Call for Proposals

The Center for Middle East Studies invites proposals for a year-long research initiative to be hosted by CMES in the 2025–26 academic year. Proposals should have at least two organizers, one of whom must be a Brown University faculty member or postdoctoral research associate. Other organizers may include Brown graduate and undergraduate students, as well as faculty members at other institutions. Proposals that are collaborative across discipline and rank are especially encouraged, as are proposals whose activities span the entire academic year (rather than organizing a single event, for instance). 

The research initiative should focus on a theme relevant to Middle East Studies and may result in a variety of outputs, including but not limited to any combination of the following:

• A conference or workshop
• A speaker series
• A reading or discussion group
• An exhibition or performance
• A publication
• A new course

Guidelines

CMES will provide funding in the range of $8,000 to $15,000 for the initiative, as well as logistical support. The initiative organizers will be responsible for planning its various activities. If additional funding is required, the initiative’s organizers will be asked to secure it from other sources.

Please submit proposals to cmes_director@brown.edu by March 31, 2025. Proposals should include a statement of approximately 1,000 words articulating: 

• The research initiative’s theme and its significance to Middle East Studies
• The activities and outputs that the initiative will present
• A general timeline of events
• A budget, including any additional funding sources that the organizers will use to support the initiative. 

Examples of possible themes

• The City Rises: Urban Megaprojects in the Middle East: A conference and an edited volume exploring questions in urban planning, environmental impact, and political economy prompted by various large-scale construction projects in the 21st-century Middle East. 
• Popular Music in North Africa and its Diasporas: A year-long series of discussion groups and curated listening sessions that explore emerging forms of music-making in the Maghrib and its diasporas, culminating in a concert by a visiting artist. 
• America and the Middle East in the 19th century: A speaker series on the history of America’s relations with the Middle East during the long 19th century, to be held in conjunction with the Brown 2026 initiative on American democracy.