THE ISSAM FARES INSTITUTE FOR PUBLIC POLICY AND INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
On September 19, IFI held a policy discussion on the intersection of climate change and internal human mobility within the MENA region, led by Manale Abou Dagher and Samir Nassar from the Institute’s Climate Change and Environment Program. The main objective was to present the “Policy Brief on Climate Change and Internal Human Mobility” chapter (authored by Abou Dagher and Nassar) as part of the “Climate-Induced Internal Displacement in MENA Countries” joint policy study by IFI, EuroMeSCo, IEMed and Connecting the Dots Project and coordinated by Abou Dagher. While presenting the study’s main findings and policy recommendations, the policy debate aimed to develop and disseminate policy recommendations that would help national policymakers in the MENA region and EU make informed decisions within the climate change and human mobility context. These guidelines were developed with the overarching goal of addressing the intricate and multifaceted problems brought on by climate change and its impacts on human mobility.
IFI’s Climate Change and Environment Program (CC&E), in collaboration with Awan Media held the final event of the “Data Journalism for Human Rights” training program, with the support of Journalists for Human Rights (JHR) and the United Nations Democracy Fund (UNDEF) on August 7, 2023. Speakers provided insights covering media studies, data analysis, and environmental journalism throughout three sessions, organized as follows:
In collaboration with the Department of Philosophy at the American University of Beirut, IFI held a talk on July 26 with Loubna El Amine, Associate Professor of Political Science at Northwestern University titled “Thinking Beyond the Modern (Western) State.” El Amine reimagines the frameworks of non-Western states by looking back at the histories of two ancient Eastern empires, suggesting that if political theorists “think beyond” the Western state, unrestricted ideals and aspirations would be tapped into.
IFI’s Climate Change and Environment Program (CC&E), in collaboration with the Water Sanitation and Conservation (WSC) project, funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), organized a refresher course on Water Safety Plans for regional water establishments in Lebanon on July 5-6, 2023. The two-day event gathered 26 participants from the Litani River Authority and Lebanon’s four Regional Water Establishments (Beirut and Mount Lebanon, Beqaa, North Lebanon, and South Lebanon), who were trained on the development of water safety plans for their respective establishments. The training’s main focus is to help the water establishments improve their planning capabilities and the management of their systems in a way that ensures a safe delivery of water to beneficiaries.
IFI in collaboration with the London School of Economics (LSE) Middle East Centre held a workshop and interactive discussion titled “Lebanon Unsettled: The October 2019 Uprising as a Product of Urban Space” on July 3, 2023. The panel was composed of LSE Visiting Fellow in Human Geography and Environment Deen Sharp, Visiting Associate Professor in the Faculty of Architecture and Design Lebanese American University May Farhat, Landscape Architect and Urbanist Sarah Lilly Yassine, Policy Advisor, Writer and IFI Associate Fellow Camille Ammoun, who also acted as moderator. Professor of Politics and Urban Studies at the American University of Beirut Mona Harb participated as the discussant. The workshop presented the Lebanon Unsettled project, led by Deen Sharp and Dr. May Farhat that created a USEK student-led archive of the October 2019 uprising, placing this moment in its geographical and historical context.
IFI, in collaboration with the Bobst-AUB Collaborative Initiative, held a discussion titled “Democracy for Realists” on June 27. The event featured co-author of Democracy for Realists Professor of Politics Emeritus at Princeton University Christopher Achen, with Research Development Manager at IFI and Instructor of Sociology Rima Rassi as a discussant.
|
Archives
April 2024
|