We marked 20 years of bridging scholarship and real-world insight on the Middle East with an anniversary symposium exploring the biggest challenges facing the Middle East and opportunities for optimism.
Killian Clarke argues that oil-rich states like Saudi Arabia and the UAE use their oil abundance not just to insulate their own populations from demands for political change but to actively undermine democratic movements across the region.
Abdel Monem Said Aly, Shai Feldman, and Khalil Shikaki draw on decades of scholarship and, inspired by the post-conflict transformation after the Second World War, present a bold vision for pathways to peace and the challenges that must be overcome.
In this Crown Conversation, we spoke to Haian Dukhan and Daniel Neep about Assad’s legacy, the rise of HTS, and the immense challenges ahead for Syria after the Assad family’s five-decade rule and a brutal civil war.
The Crown Center for Middle East Studies is committed to conducting balanced and dispassionate research of the modern Middle East that meets the highest academic standards. The Center seeks to help make decision- and opinion-makers better informed about the region. The scope of the center's research includes the 22 members of the Arab League as well as Turkey, Iran and Israel. The Crown Center's approach is multidisciplinary in its study of the politics, economics, history, security, sociology and anthropology of the region's states and societies.
The Crown Center marked 20 years of bridging scholarship and real-world insight on the Middle East with an anniversary symposium on April 23–24, bringing together leading Crown scholars — past and present — to explore two pressing questions: What are the biggest challenges facing the Middle East? And where are the opportunities for optimism?
Visit the event page – Recordings now available
Why have so many democratic uprisings in the Middle East failed to bring lasting political change? In our latest Middle East Brief, Killian Clarke argues that oil wealth is a major reason authoritarian regimes have held onto power—though not for the reasons usually raised. Since 2011, a new form of “rentierism” has emerged. Countries like Saudi Arabia and the UAE use their oil abundance not just to insulate their own populations from demands for political change but to actively undermine democratic movements across the region. By providing weapons and aid to autocratic incumbents and deploying their own military forces, these oil-rich states have become powerful agents of counterrevolution, ensuring the persistence of authoritarian rule.
The Crown Center is dedicated to sharing balanced and dispassionate research on the Middle East. Please see the Crown Center analyses which delve into the roots and evolution of the conflict between Hamas and Israel.
Image credit: Craig Bailey/Perspective Photo
Counter/Argument: A Middle East Podcast is produced by the Crown Center for Middle East Studies at Brandeis University. Through conversations with scholars and practitioners encompassing a variety of disciplines and perspectives, each episode will debunk key misconceptions about the contemporary Middle East. "Counter/Argument" is committed to a balanced and dispassionate approach to the region and to making scholarship more widely accessible. Available wherever you get your podcasts.
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Image credit: Chae Lee