GU-Q to host annual undergraduate research conference tomorrow

Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) will host some of the world’s top students for the 8th Annual Undergraduate Research Conference (AURC) tomorrow.The opening session of the conference will be held at the Georgetown University Building in Education City and is open to the public.This year’s AURC conference will be held under the theme “Borders, Boundaries, and Identities: Tackling New Global Challenges.” Students from Qatar and around the world will present their research papers on a wide range of global issues, including the changing dynamics in the Gulf, plurality of national identity, sovereignty and borders, a historical analysis of the evolution of religion, America and the politics of contestation, and the new economic challenges in Asia.“As the board brainstormed themes for this year’s conference, we wanted to make sure we chose a theme that is relevant to the worldwide events occurring today,” explained AURC president, Sara al-Haj Abed, a junior majoring in International Politics at GU-Q. “Right now, unfortunately, there seems to be a lot of political unrest and instability plaguing many different regions of the world. There are conflicts about borders and boundaries, and just how individuals identify themselves, so we asked students to submit research on these topics.” Previously, the university’s undergraduate research conference was called MESSA and it focused on issues relevant to the Middle East region. Explaining the name change, Dr Kai-Henrik Barth, senior assistant dean for research support at GU-Q, said, “After seven years of holding this conference with a focus on the Middle East, we felt it was time to take this research conference to the next level. So starting this year, we encouraged students from all of our majors to contribute to this conference, not just those who work on topics related to the region we live in.  Instead of a geographical focus we now highlight research in history, politics, culture, and economics on a global scale, the same holistic approach to international affairs that is reflected in the university’s undergraduate curriculum.” Dean Barth will be giving the opening remarks at the conference.The call for undergraduate paper submissions ended in February of this year. Selected papers will be published in the AURC academic journal.