Europe and the Middle East & North Africa: Building Bridges, Mapping the Future

2018 KFAS-Sciences Po Conference on Europe and the Middle East & North Africa: Building Bridges, Mapping the Future.
This conference on Europe and the MENA (October 3-5) comes at a time when both regions are encountering major turmoil. This conference enables us to discuss prospects for the ten upcoming years with major researchers, actors and leaders in various fields including intercultural exchange, history, social sciences, education, commonalities of interest and public policy.
DAY 1 – October 3rd – 5:00-7:00 pm: Launch of conference (Sciences Po)
Opening remarks by Frédéric Mion, President of Sciences Po
and Adnan Shihab-Eldin, Director General, Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS).
Keynote speech: Is the “Europe-MENA” strategic bond a myth?
Ghassan Salamé, Emeritus Professor of International Relations at Sciences Po, Special Representative and Head of the UN Support Mission in Libya.
Register here for the opening conference
DAY 2: October 4th – Morning Session

Salon Cristal, Hôtel Lutetia
Registration – 8:00 – 8:30 am
Panel 1 (8:30 – 10:00 am) – Public opinion dynamics: Analyzing the relationship between Europe and the MENA from a comparative perspective

• Enrico Letta, Dean of Paris School of International Affairs, Sciences Po, former Prime Minister of Italy
• Lindsay Benstead, 2018-2019 Resident Scholar in the Middle East Program at Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Associate Professor of Political Science, Portland State University, former Kuwait Program Visiting Professor
• Henri Wallard, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Head of Global Public Affairs, IPSOS Group.

Panel 2 (10:30 am – 12:00 pm) – Assessing our common security challenges between the MENA and Europe

• Stéphane Lacroix, Associate Professor, Sciences Po
• Hazem Kandil, Lecturer in Political Sociology at the University of Cambridge, Fellow of St Catharine’s College, former Kuwait Program Visiting Professor
• Robert Springborg, Visiting Professor, Department of War Studies, King’s College London, former Kuwait Program Visiting Professor
• Bassma Kodmani, Executive Director of the Arab Reform Initiative, former spokesperson of the Syrian National Council

Register here for Day 2 – Morning Session
DAY 2: October 4th – Afternoon Session
Salon Cristal, Hôtel Lutetia
Panel 3 (2:45 pm – 4:45 pm) – Diplomacy: Exploring commonalities of interests between the MENA and Europe

• Lakhdar Brahimi, Member of the Elders, former Under Secretary General of the UN; former Arab League Special Envoy to Syria
• Miguel Angel Moratinos, former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Spain; former European Union Special Representative for the Middle East; faculty of PSIA
• H.E. Sheikh Mohammad Sabah Al-Salem Al-Sabah, former Deputy Prime Minister; former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Kuwait.

Register here for Day 2 – Afternoon Session
DAY 3: October 5th – Morning Session
Salon Cristal, Hôtel Lutetia
Panel 4 (10:30 am – 12:00 pm) – Joining forces: Education, arts and public policy

• Jack Lang, President of the Institut du monde arabe (Arab World Institute), former Minister of Education; former Minister of Culture, France
• Irina Bokova, former Director-General, UNESCO, faculty of PSIA
• Eckart Woertz, Senior Research Fellow, Barcelona Centre for International Affairs (CIDOB), former Scientific Advisor to the Kuwait Chair; former Kuwait Visiting Professor
• Dina El-Khawaga, Director of the Asfari Institute for Civil Society and Citizenship, American University of Beirut

Register here for Day 3 – Morning Session
More information and full program here