From Maxwell Perspective...

LDF in Lebanon

A collaboration with American University of Beirut allows LDF programs to be offered in the Middle East, in Arabic.

After four years of bringing young, English-speaking professionals from the Middle East and North Africa to the U.S. through the Leaders for Democracy Fellowship program, the State Department decided to expand the highly successful LDF program by offering a similar program based in one of its target countries. The Maxwell School was asked to develop this new program, in Arabic, to serve emerging leaders who may not be fluent in English or may not be able to travel to the United States. The natural location for the Arabic LDF program was the American University of Beirut (AUB), already a Maxwell partner in student exchanges.

The first group of 12 LDF fellows arrived at AUB last summer, traveling from their homes in Algeria, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Egypt, Lebanon, Oman, Qatar, and Yemen. Following the same pattern as the U.S. version, the Arabic LDF program combined academic study and professional affiliations with Lebanon-based organizations, with sessions on such topics as the prospects for democracy in the Middle East, the role of civic education in state building, and the dynamics of social media. Among the speakers last summer was Rami Khouri ’70 BA (PSc), director of AUB’s Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs, who helped pave the way for Maxwell’s ongoing relationship with AUB. Another Maxwell alumnus, George Farag ’02 MPA/IR, ’07 PhD (Anth), is coordinating the Arabic LDF program, with program manager Rola El Sohl.

At the opening ceremony, AUB president Peter Dorman commented on the auspicious timing of the program, given the dramatic events unfolding around the region. The LDF fellows, Dorman said, “work on issues related to children’s rights, sustainable development, media freedom, and the development of the private sector — all vital to the issues that distinguish what has been termed the Arab Spring.” The events of 2011 are a reminder, he said, “that the actions of ordinary youth can lead to extraordinary consequences.”

— Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers

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Jeffrey Pepper Rodgers is a contributor to National Public Radio’s All Things Considered and the author, most recently, of The Complete Singer-Songwriter.

This article appeared in the fall 2011 print edition of Maxwell Perspective; © 2011 Maxwell School of Syracuse University.