Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East

This series invites scholars, policymakers, and leaders to discuss a wide range of issues related to social, political, and economic development, women's empowerment, and education.

Meetings

Roundtable Meeting

The Future of Global Energy Markets: A Conversation with Sadad Al Husseini

Speaker:

Sadad Al Husseini, Saudi Aramco

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
March 9, 2010

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Pakistan: Deep Inside the World's Most Frightening State

Speaker:

Mary Anne Weaver, City University of New York

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
February 24, 2010

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York, NY

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Saudi Arabia Today: A Converation with Muna AbuSulayman

Speaker:

Muna AbuSulayman, UNDP Ambassador, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, CFR
December 1, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

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Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: The Outsourcing of American Power

Speaker:

Allison Stanger, Middlebury College

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
October 21, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Saudi Arabia Today: Iran Today: Autocracy versus Reform

Speaker:

Haleh Esfandiari, Director, Middle East Program, Woodrow Wilson Center

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S Foreign Policy, CFR
October 15, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: The Kuwaiti Elections of 2009 - Implications for Arab Democratization

Speaker:

F. Gregory Gause III, University of Vermont

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
June 24, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Islam, Elections, and Indonesia

Speaker:

Robin Bush, Asia Foundation

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
April 23, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World

Speaker:

Jacqueline Novogratz, Acumen Fund

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
April 8, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: The Future of Islamic Democracy - Lessons from Iran and Iraq

Speaker:

Abdulaziz Sachedina, University of Virginia

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
April 2, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Influencing Transitions in the Arab World - The Case of Egypt

Speaker:

Francis J. Ricciardione, U.S. Institute of Peace

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
January 13, 2009

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: The Future of Democracy in Egypt

Speaker:

Gameela Ismail, Democracy Activist, Egypt

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations
September 26, 2008

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Democracy in the Arab World

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Tamara Cofman Wittes, Senior Fellow, Saban Center for Middle East Policy
May 28, 2008

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Implications of the Middle East Youthquake

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Cheryl Benard, Consultant, RAND Corporation
April 10, 2008

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: The Meaning of Democracy - Indonesia Ten Years after Suharto

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Sandra Hamid, Director, Aceh Programs, The Asia Foundation, Indonesia
December 4, 2007

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: A Discussion with Ambassador Zahir Tanin

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Zahir Tanin, Permanent Representative, Permanent Mission of the Islamic State of Afghanistan to the UN
November 20, 2007

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Prospects for Reform in Egypt - A Conversation with Dr. Saad Eddin Ibrahim

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

Steven A. Cook, Douglas Dillon Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations, Saad Ibrahim, Director, Ibn Khaldun Center for Development Studies
October 24, 2007

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Muslim Organizations in the West: Bridging a Growing Divide - A Conversation with Ingrid Mattson

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Ingrid Mattson, President, Islamic Society of North America
May 29, 2007

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Roundtable on Economic and Political Development in the Middle East: Covering Iran - Journalists' Perspectives on the Islamic Republic

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

Laura Secor, Editor, New York Times, Solmaz Sherif, Iranian Journalist
April 5, 2007 12:15-2:00 p.m.

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

CEDAW: Is U.S. Ratification Possible?

Speaker:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations
March 13, 2007

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Extremism and Reform in Pakistan - The Role of Madrassas

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

C. Chrstine Fair, U.S. Institute of Peace, Azhar Hussain, International Center for Religion & Diplomacy
March 6, 2007

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Voices of the New Arab Public - Media and Civil Society in the Arab World

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Marc Lynch, Associate Professor of Political Science, Williams College
December 12, 2006 12:15-2:00 p.m.

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Saudi Arabia - Prospects for Reform

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley, Foreign Service Institute
November 30, 2006 12:15-2:00 p.m.

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Development and Security in Afghanistan - Perspectives from the Field

Speakers:

Homayra Ludin Etemadi, Future Generations, Rina Amiri, United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
November 16, 2006 8:00-9:45 a.m.

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Women and Political Change in Asia

Speakers:

Bong-Scuk Sohn, Member, National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, Nanda Pok, Founder and Executive Director, Women for Prosperity (Cambodia), Suteera Vichitranonda, Gender and Development Research Institute (Thailand)

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
October 19, 2006 5:15-7:00 p.m.

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Health and Development in Africa

Speakers:

The Honorable Joyce Banda, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Republic of Malawi, Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
October 4, 2006 12:15-2:00 p.m.

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Iran's Democratization Process

Speaker:

Fatemeh Haghighatjou, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
June 23, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Women and Foreign Policy Symposium: Human Trafficking - An Overview

Speakers:

Ann Jordan, Director, Initiative Against Trafficking in Persons, Global Rights, Neha Misra, Global Coordinator, Counter Trafficking Programs & Program Officer, Africa Region, American Center for International Labor Solidarity (Solidarity Center), AFL-CIO, Jyoti Sanghera, Advisor on Trafficking, UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations
May 3, 2006

This meeting is on the record.

Listen

Roundtable Meeting

Women and Foreign Policy Symposium: Human Trafficking - Global Health and Security

Speakers:

Sarah E. Mendelson, Senior Fellow, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Joy Zarembka, Director, Break the Chain Campaign, Alice Miller, Professor, Department of Population and Family Health, School of Public Health, Columbia University; Law and Health Advisor, Sexual Health and Rights Project, Open Society Institute

Presider:

Nicholas D. Kristof, The New York Times
May 3, 2006

This meeting is on the record.

Listen

Symposium ⁄ New York

Women and Foreign Policy Symposium: The U.S. Government Response to Trafficking

Speaker:

John Miller, Senior Advisor to the Secretary of State, Director, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, U.S. Department of State

Presider:

Kavita Ramdas, President and Chief Executive Officer, Global Fund for Women
May 3, 2006

This meeting is on the record.

Listen

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Democratization in Iran

Speaker:

Fatemeh Haghighatjou, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations
April 27, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Islamic Law in Nigeria

Speaker:

Hauwa Ibrahim, Yale World Fellow, Yale University

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations
February 23, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Roundtable on Women and Foreign Policy: Emerging Democracy in Afghanistan - What to Expect

Speakers:

Sarah P. Chayes, Field Director, Afghans for Civil Society, Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations
January 30, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Is the U.S. Government's Vision of Afghanistan Achievable?

Speaker:

Barbara Rodey, USAID

Presider:

Philip-Michael Gary
January 13, 2006

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Women in Iraq: The Way Forward

Speakers:

Ann Greenstock, Molly Phee, U.S. Department of State, Jane Arraf, Council on Foreign Relations

Presider:

Isobel Coleman
November 8, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting ⁄ New York

Women and Foreign Policy Roundtable: Shariah, Women's Rights, and the Iraqi Constitution

Speakers:

Nathan Brown, Carnegie Endowment, Haleh Esfandiari, Woodrow Wilson Center

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow, U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations
October 11, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Moving from Rhetoric to Reality: The Status of Women's Empowerment in Afghanistan

Commentator:

Barnett R. Rubin, Director of Studies, Center on International Cooperation

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Masuda Sultan, Program Director, Women for Afghan Women
May 26, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Women's Rights in a New Iraq: The Constitution and the Future

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Manal Omar, Iraq Country Director, Women for Women International
May 11, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Changing the Face of India: The Economic and Political Empowerment of Women

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Jaya Arunachalam, Founder, Working Women's Forum
May 5, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Democracy in the Middle East: A View from Kuwait

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow, U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Lubna Al-Kazi, Professor of Sociology, Kuwait University
March 8, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Afghanistan's Upcoming National Elections: A Conversation with Parliamentary Candidate Soraya Parlika

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Soraya Parlika, President, All Afghan Women's Union
March 3, 2005

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Prospects for Reform in Iran: The Future of Civil Society

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speakers:

Mehrangiz Kar, Director, Policy Commission, Harvard University, Sanam Anderlini, Women Waging Peace
December 16, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Reform in the Arab World: A View from the Egyptian Opposition

Presiders:

Steven A. Cook, Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Mona Makram-Ebeid, Secretary General, Hizb al-Ghad (The Party of Tomorrow)
November 15, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Waging Peace in the Sudan: A Conversation with Sudanese Leaders

Presider:

Isobel Coleman, Senior Fellow, U.S. Foreign Policy, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

Harriet C. Babbitt, Hunt Alternatives Fund, Awut Acuil, Sudanese Women's Association in Nairobi, and Sudanese Women's Voice for Peace, Eiman Seifeldin, Sudan Liberation Movement, and Darfur Women's Relief and Rehabilitation Agency
October 15, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Getting Down to Business: Women, Entrepreneurship, and Small Business Development in Afghanistan

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Mina Sherzoy, Director of Entrepreneurship Development for Women, Ministry of Commerce of Afghanistan
September 15, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Women and Economic Development in the Middle East

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Nadereh Chamlou, World Bank
May 6, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Shari'a and Women's Rights

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Khaled El Fadl, Yale Law School
April 15, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

General Meeting

Conversation with Lubna Olayan

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Panelist:

Lubna S. Olayan
April 14, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Social Entrepreneurship and Political Change in Egypt

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Iman Bibars, Ashoka: Innovators for the Public
March 18, 2004

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Leveraging the Mosque to Empower Women: Lessons from Afghanistan

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Shukria Hassan
December 12, 2003

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Civil Society and Political Reform: Egypt and Indonesia

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speakers:

Kamala Chandrakirana, National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan), Hoda Elsadda
December 2, 2003

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Microfinance and Pakistan

Presider:

Isobel Coleman

Speaker:

Roshaneh Zafar, Grameen Foundation
November 4, 2003

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Women In Iraq

Presider:

Jennifer Seymour Whitaker

Panelist:

Isobel Coleman
May 5, 2003

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

The Role of Women in Peacebuilding and Reconstruction: Lessons from Rwanda, East Timor, and Afghanistan

Discussant:

Donald K. Steinberg, U.S. Department of State

Presider:

Isobel Coleman
March 6, 2003

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Findings from Middle East and South-West Asia Trip

Presider:

Jennifer Seymour Whitaker, Council on Foreign Relations

Speaker:

Isobel Coleman, Council on Foreign Relations
December 6, 2002

This meeting is not for attribution.

Roundtable Meeting

Women and the Rule of Law in Afghanistan

Presider:

Jennifer Seymour Whitaker, Council on Foreign Relations

Speakers:

Hangama Anwari, Afghan Women Lawyers and Professional Association, David Johnson, U.S. Department of State
October 21, 2002

This meeting is not for attribution.