International Graduate Student Virtual Symposium
Rethinking MENA and the Muslim World
May 31, 2022
Opening remarks
(8:15-8:30 AM)
Panel 1
Contentious Politics and Social Movements in MENA and Muslim Contexts
(8:30-10:30 AM)
Chair: Dr Amir Rasouli
University of Alberta
The Spirit of an Uprising: Contentious Politics and Pluralism in Syrian Society Post Arab Spring
Noureddin Zaamout (University of Alberta)
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Syrian Citizen Journalists and Communication Technologies: Tools in Evading State Repression
Mark Barrow (University of Cambridge)
Myth as Mobiliser in the Early Syrian Revolution
Jack McGinn (London School of Economics)
Contextualizing the Rise of Kafala System in Lebanon
Muhammad Khan (Queen's University)
“Canadian Go Home”: politics of environmental justice elsewhere
Rezvaneh Erfani (University of Alberta)
Agency and the Politics of Fun and Desire; Examining the Emerging Ways of Being a Proper Muslim Woman
Samira Torabi (University of Alberta)
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Panel 2: Postcolonial Critique of Eurocentrism, Orientalism and Gender-blindness
(10:30 AM – 12:30 PM)
Chair: Dr Nazek Jawad
University of South Florida
Ingrained deficiency: France’s imprint on the emergence of early day democracy and economic prosperity in Tunisia
Laura Sani (Hamad bin Khalifa University, Qatar)
Rethinking the diffusion of constitutional ideas in the Islamic world
Sara Zanotta (Università degli Studi di Pavia, Italy)
Postcolonial Critique of Humanitarian Intervention: False People Rhetoric and Forgotten Responsibility for Refugees -- Case Study of Iraq
Nariya Khasanova (University of Alberta)
Postcolonial Critique of Comparative Politics: Gender, Ethnicity, and Religion
Neslihan Akpinar (University of Alberta)
Gendered Constitution-Making: Sociological Analysis of the Genesis of the Juridical Field in Post-Revolutionary Iran
Reyhaneh Javadi (University of Alberta)
Oil, Forgery, and Orientalism: The Case of Buyid Silks
Banafsheh Mohammadi (University of Alberta)
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Lunch break
(12:30-1:00 PM)
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Keynote Address
The Failure of Power-Sharing and the Women, Peace and Security Agenda
in Afghanistan and Beyond
Dr.Siobhan Byrne
University of Alberta
(1:00-1:30 PM)
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Panel 3: The State, Nationhood and Identity Politics in MENA and Muslim Contexts
(1:30-3:00 PM)
Chair: Houssem Ben Lazreg
University of Alberta
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The Impact of Zagros Mountains on Kurdish Political Refugees from Iran
Seyedeh Nahid Naghshbandi (University of Bologna, Italy)
Mapping the Nation
Ehsan Kashfi (University of Alberta)
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US imperialism, Sunni state-formation and Sectarian violence in Pakistan
Banazeer Yaqoob (University of Alberta)
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Panel 4: Music, Mysticism and Religion in MENA and Muslim Contexts
(3:00-4:30 PM)
Chair: Sajad Soleymani-Yazdi
University of Alberta
Beyond Politics: Iran’s Century of Classical Music and Multiple-Modernities
Mehdi Rezania (University of Alberta)
Unity of Existence in Rumi’s Poems: A Brief Survey on the Philosophical Foundations of Rumi’s Thought
Saman Rezaei (University of Alberta)
The Emergence of Tataloo and Tatality in the Iranian Popular Music Scene
Behrang Nikaeen (University of Alberta)
Like the hearts of birds: Islamic axiology and implications for research methodology
Nathan Viktor Fawaz (University of Alberta)