Cross-Sectoral Dialogue about the SDGs

LAU actively initiates and participates in cross-sectoral dialogue about the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) through conferences, symposiums, and collaborations with governments, NGOs, and other stakeholders. Below are examples illustrating such contributions:

Assessing the Progress of Arab States Toward the Sustainable Development Goals: The Role of Social Expenditures

A seminar held by AKSOB’s Department of Economics brings to light the report on Social Expenditure Monitor for Arab States, jointly produced by ESCWA, the UNDP and UNICEF.

https://news.lau.edu.lb/2023/assessing-the-progress-of-arab-states-toward-the-sustainable-development-goals-the-role-of-social-ex.php

While countries worldwide strive to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that call for building economic growth, addressing social needs equitably and preserving our planet, the Arab States lag behind. To redress the situation, they would need to effectively rebalance their priorities, focus on social expenditure, and improve their public financial management.

Strengthening Intergenerational Dialogue and Partnership on Gender Equality & Climate Change

March 9, 2022

https://aiw.lau.edu.lb/news-events/activities/strengthening-intergenerational-.php

On the occasion of the International Women’s Day, the Armenian General Benevolent Union (AGBU) Lebanon and the Arab Institute for Women (AiW) at the Lebanese American University (LAU) jointly organized a multi-panel symposium. The globally attended webinar, titled “Strengthening Intergenerational Dialogue and Partnership on Gender Equality & Climate Change,” was divided into two main panel discussions. Nearly 80 people from different parts of the world attended the webinar.

The symposium comprised of various panels that addressed the following themes: the environment as a basic human right, the relationship between climate change and gender, gender equality and women’s rights, the impact of climate change on women and girls in the region, the importance of including women in climate decision-making and strengthening intergenerational dialogue and partnership on gender equality and climate change. AiW director, Myriam Sfeir, gave the opening remarks.

Building eco-friendly corporations: The role of minority shareholders

October 27, 2022

https://eventscal.lau.edu.lb/event.php?evt=20221020_building-eco-friendly-corporatio

The office of Graduate Studies & Research is hosting a lecture titled Building eco-friendly corporation: The role of minority shareholders, by Dr. Ahmet Şensoy, Vice-Dean of Business School at Bilkent University - Ankara, Turkey.

Abstract:

Based on China’s mandatory requirement for listed firms to implement online voting in their annual general shareholder meetings, we investigate whether and how minority shareholders influence corporate environmental performance (CEP). We use the difference-in-difference approach and find that the implementation of online voting promotes minority shareholders’ participation in shareholder meetings, which, in turn, leads to improved CEP of listed firms. We discover that “local pollution” exposure and “the increasing awareness of listed firms’ environmental risks” are the main motives of minority shareholders concerning listed firms’ environmental performance. Furthermore, we find that the minority shareholders improve CEP of listed firms through influencing groups with greater bargaining power.

Zero Waste Fashion: An Eco-Design Marathon

May 23-25

Beirut Campus

The Fashion Design Program is holding a workshop in collaboration with the United Nations.

The training aims to motivate the future decision makers to think and plan their designs in a sustainable zero waste approach.

The event will feature lecturers and experts on the topic, as well as hands on activities, to offer to the students an innovative, inspiring, and immersive experience.

International Workshop Beirut - SynErgy in the City - On DIY Mobility and Energy Infrastructure

November 11, 12 & 13

IUA ALBA, Sin el Fil

The workshop is an intensive 2 days and nights pressure cooker.

Hosted by ALBA University Beirut in collaboration with the Institute for Environmental Studies and Research [IESR] at LAU, Studio Beirut and Metropolicies.

Are there ways to organize infrastructural facilities on a neighborhood scale in times of cracking systems and institutions? Directly after the explosion in Beirut in August 2020 we saw an intense solidarity and community sense of the people of Lebanon to help each other from cleaning the rubble to fixing houses to providing food and water. Now that the dust has settled, Beirut and Lebanon are still dealing with huge problems in terms of energy supply, inflation, and lack of resources in general. One of the biggest problems is the lack of energy that literally puts the country on hold. Mobility is another challenge as fuel prices became unaffordable for most people that, until recently, was still relying on private cars. All over the world citizens experiment together with their (local) governments how to renegotiate responsibilities, ownership, and maintenance of public services. This workshop is intended to be the kickoff of a larger and longer project in Lebanon to create a sustainable citizen-based network or infrastructure. The workshop will be partly hands-on, working on 1) creating an (electric) bike or foot-bike and 2) working on a low-tech energy deviceApart from the practical work there will be talks, lectures, guests, teachers and discussions on how a participative society works and what are the obstacles and challenges for enabling micro-scale governance structures and system change. Is a bottom-up urbanism possible?

Click here for more information on the event organizers and program

Neoliberalism, Globalization, and the Ecological Crisis

September 29, 2021 4:00 PM–8:45 PM

Online Via Webex

The collapse of the Soviet Union at the beginning of the 1990’s ushered a new political and economic era, marked by the triumphant emergence of Neoliberalism and the globalized capitalist world order. Some thirty years after this major turning point, it is clear that this new world order has led to the breakdown of the foundational elements of the socio-political order in nation-states, with disastrous consequences as evidenced by the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. Many critics have associated the Neoliberal policies across the globe with the increasing challenges posed on the environment, and the prognostics of an ecological disaster on the horizon.

In this symposium we propose to examine the consequences of Neoliberalism and Globalization and its environmental impacts by addressing the role that architecture and urban planning policies played in this respect, the impact of environmental on the constitution of the city, the role of information technology, and the relation between nature and the human in the context of a sustainable environment.

This symposium will seek to address and debate these issues through a panel of invited critics and scholars in an interdisciplinary setting.

For more information about the symposium, click here

Click here to join

GC International Model United Nations (GCI MUN)

Global Classrooms (GC) Model UN is a flagship program of LAU, launched in 2005. While having been operated by the United Nations Association of the United States of America (UNA-USA), the year 2016 ushered in a new era as LAU, a partner of the UNA-USA, took over the management of the GC International conferences in New York.

In a Nutshell

Two international conferences for middle and high school students every spring semester
Closing ceremonies at the UN Headquarters General Assembly Hall in New York City - subject to availability and approval.
English is the language of instruction.
4 training sessions
16,000 student-delegates from 250 schools
400 student secretariat
20 countries

Global Classroom LAU MUN (GC LAU MUN)

Running at LAU since 2005, the aim of the GC LAU Model United Nations is to increase students’ knowledge of UN procedural rules, improve their ability to research and write position papers, and engage them in public speaking, role playing, conflict resolution, negotiation, and caucusing, among other skills.

In a Nutshell

5 training sessions for students to become delegates
Delegates are divided to take part in UN Committee Simulations, over a two-day conference
English is the language of instruction
39,505 student-delegates from 200
2,050 student secretariat

LAU Model European Union (LAU MEU)

Running at LAU since 2015 in partnership with the Hariri Foundation for Sustainable Human Development (HFSHD), and in cooperation with the Bringing Europeans Together Association (BETA Europe), MEU challenges school students to leverage their diversity for the greater good – following the model of EU member states. They learn the art of coalition building, negotiation and public speaking. They develop diplomatic skills and extend their knowledge on history and procedures of the EU.

In a Nutshell

Two day conference every spring semester
5 training sessions for students to become delegates
Arabic and English are the languages of instruction
1,300 student-delegates from 70 schools
300 student secretariat

LAU Model Arab League (LAU MAL)

Running at LAU since 2011 in partnership with National Council on US Arab Relations (NCUSAR) and Hariri Foundation for Sustainable Human Development (HFSHD), MAL engages students from various religious and political backgrounds in Lebanon in social, political, and economic discussions that have and continue to define the future of the Arab World’s 22 member states. Student delegates work to achieve consensus on questions that diplomats face every day. They debate, form coalitions, draft and pass resolutions that seek to resolve some of the most pressing challenges that face Arab countries.

In a Nutshell

Two day conference every spring semester
5 training sessions for students to become delegates
Arabic and English are the languages of instruction
5,400 student-delegates from 112 schools
800 student secretariat

Project: “Equality for Everyone: Gender Reform from Grassroots to Government”

The AiW completed the project: “Equality for Everyone: Gender Reform from Grassroots to Government” funded by the United States – Middle East Partnership Initiative (U.S-MEPI)’s which aimed at promoting universal parental leave and progressive childcare policies among Lebanese working parents as an entry point to achieving greater gender equality in Lebanon, while also promoting access to healthcare to disadvantaged women to overcome caregiving burdens. This innovative project targets parental leave policies within the private and public sectors, with a focus on policy change on the national level. The project also targets LAU as a pilot project for policy change regarding parental leave policies.

Within the context of this project, the AiW produced a policy brief detailing the importance of improving parental leave policies in Lebanon on the national level as well as several other research papers for the purpose of motivating the private companies to improve their own parental leave policies. In addition, the AiW and the National Commission for Lebanese Women (NCLW) prepared, secured proper signatures, and submitted to the Lebanese Parliament a draft law for the purpose of amending the labor law to include better parental leave policies. Furthermore, the AiW launched a national advocacy campaign in order to raise awareness among Lebanese men and women about the importance of parental leave in improving the status of women in the workplace and to pressure decision-makers in Lebanon to adopt the draft law.

You can check the documents created under this project through the below links:

Policy paper on parental leave policies in Lebanon
Draft law
Elections toolkit
White economic paper
Research paper on “The Effect of Family-Friendly Work Practices on Firm Productivity in Lebanon”
Research paper on “Predictors of Work Productivity and Maternal Competence after Having a Baby”
Research paper on “Working from Home in a Failed State”
Gender audit for one municipality: Bsharre

You can also check the videos related to the national advocacy campaign through the below links:

You can also check the events that the AiW organized within the context of this project through the below links:

The AiW held on 16 December 2021 a closing event for the “Equality for Everyone: Gender Reform from Grassroots to Government” project.

For more information about the closing event and LAU President Dr. Michel Mawad’s announcement regarding parental leave policies, check out this link.

Revising Islamic Family Laws: A transnational social movement approach

About the Project

Transnational and militant movements have significant appeal to Arab populations, offering arenas for contentious politics, identity frameworks and social solutions. Presenting a span from communitarian to universalistic in cause, character, and solutions offered, a diverse range of transnational and militant social movements have become an integral part of the social and political dynamics of the region. Increasingly they form an indispensable part of the reform processes within Arab states – regional and local NGO’s, civil society organizations, hometown associations and religious groups being transnationally connected, transgressing state borders in their perspectives and activism. How may this transnational dimension of political activism impinge on processes of reform and state formation? This project on transnational advocacy networks for gender equality in Islamic family laws is offered as a lens through which to investigate what the relationship is between these transnational actors and the current configurations of state.

Aim

This project offers to analyze research and activism of family law revision within an Islamic framework as a transnational social movement in the Arab region, and to relate research findings directly to the reform processes of three selected national family laws, while engaging representatives of the legal community to pinpoint their relevance, and seek their endorsements by relevant judicial and political figures.

Despite more than a century of critique of women’s legal status in the Arab region, changing family patterns, and a booming young female adult population aspiring to professional lives, family laws in Arab countries still endorse inequality between the spouses and discrimination against women. This is not only unjust, but also an obstacle to development, preventing women’s self-determination and contribution to their societies. Inequality in the family laws of the Arab region is increasingly confronted by Muslim women in transnational activism and conversations. Recent initiatives to review family laws and interpretations of their core concepts within circles of scholars and activists have fostered a transnational social movement with a tremendous momentum for revising these laws by addressing their gender inequalities from an Islamic perspective. Participants are individual researchers, research centers and organizations involving researchers from Arab countries–as well as from other parts of the world.

Objectives

Inform policy processes in Arab states through research findings on transnational social movements, particularly regarding insights family law revisions that further gender equality.
Engage Arab states in law reforms that combine communitarian co-existence and gender equality with democratic governance.
Encourage Arab states to be more inclusionary, accommodating gender equality.

Approach

In order to address the slow, uneven progress of legislative reform this project track offers to propose policy solutions that would strengthen women’s rights across the Arab countries. A strategic working group will focus on three regional case studies—Lebanon, Egypt, and Morocco—to analyze the potential for reform within a challenging broader Arab context of social and political upheaval. The goal is to ensure that future policies build on Arab region scholarship rethinking family laws within an Islamic framework in an aim to strengthen women’s rights - without disregarding the crucial level of legal practices.

To that end, this project will focus on the potential for reform in three regional case studies: Egypt, Morocco, and Lebanon. In Egypt, a series of law reforms since 2000 allowed for minor improvements in women’s access to divorce (khul-divorce), and raised the custody age of children up to 15 years. Family courts were established in 2004, but a more thorough and comprehensive review of family law is still lacking. Since the early 2000s, Morocco’s government has pursued a path of reform, and in 2004, a reform of the ‘Moudawana’ (family code) increased women’s right to divorce and child custody and restricted polygamy; thus inequality in divorce and custody still prevails, and the Moroccan government has encountered a range of obstacles in the implementation of reforms. Lebanon presents a unique case due to the diversity of its 15 separate personal status laws for the country’s various officially recognized religious communities (18 in total). The ongoing refugee crisis—the recent arrival of at least 1.4 million Syrian refugees in Lebanon—is an urgent reminder that conflict, war, and forced migration continue to press the need for legal protection for women. Overall, incremental progress can be noted but further reform may be advanced more speedily by drawing on recent research findings of expert communities.

People

Dr. Connie Carøe Christiansen

Dr. Connie Carøe Christiansen is a visiting associate professor in Gender Studies. She was an associate professor at Roskilde University in Denmark and a senior advisor at KVINFO, the Danish Centre for Research and Information on Gender, Equality and Diversity, where she managed academic programs in the Arab region, including a program which established an M.A. program on International Development and Gender at Sanaa University in Yemen. She has published research on gender, migration and Islam in Denmark, Turkey, Morocco and Yemen. She has her M.A. in Cultural Sociology and Ph.D. in Anthropology from Copenhagen University, Denmark.

Myriam Sfeir

Myriam Sfeir joined the Institute for Women’s Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW) in 1996. She is currently the assistant director of IWSAW. Previously she served as senior managing editor of Al-Raida, the double-blind peer-reviewed journal published by IWSAW. She has worked on several groundbreaking issues of Al-Raida that dealt with various subjects considered taboo in the Arab world (sexuality, honor killings, incarcerated women, homosexuality, etc.). She has also worked extensively on issues related to gender rights and has organized several conferences, film festivals, and lectures at LAU. Myriam is knowledgeable on issues related to human rights, gender-based violence, and sexuality. Myriam earned her Bachelor degree in Philosophy from the American University of Beirut and her Master’s degree in Interdisciplinary Women’s Studies from the University of Warwick, United Kingdom.

Dr. Samira Aghacy

Dr. Samira Aghacy has more than two decades of service as an LAU associate professor, chairperson and dean.

Prior to LAU, she taught English literature at the University of Jordan and the Lebanese University, and served as chair of the Department of English at the Lebanese University for three years. At LAU, she taught courses in English and comparative literature and served as chairperson of the Department of Humanities for several years.

Her current research focuses on contemporary Lebanese and Arabic literature. She has published numerous articles in international refereed journals such as the International Journal of Middle East Studies, Edebiyyat, and Journal of Arabic Literature. She has also reviewed numerous articles submitted to international and Arab scholarly journals.

She is in the process of publishing a book on Arab masculinity in fiction by Syracuse University Press.

Dr. Aghacy is a member of several professional organizations including the Middle East Studies Association (MESA), the Modern Labguage Association (MLA), British Society for Middle Eastern Studies (BRISMES), and the Association of Professors of English and Translation at Arab Universities Arab (APETUS).

Dr. Fatima Sadiqi

Dr. Fatima Sadiqi is Professor of Linguistics and Gender Studies. Her work focuses on women’s issues in modern North Africa, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean world. She is author and editor of numerous volumes and journal issues. Sadiqi is President of the Association of Middle East Women’s Studies - AMEWS- the first non-American to be elected to this office. She is a member of many national and international scholarly and policy-making boards. Her work has been supported by numerous prestigious awards and fellowships from around the world. She currently serves on the Editorial Board of the Oxford Encyclopedia of African Women’s History. Fatima is heading the research on Morocco for this project.

Reem Maghribi

Reem Maghribi has designed and managed projects on the documentation and development of culture and society for several years. As the Managing Director of Sharq CIC, she has worked on promoting citizen voices across the Arab world. She regularly speaks at conferences on the achievements and challenges of Arab populations, and has run several workshops and trainings. Reem will be heading the research on Lebanon for this project.

Sara Abdel Ghany

Sara Abdel Ghany has been working on gender issues with local, regional, and global organizations for over a decade. She has a Masters in Law from SOAS in London, as well as a BA in Political Science from the American University of Cairo. She is currently a PhD candidate at the Department of Politics and International Studies. Her PhD research project is focused on the socio-political movement of change in Egypt. She has collaborated on several research projects around Women in the Arab world and co-authored a report on online human rights activism across the Arab world. Sarah will be heading the research on Egypt for this project.

Global Affairs Service Center Hosts UNDP’s Agents of Change

Young entrepreneurs nationwide gather at LAU to collectively generate ideas and work on sustainable development projects.

Attaining the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that target pressing global challenges like climate change, poverty, well-being and inequality, among others, is a shared responsibility that transcends borders. The youth, in particular, play a pivotal role in achieving those goals by driving innovative solutions and mobilizing their communities to ensure a sustainable and equitable world for future generations.

To help foster a community of change-makers dedicated to fulfilling the SDGs, the Global Affairs Service Center (LAU GASC) – an advocate of leadership and youth empowerment – recently hosted the ninth cohort of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Youth Leadership Program (YLP).

This collaborative effort between the LAU GASC and UNDP YLP aligns with the university’s strategic plan to strengthen its external partnerships with local and international organizations invested in youth development and to promote the university as a hub for networking and building a resilient community of entrepreneurs.

More than 350 participants from diverse academic, cultural and social backgrounds in Lebanon flocked to the LAU Byblos campus for the two-day boot camp on September 16 to 17, during which they exchanged their experiences and discussed their visions for creating sustainable projects under two overarching themes: Rebuilding Solutions for Lebanon and Economic Empowerment.

This year’s YLP edition was organized in partnership with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom (FNF), a supporter of Lebanese startups, civil society organizations, and LAU’s own simulation models.

LAU alumnus Bahaa Hajir, a YLP sixth cohort participant, still serves as a member of the program’s advocacy board. His project was shortlisted in 2020 when he pitched a bottle cap recycling initiative with his team.

“YLP facilitated my career launch,” he said, “I ended up getting recruited as a project support officer at one of the NGOs we worked with during the program.”

First-time attendee Mahassen Sleiman, a 23-year-old from Baalbeck, was “eager to connect with individuals who share similar interests and are committed to bringing about positive change in marginalized communities,” she said, adding that she is already experienced in social work.

Since 2015, the UNDP YLP has assisted Lebanese youth through its annual program, open to individuals aged 19 to 29. Carried out in partnership with youth-serving organizations, it features a flexible curriculum led by experienced trainers and business experts, allowing participants to create and execute innovative, impactful and sustainable development solutions for the betterment of their communities.

The boot camp was launched with opening remarks from Lead Director of Global Affairs Service Center at LAU Suleiman Barada, Youth Focal Point Officer at UNDP Nada Sweidan and Youth Development Delegate at UNDP Hany Anan, followed by back-to-back training sessions, including some that were given by LAU faculty members and alumni.

According to Dr. Sweidan, this dynamic initiative breaks cultural barriers, and its positive impact is felt in the youth’s personal lives, careers and communities for years to come. “The event accelerates the implementation process of the youth’s innovative projects … the youth is the NOW and not the future,” she said.

Such events, said Barada, can also enhance the employability of youth. Providing the youth with networking power to boost their career prospects is paramount, he added, and “by strengthening ties, establishing alliances and collaborations, we narrow the gap between academia and industry, and this strategic collaboration with UNDP is a perfect example.”

Advancing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: Tomorrow’s Leaders Scholars Present their Papers in Egypt

At the Third Annual Middle East Partnership Initiative-Tomorrow’s Leaders Conference, the scholars tackle migration, gender, health sciences, education, economics, political sciences and international affairs, and contribute to the conversations around the SDGs.

From emigration and food insecurity to overeducation and the impact of Lebanon’s fuel price hikes, timely topics were the focus of wide-ranging and enriching presentations by LAU students who took part in the Third Annual Conference on the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), organized by the Middle East Partnership Initiative Tomorrow’s Leaders Program (MEPI-TL).

The three-day symposium included 19 panel discussions, four debates and 80+ research paper presentations, and was hosted by the American University in Cairo (AUC) this summer.

The conference focused on climate change, diversity, equity and inclusion, bringing together 80 MEPI-TL presenters from the American University in Beirut (AUB), LAU, and AUC to discuss pressing global challenges.

It is noteworthy that the LAU scholars contributed to the conference with a total of 33 graduate scholars, three Gender Scholars, and two undergraduates, who delivered a total of 38 presentations. Additionally, seven faculty members took part in panel discussions.

Students brought their positive experience back to campus, reflecting on how they had connected with like-minded individuals, gained insights and networked with professionals from various fields.

“The conference was filled with enriching knowledge sharing, engaging presentations and discussions. I had the opportunity to network with and learn from other researchers,” said TLGer Zeina Lizzaik, who graduated this year with a master’s degree in Applied Economics.

Faculty members expressed their admiration for the students’ presentations and highlighted the engaging format of the conference, which included debates and interactive discussions.

“It was fascinating seeing the efforts of our students materialize and witnessing the level of impact their research has on providing valuable context and content for solutions to pressing issues facing the world,” said LAU MEPI-TL Executive Director Dina Abdul Rahman.

All in all, the conference was a resounding success for LAU Tomorrow’s Leaders graduate scholars. It fostered collaboration, knowledge exchange, and innovation among attendees. The students benefited from the conference to learn, connect, and make a positive impact, setting the stage for future endeavors in sustainable development.

Faculty members expressed their admiration for the students’ presentations and highlighted the engaging format of the conference, which included debates and interactive discussions.	Students brought their positive experience back to campus, reflecting on how they had connected with like-minded individuals, gained insights and networked with professionals from various fields.
From LAU, a total of 33 graduate scholars, three Gender Scholars, and two undergraduates delivered a total of 38 presentations, while seven faculty members took part in panel discussions.	The three-day symposium included 19 panel discussions, four debates and 80+ research paper presentations, and was hosted by the American University in Cairo.