This is a newsletter from Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies (CMES), Lund University |
|
|
|
|
|
|
CMESNewsletter #56December 2025 | | | | CMES staff at seasonal lunch (December 2025)
| Message from the DirectorSeason's greetings from the team at the Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies!CMES organised several major events during the latter part of the autumn semester. A topical public seminar was co-organised with Peace and Conflict Studies, focusing on the challenging theme of envisioning the future of Palestine/Israel. Two PhD vivas have also recently taken place. Rami Zalfou successfully defended his thesis in economic history on Syrian economic development and migrant integration, and Joel Abdelmoez successfully defended his thesis in political science on feminist activism and solidarities in Egypt and Tunisia. As 2025 draws to a close, we reflect on a productive year that included CMES seminars covering a wide range of topics, several international workshops, symposia, and public events, as well as strategic development and recruitment of new staff for the Strategic Research Area MECW. The latest CMES Yearbook 2025 is now also published, highlighting the diverse research activities the Centre engaged in over the past year. As I conclude my term as Director and Scientific Coordinator after more than five years, I do so with sincere gratitude. Working with the CMES team has been a genuine privilege, and together we have built something that is both intellectually vibrant and highly relevant. I am confident that CMES now rests on strong scientific foundations. As the Centre enters a new year, I warmly wish the incoming Director, Ronny Berntsson, and Deputy Director, Lisa Strömbom, all the best. Wishing you all a joyful holiday season and a happy new year!
| Karin AggestamCMES Director and MECW Coordinator
| | | | CMES Seminar Explores Shared Homeland Paradigm for Palestine-Israel
Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) at Lund University hosted a highly topical seminar titled “It’s Time to Think About the Future of Palestine-Israel.” The event brought together over 50 participants and featured two distinguished speakers: Professor Haim Yacobi and Dr Rami Nasrallah, from University College London. Read a summary here.
| | | | Joel Abdelmoez successfully defended his doctoral dissertation at Lund University.CMES is proud to announce that researcher, Joel W. Abdelmoez, PhD Candidate in Political Science, has successfully defended his doctoral dissertation at Lund University. Read more here.
| | | | Rami Zalfou Successfully Defends His PhD Thesis in Economic History
CMES is proud to announce that CMES researcher, Rami Zalfou, PhD Candidate in Economic History, has successfully defended his doctoral dissertation at Lund University. Read a more here.
| | | | International Workshop - Green extractivism
Harvesting wind, stirring sands: the expansion of renewable energy frontiers, local resistance, and the European academic gaze on green extractivism in West Asia and North Africa (WANA) Read more about the workshop here.
| | | | Arabic Language Courses
The Centre for Middle Eastern Studies (CMES) offers three Arabic language courses during the Spring Semester 2026 Read more and apply here.
| | | | New book on democratic backsliding in Israeli politics and protracted conflict
Bringing together scholars in the field, the book offers original analyses organised around three intersecting themes. Read more here.
| | | | Humanitarian exceptionalism and fluctuating solidarity: Gulf States’ aid in Gaza.CMES researcher Altea Pericoli, has recently published an article in The Journal of Mediterranian Politics.
Read the article here.
| | | | ECO-Syria Workshop Report. Now available in Arabic, Kurdish and English.
Titled “ECO-Syria: Exploring Conflict–Environment Interactions for Sustainable Development and Conservation", the event was part of the ECO-Syria research project funded by the Strategic Research Area Middle East in the Contemporary World (MECW).
Read a more here.
| | | | GONGOs, Zombies, and Astroturfers: Rethinking Hybrid Institutions in Autocracies through the Case of Jordanian Youth Governance.CMES researcher Adam Almqvist, has recently published an article in The Journal of Comparative Politics.
Read the article here.
| | | | Improving the performance of daily pan evaporation (Evp) prediction.This study presents a novel approach for the prediction of daily pan evaporation (Evp) based on identifying an optimal combination of model inputs.
Read the article here.
| | | | Environmental Politics in North and East Syria/Rojava: A Scoping and Conceptual Literature Review.This article presents a scoping and conceptual literature review on environmental politics in North and East Syria/Rojava.
Read the raport here.
| | | | Managing coastal aquifer salinity risks: Strategies for balance, recharge, and crop adaptation.The aim of this study was to assess aquifer salinity risk by identifying high-risk land-use zones and proposing a new paradigm for groundwater resource management under salinization pressure. Read the article here.
| | | | Looking for an Expert on the Middle East and North Africa?CMES researchers conduct research on a range of themes related to countries in the MENA region: democratization, migration and sustainable socio-economic development; environment and sustainable development; religion, identity and culture; and security and sustainable peace. To find out more, please visit our website's list of experts. | Find Out More About Middle East Research at Lund UniversityLund University conducts Middle Eastern research of international quality and with a societal relevance across and between faculties. To find out more about the Middle East research being conducted at LU in Science, Medicine, Engineering, Humanities and Theology, and Social Sciences, please visit our website. | |
About This NewsletterThis is a newsletter from the Centre for Advanced Middle Eastern Studies, Lund University. With the objective to provide an overview Middle Eastern studies undertaken at Lund University, this newsletter is intended to give updates on research, events, and other related news. It is also intended to form a window towards the society, showcasing important Middle Eastern research conducted at Lund University. Subscribe here Send the CMES Newsletter to a friend UNSUBSCRIBE |
|
|
|
