About MESA Global Academy

What is MESA Global Academy?
The Middle East Studies Association (MESA) Global Academy is an interdisciplinary initiative that sustains essential research collaborations and knowledge production among scholars in the humanities and social sciences from the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and their counterparts outside the region.
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WHO DOES THE GLOBAL ACADEMY FUND?
The Global Academy supports displaced scholars in the humanities and social sciences whose work falls within Middle East Studies, broadly defined. The Global Academy invites scholars to apply from comparative literature, history, and Islamic studies to political science, anthropology, economics, and beyond.
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How do I apply?
Scholarships have been awarded for the 2024-2025 academic year. Please check back in the spring of 2025 for the next funding cycle. The Global Academy awards scholars in the field of Middle East Studies $5,000 grants to further their research and collaboration with MENA-focused scholars in North America.
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MESA Global Academy Fellowship applications is now open: Go to https://mesaglobalacademy.org/grant-opportunities/
The MESA Global Academy Fellows Panel meets virtually in 2020.
Global Academy Scholar Issam Eido presents his research.

Apply for a 2026 - 2027 Fellowship!

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MESA Global Academy Scholars

Scholarship Eligibility Information

Competitive fellowships are available for displaced scholars from the MENA region, primarily those currently located in North America, whose work is broadly focused on Middle East Studies. Eligibility criteria are: 1) a PhD or equivalent in a field in the social sciences or humanities (graduate students will not be considered); 2) a primary institutional affiliation in the MENA region prior to displacement; and 3) a publication record indicating scholarly productivity (in English, French, a native MENA language, or principal research language of the field).

Dr. Najeeb Alomaisi will analyze Yemen's conflict and the failure of peacebuilding initiatives through the lens of political economy and comparative analysis with Sudan, Libya, and Iran. April 21, 2026 10 am ET/ 4 pm CET https://forms.gle/ju6LjrbH8qpWCKRq7

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TALK: November 14 "Genocide, Ecocide, Scholasticide and The Palestinian Native American in Mahmoud Darwish's Poetry" by Ahmad Qabaha

Please join Georgetown's Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies & Center for Contemporary Arab Studies and the MESA Global Academy for an online talk this Friday, November 14 at 12 pm ET with Dr. Ahmad Qabaha of Al-Najah University on "Genocide, Ecocide, Scholasticide and the Palestinian Native American in Mahmoud Darwish's Poetry." Georgetown's Dr. Elliott Colla will […]

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November 13: CMES Colloquium: Exiled Scholars in Western Academia: Refugees or Intellectuals?

Join us tomorrow (Thursday, November 13, 2025) for a book launch and learn more about the book "Exiled Scholars in Western Academia: Refugees or Intellectuals?". It will be held at noon, at CMES Luce Hall, 34 Hillhouse Avenue, New Haven CT, 06511 For more information on this event:https://macmillan.yale.edu/middleeast/events/2025-11-13/cmes-colloquium-exiled-scholars-western-academia-refugees-or-1

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Recent and Upcoming Events from MESA Global Academy