Activities

Research initiatives of the Center focus on areas of collective strength. A particular strength of the Center has been in the study of Islam and politics. At a time when few saw the mobilizing potential of Islam, the Center initiated research on Islamic movements and convened several of the earliest conferences on the political role of Islam and Shi`ism. The list of the Center's publications in this field is a long one.

The Center has identified six areas of research interest crucial to an understanding of the complexities of the Modern Middle East.  The projects are pursued through research teams, in workshops, symposia and international conferences designed to produce increased interaction between the scholars of the Center and those from other departments and disciplines at Tel Aviv University and from elsewhere, in Israel and abroad.  The current research projects are:

·       Islamic Politics.  Focusing on the alternating influence of Islamic movements on the Middle Eastern state, the project examines the relationship between Islam and the West and its impact on Arab-Israeli relations. 

·       The New Guard and Elite Change. This project will study the emergent new elites in the region. In a number of key Arab countries, Morocco, Jordan and Syria, the generational change of leadership has already taken place and in other places it may not be far off, such as in Egypt and the Palestinian authority.  

·       Economics and Demography. Most Arab states suffer from endemic imbalances between resources and population.  What are the economic and demographic trends in the Middle Eastern counties? What implications do these have for regional peace and stability? 

·       Women in Middle Eastern Politics. The status of women, their place in the family and in society and the degree of their political participation all vary from state to state in the region. To what extent do Western paradigms in women's studies apply? How should change be measured and assessed? 

·       The Persian Gulf. Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia are all key regional players and each one of these states faces a combination of domestic and external challenges. This research will focus, in the main, on internal political change and the impact it has had on the balance of power in the Gulf and the region as a whole.  

·       The Maghrib. For too long beyond the scope of most Israeli scholarship, the Center seeks to reinforce Maghribi studies with special emphasis on the contemporary history and domestic politics of Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia and Libya.

Arab-Israeli relations are also a prime area of research interest, and most of the Center’s members are expert on some aspect of Israel in its regional context. Another traditional strength of the Center has been the study of Palestinian affairs and the Arab minority in Israel. 

Endowed lectureships also bring leading foreign scholars and policy makers to the Center, where they lecture on subjects ranging from classical Islam to the contemporary Middle East. 
                                                                                    

In 1995 the Moshe Dayan Center founded what has become one of Israel's major assets in the research on Arabs in Israel: The Program on Arab Politics in Israel. The Program is co-sponsored by the Konrad Adenauer Foundation. Focusing on the study of the Arab political system in Israel, the Program sponsors seminars, workshops and academic conferences, and initiates and publishes research on a broad range of topics, including political behavior of the Arab electorate, voting patterns and election results on both the parliamentary and municipal levels, party ideology, political organizations and leadership development. In 1997 the Program inaugurated a new Forum devoted to the subject of the Arabs in Israel. The Forum, which hosts senior public figures, politicians and government officials, is comprised of Arab and Jewish academics, intellectuals, writers, literary critics and media personalities.

The Program's Documentation Project includes a large collection of reference sources pertaining to the Arabs in Israel. Established in 2000, the Program's computerized document archive is a pioneer retrieval system which hold more then 40,000 electronically digitized pages on the Arabs in Israel. The accumulated documents are organized in an online database, classified by keywords. The Archive is regularly consulted by students, researchers and government agencies.

The Program's Director is Senior Research Fellow Dr. Elie Rekhess.

The Center regularly conducts joint seminars with foreign research centers. These may be convened abroad or in Israel. Recent seminars have been held in cooperation with the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, the Turkish Foreign Policy Institute in Ankara, and the Royal Institute of International Affairs in London. 

The Moshe Dayan Center also sponsors an "academic ambassadorship" to America, made possible by an endowment. Each year, the Center appoints one of its senior members to teach at a host institution and lecture widely. The present host institution is Emory University. 

The Moshe Dayan Center has long-standing academic ties to The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. Many members of the Moshe Dayan Center have been visiting fellows of The Washington Institute, and have published numerous studies under its auspices. 

The Moshe Dayan Center also has close academic ties to the Faculty of Economic and Administrative Sciences at the Middle East Technical University (METU) in Ankara, Turkey. The Center provides visiting teaching faculty and lecturers to METU departments, and sponsors joint conferences. 

In addition, Center members are much in demand as speakers in conferences around the world, and in events sponsored by the Friends of Tel Aviv University in the Americas and Europe. New institutional ties have been  forged in the framework of Euro-Mediterranean cooperation. 

The Amira Margalith Summer Research Internship at the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies at Tel Aviv University (AMSITAU)

       The Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies has established a research assistance internship to honor the memory of Amira Margalith, who served as the Center administrator for more than two decades. It was Amira’s good nature and helpfulness that made the work of the Center, its fellows, and its visitors so successful for many years. Through a competitive application process, the Dayan Center seeks to appoint one undergraduate or graduate intern for a semester from a European or North American college or university setting. Students who have a budding passion for Middle Eastern Studies, are interested in undertaking quality research under the direction of a Center member, and have a special linguistic and writing talents are encouraged to apply. An annual grant of $3000 will be given to the recipient to defray living expenses and transportation costs. The minimum period for the internship will be three months and include a minimum of 20 hours per week of work at Tel Aviv University or in a location designated by the supervising Dayan Center member.

What are the requirements and application process for an AMSITAU award?

       Applicants for the internship are expected to submit a 1,000 word essay about their career intentions and how the internship fits into those plans. Candidates for the internship should specify their areas of disciplinary interest. In addition, three letters of recommendation should be submitted on behalf of the student, with at least two of them from present or former teachers. Those letters should speak to the intellectual promise, research skills and experience, language abilities, writing talents, and other qualifications that reflect on the candidate’s credentials. Letters should include mention of the candidates character, ability to work autonomously yet with guidance, commitment to a future academic or research position in Middle Eastern studies, and an estimate where the candidate ranks among former and present students of the same class cohort.

       Applications will be accepted up to February 28 of each year, with decisions made by March 30. Applicants are encouraged to apply as early as possible. All applications should be submitted to Director, Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv, Israel, 69978. Successful applicants will be informed by mail and e-mail, with initial disbursement of funds coming as a transportation reimbursement prior to the students arrival in Israel. Internship candidates may not submit their application materials via e-mail.

How can I make a contribution to AMSITAU?

       Initial funding for the internship was provided by Emory Professor Kenneth W. Stein who throughout his thirty year career benefited from the grace, diligence, and thoughtfulness emanating from Amira’s dedication and friendship. Additional contributions to the internship honoring the memory of Amira Margalith may be made by contacting the Director of the Dayan Center at Tel Aviv University.

Northwestern/Tel Aviv Postdoctoral Fellowship Program

Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, USA, in partnership with Tel Aviv University, announces a  Postdoctoral Fellowship in Israeli Studies. This appointment will be for a two-year residency at Northwestern.

Responsibilities: teaching one course per academic quarter on Israel and the Middle East (no teaching the first quarter in residence), and pursuit of a program of independent scholarship (fellows will present a research colloquium to faculty colleagues once each year).

Requirements: receipt of Ph.D. after January 2003; fluent English; a demonstrable record of very good college-level teaching. (Applications will not be accepted from persons now holding ongoing faculty positions.)

Applications are encouraged from all Israeli universities, and should include a letter explaining interest in the position and the kinds of courses that could be taught, a curriculum vitae, and evidence of teaching success.

Mail to the Northwestern/Tel Aviv Postdoctoral Fellowship Program Committee via the Moshe Dayan Center, Tel Aviv University,  Ramat Aviv, Tel Aviv 69978. 

Two referees, at least one of whom can comment on teaching, should be asked to write directly to the Director of the Moshe Dayan Center.

Employment contingent on receipt of appropriate visa.

(Affirmative Action/ Equal Opportunity Employer)

Further contact information: