Georgetown University: School of Foreign Service in Qatar

The Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar recently welcomed Dr. Mehran Kamrava to head the Center for International and Regional Studies at SFS-Qatar. Having arrived in Qatar earlier this summer, Kamrava has been working with faculty, administrators, and Qatar Foundation to articulate a vision for CIRS, the research center housed at Georgetown in Qatar.

“We’ve created a set of guiding principles that will guide the work of the center over the coming years,” Kamrava said. “As an organization, we are committed to academic excellence, forward vision, dialogue and the exchange of ideas, and of course, community engagement.”

As part of its plan for community engagement, CIRS is planning several public conferences and events this year. A half-day symposium entitled “America’s Role in the World” will be held on 24 October. The symposium will bring together academics and practitioners from around the world to discuss the impact of US foreign policy on the rest of the world.

Following on the success of their American Arts Festival, CIRS and Georgetown are looking into holding other cultural events in early Spring. To close the academic year, the Center will host a conference entitled “Innovation in Islam.” The conference will examine the concept and practice of innovation in Islam in a variety of fields such as fiqh, the arts and sciences, politics, and social institutions.

The department is beginning to devote much of its resources to academic research. “Over the summer, we initiated a study on the status of Iraqi refugees in Jordan and Syria,” Kamrava said. Completed in association with the Institute for the Study of International Migration at Georgetown University, the results of the study will be published in the coming months. CIRS is also in the midst of seeking grant funding for a comprehensive research project focusing on Qatar and the Gulf region. The three-year project will focus on the international relations, the international political economy, and the domestic politics of Qatar and the other Gulf states.

“One major focus this year is to engage our community at multiple levels,” Kamrava said. “Educational establishments are natural partners for us.” Already, the Center has scheduled collaborative workshops with Qatar University and is working to build a collaborative program involving the local schools. In addition, CIRS will host the annual Model United Nations summit that brings more than 300 high school students to Doha each January.

To reach out to the community, the Center will continue its Distinguished Lecture series, in addition to a Monthly Dialogue series that will feature Georgetown faculty members speaking about their current research endeavors.

Dr. Kamrava will kick off the 2007 Distinguished Lecture series on Monday evening with a discussion entitled “The United States and Iran: A Dangerous but Contained Conflict.” The lecture will begin at 6:00pm at the Diplomatic Club. The public is invited to attend.