SOAS Middle East Institute

About

The SOAS Middle East Institute (SMEI) is an interdisciplinary institute promoting innovative engagement on the Middle East through research and outreach.

The SMEI is a forward-thinking hub bringing together the worlds of scholarship, practice, and policy to foster meaningful exchanges among diverse stakeholders and craft creative solutions to key planetary challenges pertinent to the Middle East and North Africa.

The SMEI’s activities span several intersecting work streams: art and culture, heritage and history, environment and energy, political economy, public policy, and politics. The SMEI was first established in 2002 as the London Middle East Institute to foster scholarly and public interest in the MENA region. It collaborates closely with the academic community and with specialist centres on the region at SOAS.

Image by Kenneth Coffie via Unsplash

Workstreams

SOAS Middle East Institute

SOAS Middle East Institute Art and Culture

The SMEI engages in research and outreach on all aspects of art and culture pertaining to the Middle East and North Africa region in collaboration with practitioners from diverse backgrounds across the globe.

SOAS Middle East Institute

SOAS Middle East Institute Heritage and History

The SMEI engages actively in research and the production of a variety of outputs on the rich heritage and history of the Middle East and North Africa and the region’s connections with the rest of the world.

SOAS Middle East Institute

SOAS Middle East Institute Environment and Energy

The SMEI engages in crafting policy-oriented solutions to challenges related to the environment and energy transition.

SOAS Middle East Institute

SOAS Middle East Institute Climate Finance at COP28

The SMEI is a member of the International Advisory Board of Think 28 (T28), an official research and policy advisory platform for the global climate change conference COP28 (UAE, November and December 2023).

SOAS Middle East Institute

SOAS Middle East Institute Public Policy Executive Training

The SMEI delivers customisable short courses aimed at policymakers, diplomats, civil servants, and policy practitioners working across national administration institutions and other professional bodies to strengthen their skills and capacity in public policy.

SOAS Middle East Institute

SOAS Middle East Institute Political Economy

The SMEI engages in research on the changing political economy landscape in the MENA region.

SOAS Middle East Institute

SOAS Middle East Institute Politics

The SMEI engages in research and policy analysis on geopolitics, international relations, and political transformations across the MENA region and its connections with the rest of the world.