About the Conference

As of last year, the American University of Sharjah has jointly published the Journal of Social Affairs with the Sociological Association of the UAE, which began the Journal nearly twenty years ago. It is our intention that the Journal will foster a better understanding of the peoples of the Gulf as this region continues to gain prominence. It is from our mutual commitment to advance this goal that stemmed the idea for the AUS and the Sociological Association to jointly sponsor an international conference on “Globalization and the Gulf.”
In many senses, the Arabian Gulf is a nexus in global geo-politics, as well as an area of unprecedented socio-cultural change. Events in the news of the past several years show the most strategic emplacement of the Gulf in energy policy, and as a frontier where the global world meets the Arabian tradition.
The conference will bring together scholars steeped in regional expertise with those who analyze international and comparative frameworks. We anticipate that the expertise that the participants bring to bear and their interaction at the American University of Sharjah will break new theoretical ground and significantly enhance our understanding of the Gulf region and its many complex dynamics.