30 years. \n\nSpeaker: Nikolay Kozhanov – Qatar University \n\nLocation: CIRS Conference Room\, Georgetown University in Qatar
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/russian-foreign-policy-towards-the-middle-east/
LOCATION:Education City\, Al Luqta St\, Ar-Rayyan\, Doha\, Qatar
CATEGORIES:American Studies,Dialogue Series,Regional Studies
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/09/AW5Y9966-min1-scaled.jpeg
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BEGIN:VEVENT
DTSTART;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220925T080000
DTEND;TZID=Europe/Moscow:20220926T170000
DTSTAMP:20260412T044020
CREATED:20221016T065455Z
LAST-MODIFIED:20230813T130940Z
UID:10001477-1664092800-1664211600@cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu
SUMMARY:Qatar’s World Cup Goals: Moving from the Periphery to the Center Working Group II
DESCRIPTION:On September 25 and 26\, 2022\, the Center for International and Regional Studies held the second working group under its research initiative\, “Qatar’s World Cup Goals: Moving from the Periphery to the Center.” The meeting convened regional and international scholars who discussed their draft papers and received extensive feedback for revisions. The topics discussed at the meeting included Qatar Airways sponsorships\, Paris Saint Germain and national identity\, the World Cup and efforts to promote a healthy lifestyle in Qatar\, Corporate Social Responsibility\, the blockade of 2017\, COVID-19 preparedness\, and Qatar’s foreign policy in relation to the World Cup 2022.  \n\nDanyel Reiche initiated the discussion with his chapter\, “The Perception of Qatar Airways Sponsorships in Major European Football Clubs.” Reiche’s paper analyzed Qatar Airways’ sponsorships of three major European football clubs: FC Barcelona\, FC Bayern Munich\, and FC Paris Saint-Germain\, and discussed how sponsorship arrangements have been perceived by different stakeholders in the three clubs. Outlining Qatar Airways’ sports sponsorship portfolio\, Reiche argued that over the years Qatar’s standing has become stronger at the elite levels of European football but more work needs to be done at the grassroots level. The chapter provides deeper insight into why these sponsorships were and remain controversial\, and whether Qatar has used these sports sponsorships effectively to gain soft power. \n\nAndreas Flouris’s chapter addresses whether being awarded the World Cup has prompted Qatar to focus on policies and programs to support a healthy lifestyle in the country. In his chapter\, “The 2022 FIFA World Cup and the Quest for Healthy Living in Qatar\,” Flouris suggests that while the World Cup has led to economic and infrastructural development in the country\, it remains to be seen whether the initiatives carried out as part of the World Cup preparation will have a longer-term impact on the adoption of a healthy lifestyle by the population. \n\nContinuing the discussion on health-related issues\, Kamilla Swart briefly updated the group on her chapter which will be examining the World Cup 2022 and the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. Her paper will look at other mega sporting events hosted by Qatar during the pandemic\, and how these supported Qatar’s efforts to deliver a safe and secure World Cup in 2022.  \n\nRoss Griffin’s chapter\, “Identity Matters: Qatar\, QSI\, and Paris Saint-Germain” focuses on Qatari national identity expressed through the ownership of the French football club. Ross argues that after its purchase by Qatar Sports Investments in 2011\, Paris Saint German was transformed into one of the most glamorous football clubs in the world\, with high levels of success. Ross states that there is a significant absence of academic work on Qatar’s motivations in purchasing PSG\, and how ownership of the club has enabled the state to engage in national identity performance on the global stage. In his chapter\, Ross examines the forms of national identity that Qatar is performing through its ownership of PSG\, how this identity is performed\, and why PSG serves as the desired medium for performing this identity. \n\nUday Chandra and Aisha Al-Kuwari’s chapter\, “Popular Culture and the World Cup\,” focuses on football fandom and popular culture in Doha. Using vernacular sources and interviews they argue that the evolution of football fandom in Doha can be best understood through historic neighborhood clubs\, known as furjan\, and through the culture of football spectatorship in the Qatari majaalis. The paper’s secondary intervention is in its highlighting of the voices of the migrant communities present in Doha\, their expressions of inclusion and participation in the World Cup\, as well as their broader forms of patriotism to the country. By bringing both the citizen and migrant dimensions together\, this contribution explores how local popular culture in Doha shapes and is shaped by the World Cup.  \n\nThe next session was led by Irene Theodoropoulou on her chapter\, “Good Things Come from Small Places: Communicating Qatar to World Cup Tourists.” The paper examines the discursive and linguistic means through which the World Cup 2022 is communicated to the world. Theodoropoulou detailed the three phases of the communication strategy\, “Expect Amazing”\, “Deliver Amazing”\, and “Now is All.” She argued that Qatar has employed the three phases not only to tackle the negative image but also to put itself on the global tourist map\, to rebrand itself\, and to establish tourism as one of its basic revenue sectors post World Cup in order to diversify its economy. \n\nSebastian Sons paper\, “Creating Sports Humanitarianism: The Nexus of Qatar’s Development Assistance and Sport\,” analyzed Qatar’s efforts to link its humanitarian aid policy with sports. Sons stated that Qatar has emerged as a relevant provider of development assistance in recent years\, and has made sport an integral part of its developmental aid. In doing so\, Qatar has aimed to present itself as a promoter of humanitarianism\, physical activity\, and a healthy lifestyle. It also seeks to compete with regional neighbors such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) which are also following a similar policy in terms of sports development. Sons paper focuses on Qatar’s developmental policy and its close interlinkages with sport\, and aims to contribute to the academic discussion on sport as a driver for development. \n\nPaul Brannagan led a session discussion on “Soft Power as ‘Beauty\, Brilliance\, Benignity’: the Case of the Aspire Zone Elite Sports.” Brannagan’s paper aims to provide an analysis of Qatar’s state-of-the-art elite sports complex\, Aspire Zone. Using the lens of ‘beauty’\, ‘brilliance’ and ‘benignity\,’ he discussed how this elite athlete complex generates soft power for Qatar so far and will add to it post World Cup ear. Building on previous academic works on Aspire Zone\, the paper examines how Qatar has used soft power to carve out an attractive global profile in global sports.  \n\nKathy Babiak’s paper\, “FIFA World Cup 2022: The Role of Corporate Social Responsibility as a Vehicle for Qatar’s Development Goals\,” looked at the CSR of the key stakeholders responsible for organizing the World Cup in Qatar. Babiak discussed the concept of CSR and its link to firm strategy and national development. She argued that sport has been used to drive broader strategic development goals by all types of businesses\, rights holders\, organizing committees\, sports organizations\, and nations around the world. International sports governing bodies such as FIFA\, sports sponsors\, and other interested parties have amplified the global business of sports and have used the power of sports to influence positive social change. Babiak’s contribution will aim to examine and better understand how CSR is enacted by local and international stakeholders of mega events such as the World Cup\, and how it can help to advance social change and position firms\, sports organizations\, and even host countries as positive agents of social impact.   \n\nHissa Al-Kubaisi shifted the discussion to Qatar’s foreign policy with her paper\, “The World Cup and Shifts in Qatar’s Foreign Policy.” Al-Kubaisi stated that the academic literature on small states claims that a change in leadership does not have an effect on the foreign policies of small states. She argued against this concept and specified that in the case of Qatar there was a strong shift in foreign policy after 2010 which can be associated with two events\, the awarding of hosting the FIFA World Cup 2022 in 2010 and the change in leadership in 2013. The paper will examine how\, following a change in leadership in the run-up to the FIFA World Cup 2022\, Qatar’s foreign policy has shifted to and is now based on mediation and diplomacy\, which is more aligned with the values of the World Cup. \n\nThe working group discussion was brought to a close by Kristian Coates Ulrichsen\, who presented his paper\, “Qatar: Between the Blockade and the World Cup?” Ulrichen’s chapter looked at the 2017 blockade of Qatar by Bahrain\, Saudi Arabia\, the United Arab Emirates (UAE)\, and Egypt and examined how the blockade affected Qatar’s preparations for the World Cup. He analyzed the steps that were undertaken by policymakers in Qatar to overcome the domestic\, regional\, and international challenges that arose in and after 2017. Outlining the aspects of the blockade and the ways it intersected with the World Cup preparations\, the paper explores issue of political risk and the climate of uncertainty created by the blockading states and the measures that were implemented to strengthen Qatar’s domestic resilience and to solidify its regional and international partnerships. Finally\, it looks at the legacy of the blockade and the twelve-year-long World Cup preparations.  \n\nThe contributors will revise their paper drafts based on the feedback received. CIRS will gather the final chapter submissions into an edited volume to be published by a university press. \n\n\nTo view the working group agenda\, click here\n\n\n\nTo read the participants’ biographies\, click here\n\n\n\nRead more about this research initiative\n\n\nParticipants and Discussants:  \n\n\nAisha Al Kuwari\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nHissa Al Kubaisi\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nZahra Babar\, CIRS – Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nKathy Babiak\, University of Michigan\n\n\n\nMisba Bhatti\, CIRS – Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nPaul Brannagan\, Manchester Metropolitan University\, UK\n\n\n\nSusan Dun\, Northwestern University in Qatar\n\n\n\nUday Chandra\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nKristian Coates Ulrichsen\, Rice University\n\n\n\nAndreas Flouris\, University of Ottawa\n\n\n\nRoss Griffin\, Qatar University\n\n\n\nCraig LaMay\, Northwestern University in Qatar\n\n\n\nSuzi Mirgani\, CIRS – Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nAnne Nebel\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nZarqa Parvez\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nDanyel Reiche\, Georgetown University in Qatar\n\n\n\nSebastian Sons\, Center for Applied Research in Partnership with the Orient (CARPO)\n\n\n\nKamilla Swart\, Hamad bin Khalifa University (HBKU)\n\n\n\nIrene Theodoropoulou\, Qatar University\n\n\n\nElizabeth Wanucha\, CIRS – Georgetown University Qatar\n\n\n\nClyde Wilcox\, Georgetown University in Qatar \n\n\nArticle by Misba Bhatti\, Research Analyst at CIRS
URL:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/event/qatars-world-cup-goals-moving-from-the-periphery-to-the-center-working-group-ii/
LOCATION:Education City\, Al Luqta St\, Ar-Rayyan\, Doha\, Qatar
CATEGORIES:CIRS Faculty Research Workshops,FIFA World Cup Series,Regional Studies
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://cirs.qatar.georgetown.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2022/10/WG-II-Featured-imageca.jpg
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