The American Political Science Association (APSA) is pleased to announce a Call for Applications from early-career scholars who would like to participate in the 2020 MENA Workshop. The program is an opportunity to network with colleagues from across the Arab MENA region and advance research on security and international relations of the region. The deadline for applications is Saturday March 14, 2020.

The workshop will be held from May 29 to June 4, 2020 in partnership with the faculty of Law, Economics and Social Sciences-Souissi (FSJES) at Mohammed V University in Rabat. The organizers will cover participation costs (including travel, lodging, and materials) for up to 20 qualified applicants. Following the workshop, a select group of fellows will be invited to present their research at the September 2020 APSA Annual Meeting in San Francisco.

This opportunity is intended for PhD students and post-doctoral fellows who are citizens of countries in the Arab MENA region, especially those who are currently based at universities or research institutes in the region. Non-citizens of Arab MENA countries who are currently based at universities or research institutes in the Arab MENA region may also apply. The program is open to scholars in political science and other social science disciplines undertaking research related to the workshop theme. Scholars should apply with a manuscript or research project in progress that they will present at the workshop. Professional fluency in English is required.

The 2020 MENA Workshop will be led by Samer Abboud (Villanova University, USA), Zaynab El Bernoussi (Al Akhawayn University, Morocco), Omar Dahi (Hampshire College, USA), and Salim Hmimnat (Mohamed V University, Morocco). Together with selected workshop fellows, the co-leaders aim to engage academic and policy debates about security and international relations of the MENA region and consider alternative understandings of insecurity that focus on the research projects of scholars within the region. In particular, the workshop will be theoretically grounded in critical approaches to Security Studies and International Relations, with discussions structured around two central themes: Insecurity will be framed through the question of what makes people insecure, rather than what makes them secure. Discussions of securitization will reflect on how new patterns of securitization are emerging in the region. By widening the agents of securitization beyond the state, this approach highlights how private companies, social movements, political parties, and even municipalities, are implicated in contemporary securitization in the MENA region. The workshop will also include opportunities for research presentation and feedback as well as sessions on professional development topics. Following their participation in the full program, alumni will receive 3 years’ membership to APSA and will be eligible to apply for small research grants.

Applications should be submitted via the online form: https://apsa.wufoo.com/forms/2020-mena-workshop-application-form.

For more information about the APSA MENA project, visit web.apsanet.org/mena or e-mail us at menaworkshops@apsanet.org.