The Academic Alliance for Reconciliation Studies in the Middle East and Northern Africa (AARMENA) is an alliance of universities and other higher educational institutions, scholars, and academics willing to do joint research and build up teaching programs and curriculums in Reconciliation Studies as multi-inter-disciplinary research. Alternatively, to integrate the new curriculums into their academic programs through program courses and development of master degrees, in their educational institutions.
AARMENA is initiating the means to strengthen ties between higher education institutions in Europe and the higher education institutions in the Islamic MENA Region and to fostering of academic reconciliation studies programs that will enhance cultural dialogue orientations in teaching programs on reconciliation studies, interactively benefiting scholars, students, and young academics from Europe and partner countries in the Islamic MENA region.
AARMENA would exploit research and teaching programs on reconciliation studies through exchanging scholarly work between academics by stimulating:
- Strengthening university cooperation by doing an event that corresponds to signing the memorandum of understanding between universities;
- Doing local and international workshops on reconciliation studies between professors and new academics in the field;
- Developing a joint symposium, summers school, curriculum on reconciliation studies;
- Integrating courses in the teaching programs of the program countries;
- Joint publications and a new perspective to develop joint research.
The programs would influence the integration of those teaching programs within the academic programs in the partner higher education insinuations in the partner country. The academic universities and institutions that are part of AARMENA enhance cooperation and dialogue within academic institutions on building reconciliation studies programs and dialogue culture in reconciliation studies within higher education institutions in the MENA region.
The following universities are members of the AARMENA-2018 project:
- UNESCO Chair for Peace Studies, Innsbruck UniversityExternal link (Innsbruck, Austria);
- Assuit UniversityExternal link (Assiut, Egypt);
- Fayoum University External link(Fayoum, Egypt);
- Tanta UniversityExternal link (Tanta, Egypt);
- Europa-UniversitätExternal link (Flensburg, Germany);
- Jena Center for Reconciliation Studies JCRS, Friedrich Schiller University Jena (Jena, Germany);
- German Jordanian University External link(Amman, Jordan);
- Petra UniversityExternal link (Amman, Jordan);
- University of JordanExternal link (Amman, Jordan);
- Notre Dame UniversityExternal link (Zouk Mosbeh, Lebanon);
- Saint Joseph UniversityExternal link (Beirut, Lebanon);
- University of GroningenExternal link (Groningen, Netherlands);
- Al Istiqlal University External link(Jericho, Palestinian Authority);
- An-Najjah UniversityExternal link (Nablus, Palestinian Authority);
- Arab American UniversityExternal link (Jenin, Palestinian Authority);
- Doha Institute for Graduate StudiesExternal link (Doha, Qatar);
- Qatar University – Ibn Khaldon CenterExternal link (Doha, Qatar);
- Ez-Zitouna UniversityExternal link (Tunis, Tunisia);
- Ankara Yıldırım Beyazıt UniversityExternal link (Ankara, Turkey);
- Cambridge Muslim CollegeExternal link (Cambridge, UK).
AARMENA Institutes that are also collaborating to develop cultural heritage and social inclusions and dialogue orientation workshop in the Islamic world are as follows:
AARMENA is meant to become a sustainable organization to foster sustainable reconciliation in the MENA region and to become a driving force for academic development in interdisciplinary research and endure reconciliation where ever it is needed.
The Jena Center for Reconciliation Studies at Friedrich Schiller University has the following objectives to be achieved from the Project Dialogue with the Islamic world (Project):
- To have academic research on teaching methods on reconciliation studies;
- To develop a curriculum on reconciliation studies, that can be used by AARMENA members of higher educational institutions and to integrate teaching programs in their universities as a course or part of the master program, or a Ph.D. Program;
- To have a joint conference to develop joint publications on reconciliation in the MENA region;
- Dialogue with the Muslim world, to strengthen international cooperation between the members and to present all the scholarly work that has been done in the project;
- Universities and researchers to get more funding and advance in reconciliation studies in the middle of conflicts in the MENA Region;
- To research and develop teaching programs on reconciliation studies as an interdisciplinary approach;
- To integrate reconciliation studies as a topic in a master's program in the MENA region;
- The promotion of cultural dialogue and strengthen international cooperation with the Muslim world through academic work by visiting and signing a memorandum of understanding and developing workshops, summer schools, conferences together;
- Sustainably modernize in technological teaching in the member universities, advancing digital humanities program on teaching reconciliation studies, such as online courses and workshops between members of the AAREMENA with member universities and teaching how to teach and integrate research on common ground on teachings of reconciliation studies;
- Provide targeted support for qualified young academics from the regions while ensuring gender equality;
- Establish Joint research projects and joint program teaching. The development of a vast knowledge-based society on reconciliation studies (AARMENA).
For more information for cooperating in the AARMENA project, please contact the project coordinator Dr. Phil. Iyad AlDajani by email: a.aldajani@uni-jena.de
Website: https://www.aarmena.uni-jena.de/