“We Are Connected, But Are We Communicating?”

American Foreign Policy and Jordanian Society: A Dialogue

Amman, Jordan
May 29 - 31, 2008

Americans for Informed Democracy (AID) and the Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED) in cooperation with the University of Jordan Center for Strategic Studies (CSS) and Leaders of Tomorrow (LoT) are now accepting applications for their conference on American foreign policy and Jordanian society. The conference will examine the effects of American regional foreign policy on the societal factors affecting political reform in Jordan and develop strategies of how U.S. foreign policy can more effectively enable Jordanians to work towards their own political, economic, and social ideals.

The conference will include panel discussions featuring Jordanian and American experts on U.S. foreign policy initiatives, Jordanian politics and society, and the international blogosphere. The participants will develop and ratify policy recommendations to be presented to government representatives. The conferences will also include media activism and advocacy workshops.

The conference topics will include:

• U.S. Department of State Cultural and Educational Exchange Programs
• Youth Cyber Activism: Tool of American-Jordanian Communication
• American Foreign Policy in Iraq: Effects on Jordanian Politics and Society
• American Foreign Aid Programs for Political Reform/Democracy Building in Jordan

The conference will take place in Amman, Jordan from May 29-31, 2008. American, Jordanian, and Iraqi (currently residing in Jordan) students and young professionals aged 21-28 are encouraged to apply. The conference will include 25 Americans and 25 Middle Easterners. Since the number of spaces is limited, participants will be chosen by competitive application. We seek an ideologically and geographically diverse group of participants.

Acceptance to the conference includes two nights’ lodging and meals in Amman. Modest travel scholarships are available for highly qualified applicants.

To apply to the conference, please fill out and submit the online application in English or Arabic, or e-mail a complete application in English or Arabic to ammanconference@pomed.org.

APPLICATIONS MUST BE RECEIVED NO LATER THAN MARCH 31, 2008. Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, so apply as early as possible to maximize your chances of being accepted. If you have questions, please e-mail ammanconference@pomed.org, or call Liana Paris at +962 79 942 7115 or Mohammad Azraq at +962-785494768.