Yemen in Transition: Challenges & Opportunities

Harvard University v
Tsai Auditorium, CGIS South Building Harvard University 1730 Cambridge Street Cambridge, MA 02138 This conference is organized by Steven C. Caton from Harvard University and the Yemen Working Group.1 It brings together Yemeni American professionals and academics along with some of their counterparts from Yemen and academics from the U.S., Europe, and Yemen to discuss the future of Yemen and what might be done to help the country as it transitions into its new historical phase. The main topics to be discussed are: women and youth, economic development, politics and political reform, and the water crisis. As an academic conference, the focus will be on theory and analysis, though concrete proposals and recommendations will also be presented. Panels and the keynote address are open to the public.2 These presentations will be videotaped and made available on the website of the Harvard Center for Middle East Studies but they will not be published as part of a conference proceedings. Friday, October 19 1:00-1:30 Welcome and Introduction (Steven C. Caton and Kaled Alamarie) 1:30-2:45 Panel 1: Women and Youth 1:30-1:45 Jamila Raja: Empowering Women: Key to Yemens Future 1:45-2:00 Najwa Adra: Sustainable Development for Rural Women in Yemen 2:00-2:15 Ibrahim Mothana: Role of Yemeni Youth in Uprising, Political Transition and Beyond 2:15-2:30 Rayman Aryani & Hazim Al-Eryani: Youth and the New Political Landscape 2:30-2:45 Q&A 2:45-3:00 BREAK
Kaled Alamarie, Nasser Zawiya, Walid Al-Saqaf, Hanna Omar, and Abdulkarim Al-Yousefy 2 We would like to thank the following sponsors of this event: American Institute for Yemeni Studies, Ash Institute (Harvard Kennedy School of Government), Crown Center (Brandeis University), Dean of the Social Sciences (FAS, Harvard), Islamic Legal Studies Program (Harvard Law School), Middle East Initiative (Harvard Kennedy School of Government), MIT Middle East Program, Outreach Center (Harvard Center for Middle East Studies), and Women and Public Policy Program (Harvard Kennedy School of Government). We also would like to thank the generous support of Huda Alsharifi.
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October 19-21, 2012

3:00-5:30 Panel 2: Politics and Reform 3:00-3:15 Abdullah Al-Faqih: Challenges to Establishing a State of Rule of Law: The Case of Yemens Hashemite, Hashid and Bakil 3:15-3:30 Stacey Philbrick Yadav: The Transnationalization of Yemeni Opposition in the Transition Process 3:30-3:45 Atiaf Alwazir: The War on Terror: Between Security and Morality 3:45-4:00 Vincent Durac: Crisis in Yemen: American and European Approaches Compared 4:00-4:15 BREAK 4:15-4:30 Elham Manea: Yemens Arab Spring: Outsmarting the Cunning State? 4:30-4:45 Sheila Carapico: Between Revolution and Counter-Terrorism 4:45-5:00 Thanos Petouris: Title TBA 5:00- 5:15 Laura Kasinof: A Journalist Looks at the Southern Question 5:15-5:30 Q&A 5:30-6:00 BREAK 6:00-7:00 Keynote Address: Abdullah Al-Saidi, The Challenges of Transition 7:00-7:30 Q&A 8:00-10:00 Dinner (for conference speakers and YWG only) Saturday, October 20 9:00-11:00 Panel 3: Economic Development 9:00-9:15 Hilal Lashuel: Higher Education as a New Paradigm for Social and Economic Development in Yemen 9:15-9:30 Walid Al-Saqaf: Internets Role in Monitoring Governments Developmental Performance 9:30-9:45 Abdulkarim Al-Yousefy: Migration and Development 9:45-10:00 Charles Schmitz: Misreading Yemens Economic Challenges 10:00-10:15 Mustafa AlAbsi: Khat: A Growing Threat to Health, Environment and Economic Security

10:15-10:30 Ahmed Bazara: Five Developmental Priorities for Yemen in Transition 10:30-10:45 Jamal Mutarreb: Public & Private Sectors: Improved Relations Mean a Stronger Economy 10:45-11:00 Q&A 11:00-1:00 Break (Lunch served for conference speakers only) 1:00-3:00 Panel 4: The Water Crisis 1:00-1:15 Mohamed Alhamdi: Water Scarcity and the Need for Policy Redirections in Yemen 1:15-1:30 Daniel M. Varisco: Farming Yemens Future Through the Water Crisis: A View from the Terrace 1:30-1:45 Naif Mohammed Abu-Lohom: Water Crisis in Yemen: Focus on Sanaa and Taiz (Issues and Options) 1:45-2:00 Kaled Alamerie: The End of Sustainability: Adaptation and Mitigation with Water Security in Yemen 2:00-2:15 Steven C. Caton: Public-Private Partnerships: A Solution to the Water Crisis in Yemen? 2:15-2:30 Q& A 2:30-3:00 BREAK 3:00-4:00 GENERAL DISCUSSION 7:00-9:00 Dinner at Steven Catons apartment (for conference speakers only) Sunday, October 21 9:00-12:00 Conference Brain-Storming Session (for conference speakers and organizers only; closed to the General Public); Belfer Case Study Room, CGIS South Building This will be a discussion about possible proposals or recommendations we might wish to put forward as a result of the conference, as well as what we might do next, if anything, to carry on the dialog among us and others. 12:00-1:00 Lunch (for conference speakers and organizers only) 1:00 Conference ends