Essays

The focus for MENA countries should not be to achieve self-sufficiency, but rather food security

No Land in Paraguay

Winter 2020

The preservation of indigenous peoples’ territories in Paraguay has a vital role in maintaining spiritual, cultural, and communal wellbeing. Despite this important reality, many indigenous communities’ bonds with their land have been shattered.

Seeds of Gulf-Africa Agribusiness

By Sarah Townsend

Winter 2020

When Gulf nations face food, security, and water scarcity issues, one response is to seek lucrative agricultural investments in fertile African lands. Yet, while such deals can bring benefits to the countries involved, there are also sizeable risks

Israel in the Age of Netanyahu

By Allison Hodgkins

Winter 2019

He crafted the post-Oslo consensus, overhauled the economy, and mastered the Knesset. Now the kingdom he built wants its keys back

Sailing Into a Universe of Knowledge

By Tarek Osman

Fall 2019

Liberal arts education has major benefits for student growth and transformation as exemplified by the United States’ university system and Al-Azhar University’s original learning model

Facing the Nuclear Storm

By Ali Ahmad and Benedetta Bonometti

Fall 2019

Countries across the Middle East are building or have already started operating their nuclear power plants. To assess how “resilient” their nuclear energy systems are, one must look at a number of important risks and factors

Beyond Sanctions

By Farnaz Alimehri

Fall 2019

Understanding how North Korea circumvents sanctions offers key insights into the world of WMD finance—and ways to stop other would-be proliferators

A Nuclear Curse and a Nuclear Blessing

By Selim Sazak

Fall 2019

The decline of the United States is mirrored in the rise of Russian and Chinese nuclear energy reactors being built across the Middle East and beyond

The Neo-Ballistic Middle East

By Karim El-Baz

Fall 2019

Over the past forty years, Iran has written the book on Lebanization and using non-state actors in interstate warfare

Middle East WMD-Free Zone: Thinking the Possible

By Paul Ingram and Emad Kiyaei

Fall 2019

A core group of civil society members together with international experts and diplomats is at the forefront of an initiative to create a zone free from Weapons of Mass Destruction

A Disaster of the Political Class

By David Wearing

Summer 2019

While Brexit is above all a calamity of the Conservative Party’s making, it is born of entrenched xenophobia and racism in British society.

When the Shooting Stops

By Suma Chakrabarti

Summer 2019

The president of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development highlights the bank’s commitment to supporting post-conflict nations in the Middle East and beyond

Reinventing Peace in Syria

By Achim Wennmann

Summer 2019

For Syria, and the rest of the world, the era of liberal peacebuilding has passed. But there are other ways to make peace, which call for a return to basics and a new kind of “software”

In Syria, Reconstruction Brings Little Hope for Peace

By Jasmine El-Gamal

Summer 2019

While maintaining the status quo for the time being might seem the easiest option, it is also the worst possible one

Rebuilding Iraq: Prospects and Challenges

By Abbas Kadhim

Summer 2019

Reconstruction in Iraq cannot be achieved without universal reconciliation, economic and education reform, and equitable application of the rule of law

Keeping Afghanistan in Afghanistan

By Bruce Pannier

Summer 2019

As a possible peace and removal of American troops appears imminent, how do Afghanistan’s Turkic neighbors view the regional security situation?

Prioritizing Peace Ahead of Economic Growth

By Mariam Safi

Summer 2019

Afghanistan’s economic fate is intricately tied to its post-conflict peace plan, which is currently in the making

Cohesion through Decentralization

By Alexander Decina

Summer 2019

The rebuilding process in Libya will be complex and arduous but must be done with a focus on local actors and an acknowledgment of the realities on the ground

How Yemen Rises

By Abdullah Hamidaddin

Summer 2019

Reconstruction is never easy, and in Yemen the road will be longer than most. The first step is to pass on “best practice” in favor of a critical, reflexive approach

Rethinking Gaza’s Reconstruction

By Mohammed Samhouri

Summer 2019

With living conditions in the Palestinian enclave fast approaching breaking point, anything short of a comprehensive approach to peacebuilding and reconstruction will not work