Welcome
Photos by Marta Bogdanska
Heinrich Böll Foundation – Regional Office Middle East

The Heinrich Böll Foundation, associated with the German Green Party, is a legally autonomous and intellectually open political foundation.
Our foremost task is civic education in Germany and abroad with the aim of promoting informed democratic opinion, socio-political commitment and mutual understanding. In addition the Heinrich Böll Foundation supports cultural and scholarly projects, and co-operation in the development field. The political values of ecology, democracy, gender democracy, solidarity and non-violence are our chief points of reference. Heinrich Böll’s belief in and promotion of citizen participation in politics is the model for the foundation’s work.

Our programme areas in the Middle East are:
  • Statehood & Participation
  • Conflict and International Politics
  • Environmental Justice
  • Culture & Dialogue

Statehood & Participation

Adbusting

Kherr Berr

 - “Kherr Berr” is a media monitor that specializes in overseeing the different types of gender discrimination, including biases based on color, race, religion, appearance, sexual orientation, and social class. Kherr Berr also regulates “social transgressions” found in the media and advertising worlds, like the encouragement of violence against fellow humans in general, and women in specific. more»

Analysis

Women, Revolution, Politics and Power

 - During the Arab uprisings, an unprecedented number of women took to the streets, paving the way for a more important role in politics. However, in the transitional period that follows, they now have to fight against their exclusion from the political arena. By Dalal al-Bizri more»

Conflict & Intl. Politics

Analysis

Is it Winter or Spring for Christians in Syria?

Following the popular uprisings, there has been much amount of debate on the future of minority Christians sects in the region. Is the new Arab world hostile to Christians? Is it wise for them to fear the downfall of the Assad regime? By Doreen Khoury more»

Environmental Justice

Study

Climate Change and Tourism in Lebanon

 - Worldwide, the inexorable growth of the tourism sector with its high demand for land and other resources has reignited the debate about the environmental impact of tourism. Given the number of natural attractions in Lebanon on the one hand and the fact that its tourism development is only beginning anew on the other hand, it offers a rare opportunity to sufficiently consider, at least in theory, the interrelations of climate change and tourism from the onset. By Manja Riebe more»

Culture & Dialogue

Cultural Magazine

Kalamon

Kalamon is an Arabic quarterly magazine published in Lebanon. It seeks to provide a free space for articles, essays, studies and literary texts pertaining to the Arab world and aims at stimulating dialogue among intellectuals and academics, artists and critics from the region and the world. more»

International Conference

Social Sciences in Arab Countries Facing a Scientific Multi-Versalism: Pathways, Challenges and Constraints

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8-9 July 2011 at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon. The emergence of a multi-polar science world with many emerging and strong science communities in East-Asia, India and Latin America and, last but not least, in the Arab countries, indicate the end of the exclusive reign of Western social sciences and the beginning of a new era of international social science collaborations.

more»

Public Discussion and Presentation

Global Prayers – Redemption and Liberation in the City

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21 June 2011 6pm to 9pm at Hangar/Umam, Beirut, Lebanon. Holy Ghost services which feel like pop concerts; cinemas and theatres converted into churches; the Koran and the Bible as rap songs. New religious movements have arrived on the urban scene across the world – be it in Lagos, Rio de Janeiro, Istanbul, Mumbai, Berlin, London, or Beirut.

more»
Upcoming Event

The Legal Agenda

Thursday, 26 January 2012 6pm.

Where did the judiciary succeed in safeguarding and consecrating basic rights and public freedoms in 2011?

Seminar organized by the Legal Agenda in collaboration with the Heinrich Böll Stiftung - Middle East Office.

Perspectives #2: People's Power - The Arab World in Revolt Reaching Boiling Point? Global Perspectives on the 2011 UN Climate Summit 100 years of international women's day
Latest Articles & Publications
Women, Revolution, Politics and Power
During the Arab uprisings, an unprecedented number of women took to the streets, paving the way for a more important role in politics. However, in the transitional period that follows, they now have to fight against their exclusion from the political arena. By Dalal al-Bizri more»
There Must Be a Freedom Square - And We Have Set the Date
From Syria, 8 months after the beginning of the popular uprising, this article offers a personal account of the brutality of the repression and its implications on the lives of human right activists.

By Razan Zaitouneh more»
Is it Winter or Spring for Christians in Syria?
Following the popular uprisings, there has been much amount of debate on the future of minority Christians sects in the region. Is the new Arab world hostile to Christians? Is it wise for them to fear the downfall of the Assad regime? By Doreen Khoury more»
Heinrich Böll Stiftung