MED 18 - Preliminary List of Speakers
Middle East Dialogue:
A New Collective Vision
Friday, March 23, 2018
The Historic Whittemore House, Washington, DC
Preliminary List of Speakers
8:00 am Registration
8:45-9:45 am Plenary 1
The Middle East in 2018: Some Changing Geopolitical Dynamics
Ambassador Mark Hambley and William Morris, Next Century Foundation
9:55 - 11:10 am - BREAKOUT SESSIONS (5 Rooms)
1870s Room
Moderator: William Morris, Next Century Foundation
Matthew Timmerman, American University
Mohammed M.A. Ahmed, Ahmed Foundation for Kurdish Studies
Library
Moderator: Rahima Schwenkbeck, Policy Studies Organization
Deborah L. Wheeler and Brannon M. Wheeler, United States Naval Academy
Harriman Room
Moderator: Chanel Marshall, Jaali Co.
A Contextual Exploration of Islamophobia and Discriminatory Actions Directed Towards Middle Eastern-American Employees in the U.S. Workplace
Emad Rahim, Bellevue University
Darrell Norman Burrell, Florida Institute of Technology, Walden University, Claremont Lincoln University
Past Presidents Room
Moderator: Samantha Smith, Policy Studies Organization
Abdelmajid Ridouane, Ibn Zohr University, Morocco
Shea Garrison, George Mason University
Pub Room
Moderator: Mark Silinsky, US Army War College and Haifa University
Challenges and Opportunities in Tackling Propaganda Wars: Using Semantic Analysis in Deconstructing Terrorist Recruitment Models Online
Dilshod Achilov, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth
The Syria Coalition and the Triumph of the New Counterterrorism
Avery Plaw, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth
Security Concerns, Regulation of Religion, and Violence
Renat Shaykhutdinov, Florida Atlantic University
Anlaysis of Islamist Extremist Narrative on Social Media
Ugur Kursuncu and Budak Arpinar, University of Georgia
11:20 am - 12:20 pm Plenary 2
The Syrian Dilemmas
Ambassador Fred Hof
A Georgetown graduate and so never a stranger to Washington, Ambassador Hof is Director of the Hariri Center for the Middle East, where he specializes in Syria. His books include Galilee Divided, Line of Battle - Border of Peace, and Beyond the Boundary: Lebanon, Israel, and the Challenge of Change. He was director in the office of the Secretary of Defense for Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, and Palestinian Affairs.
Professor Alon Ben-Meir
Professor Ben-Meir obtained his doctorate from Queen's College, Oxford University. He is the author of many books on Middle Eastern topics, including several from Westphalia Press. Professor Ben-Meir is senior fellow at New York University's Center for Global Affairs where he has taught courses on the Middle East and international negotiations for 18 years, and he is the Middle East Project Director at the World Policy Institute. He hosts "Global Leaders: Conversations with Alon Ben-Meir," debates and conversations with top policy-makers around the world at NYU. He conducts briefings at the US State Department for international visitors.
12:30 - 1:45 pm - BREAKOUT SESSIONS (4 Rooms)
1870s Room
Moderator: Dilshod Achilov, University of Massachusetts, Dartmouth
Suha Hassen, George Mason University
ISIS, the ICC and Accountability in Syria and Iraq: Challenges Prosecuting Religious Violence, Extremism and Terrorism at the International Level
Shannon Maree Torrens, University of Sydney
Library
Moderator: Neda Nazemi, University of Virginia
Jihane Benamar and Harry Verhoeven, Georgetown University in Qatar
Mikaela Bennett and Joshua Kaye, George Washington University
Micro-Social Movements and the Everyday Politics of Change in Saharan Algeria
Nejm Benessaiah, Georgetown University
Harriman Room
Moderator: Gabriella Fernandes, Policy Studies Organization
Current Trends in Jihadi/Extremist Movements
Ismail Royer, Center for Islam and Religious Freedom
Ayhan Sari, Berlin Graduate School for Transnational Studies
Past Presidents Room
Moderator: Samantha Smith, Policy Studies Organization
Giacomo Di Pasquale and Shatha Sbeta, Claremont Graduate University
Pub Room
Moderator: Chanel Marshall, Jaali Co.
Radwan Ziadeh, Middle East Arab Center, Washington DC
Imad Harb, Middle East Arab Center, Washington DC
Mohammed Cherkaoui, George Mason University
1:55 - 3:10 pm - BREAKOUT SESSIONS (4 Rooms)
1870s Room
Moderator: Shannon Maree Torrens, University of Sydney
Anthony Oberschall, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Andrew Wickersham, Churches for Middle East Peace
Library
Moderator: Mikaela Bennett, George Washington University
Neda Nazemi, University of Virginia
Systems-Based Methods to Assess Alternative Water Governance Scenarios in Water Scarce River Basins
Richard Rushforth, Northern Arizona University
Moderator: Rahima Schwenkbeck, Policy Studies Organization
Adina Friedman, George Mason University
Avi Melamed and Jeff Blavatt, The Eisenhower Institute
Past Presidents Room
Moderator: Ahmed Y. Zohny, Coppin State University
Shahram Ahmadi Nasab Emran, Saint Louis University
Seyed Mohammad Houshisadat, University of Toronto and University of Tehran
3:20 - 4:35 pm - BREAKOUT SESSIONS (4 Rooms)
1870s Room
Moderator: Gabriella Fernandes, Policy Studies Organization
Will the Civilizations Keep Clashing? Muslims, non-Muslims, and the Future of the West
Mark Silinsky, US Army War College and Haifa University
Lawrence Davidson
Library
Moderator: Ivan Sascha Sheehan, University of Baltimore
Ahmed Y. Zohny, Coppin State University
Mitchell G. Bard, American-Israeli Cooperative Enterprise
Harriman Room
Moderator: Chanel Marshall, Jaali Co.
Eva Kahan, Tufts University
Diane L. Maye, Homeland Security & Global Conflict Studies, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Past Presidents Room
Moderator: Samantha Smith, Policy Studies Organization
Kristin Diwan, Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington