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Middle East
Empowering students to bring change in the Middle East
Growing up as a shy kid in Palestine, Joseph Michael didn’t have much exposure to computer science. As a result, he couldn’t see how it applied to his life. But in 2018, at the age of 14, Michael joined the Middle East Entrepreneurs of Tomorrow (MEET), a three-year, Jerusalem-based program that brings together promising young […]
One scientist’s journey from the Middle East to MIT
“I recently exhaled a breath I’ve been holding in for nearly half my life. After applying over a decade ago, I’m finally an American. This means so many things to me. Foremost, it means I can go back to the the Middle East, and see my mama and the family, for the first time in […]
Making life friendlier with personal robots
“As a child, I wished for a robot that would explain others’ emotions to me” says Sharifa Alghowinem, a research scientist in the Media Lab’s Personal Robots Group (PRG). Growing up in Saudi Arabia, Alghowinem says she dreamed of coming to MIT one day to develop Arabic-based technologies, and of creating a robot that could […]
New clean air and water labs to bring together researchers, policymakers to find climate solutions
MIT’s Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab (J-PAL) is launching the Clean Air and Water Labs, with support from Community Jameel, to generate evidence-based solutions aimed at increasing access to clean air and water. Led by J-PAL’s Africa, Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and South Asia regional offices, the labs will partner with government […]
Promoting systemic change in the Middle East, the “MIT way”
The Middle East is a region that is facing complicated challenges. MIT programs have been committed to building scalable methodologies through which students and the broader MIT community can learn and make an impact. These processes ensure programs work alongside others across cultures to support change aligned with their needs. Through MIT International Science and […]
John Tirman, political theorist and executive director of the MIT Center for International Studies, dies at 72
John Tirman, an MIT scholar in political theory and expert on U.S.-Iran relations and human security, passed away on the morning of Aug. 19 after suffering cardiac arrest. He was 72. Since 2004, Tirman served as the executive director of and principal research scientist at the MIT Center for International Studies (CIS). During this […]
When politics is local in the Middle East
As the old adage has it, all politics is local. That might seem a quaint idea in an age of social media and global connectivity. And yet, as a study co-led by an MIT political scientist finds, it may describe Middle East politics more accurately than many people realize. More specifically, sectarian identity in the […]
At MIT, learning about the language, history, and art of Arabic
A recent MIT event put into focus the ways in which the Institute is celebrating and supporting the education of Arabic language, art, and history. On Dec. 9, students had the opportunity to learn about the history and art of Arabic calligraphy from a local expert, Hajj Wafaa. A freelance calligrapher, Wafaa has taught Arabic […]