Steven J. Green
School of International
& Public Affairs

Middle East Studies (MES) is the academic center at Florida International University's School of International and Public Affairs devoted to research and dissemination of knowledge on various aspects of the Middle East for the University community and the public at large. MES’s activities encompass not only what is traditionally considered “The Middle East” but also Central Asia, the Caucasus, South Asia, North Africa, and in a broader sense, the Muslim world.

MES's scope is broad and comprehensive, treating the “Middle East” as a “meta-region” whose impact and relevance, not only geographically, but through the critical linkages of politics, culture, religion, ethnicity, gender, migration, diasporas, resources, economics, security and great power interests, far exceeds its “traditional geography.”

The pedagogical and conceptual framework of the center’s activity and mission is both multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary, reflecting the University’s strategic vision as a global research institution and faculty diversity and disciplinary strengths. MES, in addition, encourages “inter-regional studies”, focusing on historical and contemporary linkages between the Middle East and other regions, including Latin America and Europe.

MES promotes the study of this meta-region at the nexus of the three major interactive dynamics of geopolitics, geoeconomics, and geoculture, with a view on the role, interaction and impact of state and non-state actors on the region and the world.

Mohiaddin Mesbahi
Director
Middle East Studies
School of International and Public Affairs