#AsfariInstitute
Bridging academia and activism
The Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship is a regional hub for a dynamic community of academics, practitioners, and civil society actors in exploring traditional and innovative forms of associational life and in advancing realistic solutions to the obstacles to effective civil society and citizenship in the Arab region.
#UpcomingEvents
Events
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Latest News & Articles
برنامج دعم الناشطية في المنطقة العربية 2022 – بدنا
ينظم معهد الأصفري للمجتمع المدني والمواطنة في الجامعة الأمريكية في بيروت، بالشراكة مع شبكة المنظمات العربية غير الحكومية للتنمية، الدورة الثانية من برنامج دعم الناشطية العربية-بدنا.
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The Asfari Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR) Art Retreat
Are you an artist or an activist from the MENA region and interested in creating art on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR)? Apply to our two-day innovative experience in advocacy and artistic expression and in-depth discussions.
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Redefining inequitable power relations through knowledge production partnerships
On September 1st, 2022, the Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship at the American University of Beirut will co-host its first global and annual Power of Knowledge event with KIT Royal Tropical Institute in Amsterdam and EthiXPERT in South Africa.
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#Publications
Latest Publications
English
Domestic Work in Lebanon Post-2019: Reflections on Emerging Trends
This report is the result of collective work and cumulative thinking that happened over the course of two years among staff of the Anti-Racism Movement (ARM) and with members of the extremely diverse migrant communities in Lebanon, at a time when the country is witnessing an unprecedented decline from bad to worse. The information presented here was primarily collected to inform an advocacy campaign to improve working conditions for SEDWs.
Advancing Arab Women’s Participation in Politics: Experiences and Journeys of Women Politicians from Lebanon and Syria
Women in the MENA region are still fighting for their political agency in a patriarchal society which obscures their own right to participate and be politically influential. Women’s participation in the public sector and political power positions have not been achieved the desired level, although many measures have been adopted by a majority of MENA countries to enhance the representation of women in decision-making positions. To answer the above questions, we need to understand women›s historical pathways to reach such posts from a feminist lens. This lens would lead us to having women as central to data collection and exploring the analysis and identifying key opportunities and factors that would help other women participate in politics.
From Utopia to Reality: Human Rights Activism in Arab Countries
How did the transition in the nature and relevance of human rights actors in Arab countries take place and what does it mean? This paper attempts to answer this broad question while arguing that the hyper-legal language and framing of human rights as embodied in a body of international law and organizations are no longer as effective under the current global world order. This does not mean the end of this utopian vision but rather to seriously reconsider our narratives about the origins and linkages of the human rights paradigm in this region and worldwide and to probably readjust expectations and changing strategies and tactics.
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Arabic
:ليست مجرد جائحة نظرة على الآثار الاقتصادية والاجتماعية لوباء كوفيد-١٩
شــبه الباحــث اللبنانــي كريــم نمــور فــي ورقتــه »غطرســة أجاممنــون عــام الثــورة والجائحــة واختطـاف الدولـة اللبنانيـة« الوضـع فـي لبنـان بالحملــة التــي قادهــا أجاممنــون فــي إليــاذة هوميــروس وغطرســته أثنــاء الحملــة علــى طـروادة والـذي انتهـى بـه الوضـع مقتـوًل علـى يـد زوجتـه كليتمنسـترا ألنـه ضحـى بإبتيهمـا فـي طريـق حملتـه إلـى طـروادة. يتسـآل نمـور »هـل ســيغدو ذلــك مصيــر أجاممنــون اللبنانــي ً أيضــا؟
العمالة المنزلية في لبنان بعد العام2019 تأملات في النهوج الناشئة
هذا التقرير هو نتيجة العمل الجماعي والتفكير التراكمي الذي حدث على مدار عامين بين العاملين في حركة مناهضة العنصرية (ARM) ومع أعضاء مجتمعات المهاجرين شديدة التنوع في لبنان ، في وقت تشهد فيه البلاد تراجع غير مسبوق من سيء إلى أسوأ.
مصر: كأن جائحة لم تكن: السياسات الحكومية لمواجهة الجائحة
فــي 11 مــارس 2020 أعلنــت منظمــة الصحــة العالميـة تحـول فيـروس كورونـا مـن وبـاء إلـى وبـاًءاعالمًيـا «جائحـة» وأبـد تقلقهـا من تفشـي المــرض وعــدم مواجهتــه بالشــكل الكافــي علـى مسـتوى العالـم، تزامًنـا مـع هـذا الإعـلان بــدأت الحكومــة المصريــة فــي اتخــاذ عــدد مــن الإجــراءات لمواجهــة الجائحــة العالميـة
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#Op-Eds
Latest Op-Eds
English
Ammad—Lives Snuffed Out Behind Egyptian Bars
He could, and should, be alive now. If he had been transferred to the hospital sooner, if his cell had not been crammed to twice its capacity, if his cry for help had been answered with the requisite duty of care, and if monitoring of prison conditions was a sincere undertaking, rather than a tragi-comic theatrical performance, Ammad would still be here.
Re-Politicizing Civil Society Organizations
In the last decade, the Arab region went through a series of social movements and turbulences, beginning with the Arab spring in 2011 and a sequence of dictatorial reprisals by the ruling classes or their subordinates. Lebanon wasn’t isolated from these regional transformations, as it witnessed the “Movement to Overthrow the Sectarian System” in 2011, the garbage crisis uprisings in 2015, and finally the October 2019 uprising which affected all cities in the country.
Glitter Ghost Town
I sat under the window on that Tuesday evening. It was my 3rd day being couch-ridden with an upset stomach, watching Grey’s Anatomy for the umpteenth time (Cristina Yang episodes only) when the window behind me opened and pulled back closed. I was puzzled. I looked at my partner who had just woken up from a nap, and we wondered if it was an explosion. Anyone who witnessed the Lebanese war and its explosions, or any other neighboring war for that matter, is unfortunately trained to identify explosions.
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Arabic
أزمة كهرباء لبنان: تداعيات قاسية على الفئات الأكثر هشاشة وحلول ممكنة
بات من المألوف أن تقلّص بعض العائلات حدود استفادتها من تغذية المولّدات الخاصّة إلى أربع أو خمس ساعات في اليوم فقط، لتمكّن من سداد فاتورة هذه الخدمة، فيما لجأت الكثير من العائلات لتقليص منسوب التيّار الكهربائي الذي تستفيد منه، إلى حد لا يكفي حتّى لتشغيل بعض الأدوات منزليّة كالبرّاد أو ماكينات غسل الملابس
نظرة على الحقوق الإنجابية للمصريات خلال الجائحة
أثناء الفترة الأولى لانتشار الوباء وحالة الارتباك العامة والخوف من العدوى، واجهت النساء العديد من التحديات في الوصول إلى خدمات الصحة الإنجابية وتنظيم الأسرة. على سبيل المثال، ساهمت إجراءات العزل الصحي والإغلاق العام في تقييد حركة النساء وبالتالي إمكانية وصولهن إلى هذه الخدمات، نظرًا لعدم قدرتهن على الحركة والتنقل في الشوارع والذهاب لتلقي وسيلة منع الحمل المناسبة خوفًا من العدوى.
الأردن: هل تضمن الجنسية حقوق المواطنة؟
التنوع حقيقي وموجود، ولكن هذا لا يعني بأي حال من الأحوال بأن الجميع سواسية، فمفهوم “المواطنة” ذاته معطّل لأسباب مختلفة. أولاً، هناك اتجاه عام لا يؤمن بالمساواة، ولا يُعير الكفاءة الاهتمام الذي تستحقه مقابل تغليب اعتبارات أخرى مثل “الولاء” بمفهومه الضيّق، و”من تكون” و”من تعرف”، ويعتبر منظرو هذا الاتجاه بأن الولاء يسبق الكفاءة، وكأنهما يستحيل أن يلتقيا
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#Podcasts
Latest Podcasts
Podcast with Maha Jouini
Maha Jouini is an entrepreneur, scientist, and author all at once. She pursued a degree in Artificial Intelligence from the Tianjin University of Technology and Education in China. After her journey in China, Maha moved to Mauritania to launch her start-up business in digital transformation. She recently published a book entitled “A Lover from Africa”.
In this podcast episode, Maha tells us more about the transition between the different careers, her academic journey in China, as well as the inspiration behind her recently published book and her start-up business.
Podcast with Rania Harrara
Rania Harrara is an 18-year-old Moroccan girl who developed a passion for football. Facing many challenges, she established the Association de Football Feminin Casablancais (AFFC), a football association to empower young girls in football. She is also a member of Girl Up Morocco, which allowed her to further work on initiatives for female football athletes.
In this podcast interview, we learn about her journey as a football athlete, the main challenges she faced throughout her career, as well as her work to empower young female football athletes in Morocco, and her plans for the future.
Podcast with Rana Husseini
Rana Husseini is an award-winning Jordanian journalist with 25+ years of experience. In her work, she focuses on social issues with a special emphasis on violence against women, as well as the brutal crimes that are committed against Jordanian women in the name of family honor.
In this podcast episode, we learn more about what drew Rana into the world of journalism and how that field could be utilized to advocate for women’s rights. We also talk to her about her recent book about the women’s movement in Jordan and the possible progress in the landscape of violence against women in the Arab region.
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Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship
American University of Beirut
More Info
BEIRUT
PO Box 11-0236
Riad El Solh, 1107 2020
Beirut, Lebanon
Tel: +961-1-350000 EXT. 4469
NEW YORK
The Debs Center, 3 Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, 8th floor
New York, NY 10017-2303, USA
Tel: 1-212-583-7600