Opening of “Initiatives in Education, Science and Culture” Conference at the BA
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The BA witnessed on Wednesday, 16 June 2010, the opening of the international conference “Initiatives in Education, Science and Culture Towards Enhanced US- Muslim Countries Collaborations” with delegations from the US, Canada, and Islamic countries.
Welcoming the audience, Dr. Ismail Serageldin, Director of the Library of Alexandria, pointed out that this conference is held one year post President Obama’s speech from Cairo University to the Muslim World in June 2009, “a gesture that outstretched hands and announced a new beginning”.
Mr. Rashad Hussain, Special Envoy of the US President to the Islamic Conference Organization, gave a short speech on behalf of President Obama, stressing the importance of living with dignity, enjoying good health and education, and giving our children a better future. He called for justice and tolerance for all, and called for a new beginning “…the new beginning we seek is not only possible; it has already begun”.
Ambassador Margaret Scobey, American Ambassador to Egypt, expressed her great pleasure to visit the BA, which “pioneers new areas” in all fields. She emphasized that the US is dedicated to building a world which is more peaceful and secure. Believing that the “new beginning is already on its way”, Scobey demonstrated the US endeavors towards building partnerships, referring to the Egyptian-American experience, especially in education. She declared the year 2011 the US- Egypt Year of Science. Scobey stressed that new beginnings are not easy, and that the real challenge lies in turning words into deeds.
In a very enthusiastic speech, Farah Pandith, Special US State Department Representative to Muslim Countries, highlighted that the American administration new strategy is based on engaging with Muslims, a vision based on mutual interest and understanding for the common good of all. She expressed her optimism towards the new generations, “the Facebook generation”.
However, Hesham Youssef, Representative of the Secretary General of the League of Arab States (LAS) stated that this enthusiasm is not yet felt from our American friends in this part of the world. He pointed out that a structured strategic dialogue is needed, or else we will not be able to turn a new page in the US-Muslim relations.
Mohamed Ben Saleh, Representative of the Director General of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) gave a speech on behalf of the Director General Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri , who believes that breaking stereotypical images of the other and building strong partnerships are to create a real alliance of civilizations. He referred to a verse from the Qur’an “…Oh mankind, We created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you many know each other” (Chapter 49, Verse 13), to demonstrate that dialogue and exchange are at the core of Islam. The ISESCO Director General stressed that the Palestinian case is the key to change the negative image of the US, and urged President Obama, to dedicate his efforts to resolving this issue in order to regain the US positive image in Muslim countries, after decades of doubts and frustration.
Minister Ahmed Darwish, Egyptian Minister of State for Administrative Development, expressed his refusal of the dichotomy of Islam versus the West, for West should be rather compared to a geographical entity: East or the Middle East. He believes that we can erase this concept through adapting untraditional ways, namely initiatives in science, education, art, music and cinema.
“Initiatives in Education, Science and Culture Towards Enhanced US- Muslim Countries Collaborations” Conference is held from 16 to 18 June 2010, and is structured around three main themes: Education, Culture, and Science and Technology, exploring each of them in conjunction with four cross-cutting tracks, namely, Youth, IT, Media, and Women.
To view the complete conference proceedings via webcast service, please click here.
The Conference website: http://www.bibalex.org/NB2010
Please click here to view the program.