Visiting Professor Beshimov was among the key speakers at the Starr Forum, “Marathon Bombing: The Global Context”, on May 1st at MIT. His speech, titled, “What Makes Young American Chechens Adopt Extremist Views?” can be viewed HERE.

Visiting Professor Bakyt Beshimov participated in the conference “History in Action” and Columbia University on March 8-9th, 2013. He made the keynote address, “How history serves politics in post-Soviet Central Asia” on the opening plenary session.

Guest Lecture, Professor Nariman Gasimoglu, “Islam and Jihadist Terrorism” will be held on Wednesday, February 27 at 5:30 pm in 1 Beacon, room 101. The guest lecture is the important part of the course “Terrorism and Extremism in Central and South Asia” of Visiting Professor Baktybek Beshimov.

Professor Nariman Gasimoglu is a Muslim Scholar and religious activist from Azerbaijan, now a Visiting Scholar at Harvard University’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs.

He is a preeminent analyst on Islamic thought and practice, publishing widely on topics ranging from comparative theology to Palestinian political history. He is recognized as “one of the best, if not the best, Qur’anic scholar in the former Soviet Union” and “one of the very few barriers preventing the spread of fundamentalism in southern Russia and in Central Asia.” Beside the Qur’an translation he has also published two books: In the light of Koranic verses (1999), and The Holiness of the Writ (2005)

His international academic experience includes a Fulbright research fellowship at California State University, Northridge, and a visiting professorship at Georgetown University’s Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. Dr. Gasimoglu has taught Arabic and Qur’anic studies at several Azerbaijani institutions of higher education, including Khazar University, the Higher Diplomatic College, and Baku State University. His latest research is titled “Spiritual Reading Guide on Shared Nature: Commonalities in the Bible and the Qur’an from Ecotheology Perspectives”. This is the first academic attempt to bring monotheistic religions into a common realm theologically based on ecological concerns. The research has had much favorable reaction, even beyond academic circles.

The team, comprised of President Benjamin Chertok, Vice President Tom Logan, Treasurer Lane Dubreuil, Secretary Ted Thomas, Sabrina Chartrand, Dan Butler, Olivia Statmore, and Sarah Fraenkel won the national bid by placing sixth out of 26 teams, including New York University, Boston University, Brown, Princeton, and Tufts at the Boston Regionals this past week.

Suffolk’s undergraduate mock trial program launched only recently and has no coach, but the students on this year’s team are not intimidated by more established programs. They started meeting before fall classes started and attended 5 invitational tournaments before the regional tournament. Now, Suffolk has earned its first bid to compete in the national tournament for the second consecutive year in a row.

Team members are pursuing diverse majors—government, theater, business, and philosophy—but one goal they all share is a career in the law. And for this, mock trial is excellent preparation. Competitions throughout the year give them opportunities to act as witnesses and attorneys for both the defense and plaintiff in real courtroom settings.

The opening round of nationals will take place in Easton, Pennsylvania. If the Suffolk team qualifies, they’ll advance to the finals in Washington D.C.

Guest Lecture of Michael Semple “How an Enemy was Created” on Wednesday, February 13 at 5:30 pm in 1 Beacon, room 101. The guest lecture is the important part of the course “Terrorism and Extremism in Central and South Asia” of Visiting Professor Baktybek Beshimov.

Michael Semple will talk on the relationship between al Qaeda and the Taliban over many years. It will be essential event for anyone who wants to understand the war in Afghanistan. He has worked in Afghanistan and Pakistan in a variety of humanitarian and political roles for more than 20 years. Thanks to his Dari and Pashtu skills as well as his groundbreaking fieldwork, Michael Semple is one of the best specialists in this field.  Currently he is a fellow at the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government . The author of the numerous articles on Afghanistan including “Talking to the Taliban”; “How to Talk to the Taliban” and “How the Haqqani Network is Expanding From Waziristan” in ‘Foreign Affairs”

It is open to all students and faculty members.

Associate Professor, Judy Dushku, will be co-hosting an event with her daughter Eliza Dushku, where they will speak about their work with their non-profit organization, THRIVE-Gulu. The event will be held at Brandeis University on February 6th.

View the Boston Globe article, and the Wicked Local interview for further, fascinating details!

Sebastian Royo, Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Government Department Professor, was published in Governance, titled: How did the Spanish financial system survive the first stage of the global crisis? “Royo also analyzes the country’s rapid reversal of fortune after 2010, when worsening economic conditions, the implosion of the real estate bubble and weaknesses in the regulatory framework brought Spain’s financial institutions to the brink of collapse,” Jane Whitehead summarizes on the Governance blog.

Read Dean Royo’s full article online through http://governancejournal.net/

Professor John Berg was quoted in The Boston Herald’s article, Expert: Liz Warren’s Jitters Expected at Presser on Friday. Read the article to find out his take on U.S. Senate-elect, Elizabeth Warren’s, first press conference since the election!