SWEMENA Annual Conference 2024

This interdisciplinary annual conference reflects SWEMENA’s main objective to bring together different communities of researchers, practitioners, and policy-makers across Sweden with an interest in the Middle East and North Africa region SWEMENA encourages the dissemination and discussion of new research on Middle Eastern politics and society and provides a network for scholars, students, policy-makers, and others with related research interests. 

For more information about SWEMENA, please visit their website.

Conference Program

Please note: presentations should not be more than 15 minutes to leave space for the discussant and Q&A

THURSDAY 22 AUGUST

11:00-12:00 Registration and Lunch

12:00-13:00 Opening Session

• Opening remarks by Karin Aggestam, CMES Director, Lund University 
• Keynote address by Charlotta Sparre, former Director of the Swedish Dialogue Institute for the MENA: How can we bridge the gap between analysis and practice? Reflections on enhanced exchanges between academics, practitioners and policy makers

13:15-14:45 Panel Session A

• A1: Migration, Diasporas and Integration
• A2: Environmental Politics in the Middle East – Destruction, Resistance and the Quest for Environmental Democracy
• A3 Roundtable: The 7^th of October and the Subsequent War in Gaza – Local, Regional and Global Impacts and Responses

15:15-16:45 Panel Session B

• B1 Roundtable: Humanitarianism in the Middle East
• B2: Dust Storms in the Middle East – Vulnerability, Causes, Strategies and Technologies
• B3: Armed Conflict, Security and Defence
• B4: Conducting Fieldwork in Arab Societies – Reflections on Positionality and Extractivism

FRIDAY 23 August

9:00-10:30 Panel Session C

• C1: Representations of Palestine Across Time and Space
• C2: Enhancing Water Cooperation in the Middle East – Challenges and Opportunities
• C3 Roundtable: The Orient There and Back Again. Multidisciplinary Reflections on MENA Research and Sweden 1974-2024
• C4: Diasporas as Transnational Actors

10:45-12:15 Panel Session D

• D1: Probing the Politics of Memory and Myth: Museums, Cultural Heritage, and Historical Narratives in the Middle East
• D2: Adapting to A Changing Environment in the Middle East and North Africa
• D3: Democratic Politics and Gender in the Middle East
• D4: Islamic Culture, Ethics and Religion

12:15-13:15 Lunch at Tegnérs

13:15-14:45 Panel Session E

• E1: Cultural Identity and Architecture in Turkey and Jerusalem
• E2: Mediation and Diplomacy
• E3: Grassroots Peacebuilding, Coexistance and Civic Education

15:00-16:00  Closing Session

Conference Venue

The venue for the conference is the Department of Political Science at Lund University. The building is called 'Eden' and is located on Allhelgona Kyrkogata 14 in Lund city centre, a 10 minute walk from the central train station.

Accomodation

Please note that accommodation and travel costs are NOT covered by the conference organisers. 

Budget Friendly

Winstrup Minihotel and Hostel, Winstrupsgatan 3 (5 minute walk to the venue)

Mid-Range Options

Hotel Bishop Arms, St Petri Kyrkogata 7 (5 minute walk to the venue)

Hotel Lundia, Knut den Stores Gata 2 (8 minute walk to the venue)

Premium Options

Grand Hotel, Bantorget 1 (9 minute walk to the venue)

Hotel Concordia, Stålbrogatan 1 (10 minute walk to the venue)

Travel

Please note that accommodation and travel costs are NOT covered by the conference organisers. 

Travel to Lund

• Air
  • Copenhagen Airport, Kastrup (CPH). The easiest way to travel by air to Lund is to fly to Copenhagen Airport in Denmark, which is located across the bridge from Sweden. The train (Øresundståg) from Copenhagen Airport, Kastrup, to Lund Central Station takes about 40 minutes and departs every 20 minutes (once an hour between 01.22 and 05.22). Tickets (costing around SEK 120) can be purchased at the designated ticket machines in Terminal 3 or from the Skånetrafiken App (see below). The train station is located directly underneath Terminal 3. Please note that tickets cannot be purchased on the train and you risk being fined if you travel without a ticket. Please also note that you will need to bring valid proof of identity as Swedish police regularly conduct border checks on the train from Copenhagen Airport, Kastrup, to Sweden.
  • Malmö Airport (MMX). You can also travel to Malmö Airport which is located about 30 km south of Lund. It is a very small airport and mostly caters to domestic travel. To travel from Lund from the airport you have to either take a cab or take a bus to Malmö and then the train to Lund. Tickets for the bus can be purchased through this website and tickets for the train can be purchased through the Skånetrafiken App (see below).
• Train/Bus
  • From Gothenburg, Kalmar and Karlskrona there are regular trains with Öresundståg
  • From Stockholm and other locations in Sweden and Norway we recommend the train services through SJ
  • Lund has good train connections to Europe. Find travel options here or here
  • Flixbus also operates direct buses to Malmö from various locations in Scandinavia and Europe. Find travel options here

Travel in Lund

Lund is a small city where you can walk everywhere. However, the city and the region of Skåne have great communication with public transport. The easiest way to access timetables, check transport options and buy tickets is through the Skånetrafiken app. Download it here