Publications List

Overview Editors: Mark C. Thompson, Neil Quilliam - Offers direction in youth policy formulation, policy recommendations and policy implementation in Saudi Arabia - Evaluates the dilemmas, challenges and opportunities in envisaging a post-COVID-19 Kingdom - Considers lessons learnt from previous youth policy initiatives in the region to improve policy creation in the future

This book examines the notion and understanding of innovation and knowledge societies as they particularly apply to the Gulf states and their broad range of communities. Key to this examination will be the role that intellectual property - its promotion and protection – plays in fostering both innovation and the knowledge society. In brief, innovation, knowledge, society, emerging technology, economic growth and intellectual property are intertwined and inseparable. Unique to the GCC, is the constitutional significance of Islamic Law and the book discusses intellectual property growth in line with economic developments in the region and reflects on Islamic Finance Law.

Urban Modernity in the Contemporary Gulf offers a timely and engaging discussion on architectural production in the modernization era in the Arabian Peninsula. Focusing on the 20th century as a starting point, the book explores the display of transnational architectural practices resulting in different notions of locality, cosmopolitanism, and modernity. Contextually, with an eye on the present, the book reflects on the initiatives that recently re-engaged with the once ville moderne which, meanwhile, lost its pivotal function and meaning. A city within a bigger city, the urban fabric produced during the modernization era has the potential to narrate the social growth, East–West dynamics, and citizens’ memories of the recent past. Reading obsolescence as an opportunity, the book looks into this topic from a cross-country perspective. It maps, reads and analy- ses the notion of modern heritage in relation to the contemporary city and looks beyond physical transformations to embrace cultural practices and strategies of urban re-appropriation. It interrogates the value of modern architecture in the non-West, examining how academic research is expanding the debate on Gulf urbanism, and describes how practices of reuse could foster rethinking neglected areas, also addressing land consumption in the GCC. Presenting a diverse and geographically inclusive author- ship, which combines established and up-and-coming researchers in the field, this is an important reference for academics and upper-level students interested in heritage studies, post-colonial urbanism, and architecture in the non-West.

This edited volume documents discussions held in the context of the 2018 Gulf Research Meeting held by the Gulf Research Center at the University of Cambridge (UK). It starts from the acknowledgment that there is no widely accepted definition and measure of sustainability. All authors however try to capture not only political and economic factors, but also social and cultural influences on economic reform in GCC countries. While authors have argued in total autonomy from each other and some divergent opinions remain, the thrust of the book is to conclude that some GCC economies have made significant progress toward diversification, reducing exclusive reliance on oil with respect to both composition of GDP and exports. This book also investigates a number of pronounced economic sustainability challenges in the Gulf’s oil producers, in terms of not only the threats to fiscal balances, but also the nationalization and privatization of labor markets, environmental pressures on GCC countries and soaring income inequalities within Gulf countries. This edited volume has four parts, discussing various facets of economic sustainability. In a first part, authors provide a holistic discussion of current trends in, and projections about, the sustainability of oil economies in the Gulf. The second part of this edited volume discusses trends in fiscal sustainability, given the quest, and need, of governments in the Gulf to diversify not just the economy, but especially their revenue base. These chapters also tie in fiscal reforms to the goal of Gulf economies to diversify and to adjust labor market structures. The third part addresses labor market policies and labor market reforms. The fourth part discusses strategies of oil economies toward international climate action

This book examines the foreign policies of the GCC countries six years after the Arab uprisings, in terms of drivers, narratives, actions and outcomes, paying particular attention to Middle Eastern countries, Iran and Western international powers. The assessment focuses on current affairs, but also contributes to establishing a productive link between empirical studies and the existing theoretical frameworks that help explain the increasing foreign policy activism of the GCC countries. All in all, the articles collected in this book shed light on and provide a more solid and fine-grained understanding of how regional powers like Saudi Arabia, as well as the other smaller GCC countries, act and pursue their interests in an environment full of uncertainty, in the context of changing regional and global dynamics and power distribution. The book brings together the articles published in a Special Issue of the International Spectator

In this edited volume, academics and practitioners from various disciplines investigate the challenges, opportunities and frameworks in the implementation of Smart Cities in the Gulf. The volume presents insightful analyses and identifies key lessons learned through case studies covering four main themes, including: smart city frameworks and governance, resources and infrastructure, information and communication technologies, and the social perspective. In doing so, the book provides policy recommendations related to smart governance, as well as overall frameworks that cities can adopt in their process of transition, and knowledge that is integral to bridge the gap between various stakeholders in the Smart City milieu. This edited volume comprises extended versions of papers presented at a workshop titled “Smart Cities in the GCC: Current State, Opportunities and Challenges” held at the 2017 Gulf Research Meeting, which took place at University of Cambridge, UK.

This book examines the relations and image of the Arab Gulf states in the West. It addresses the question of Perception in International Relations and how the Arab States of the Gulf have pursued various endeavours to project themselves into the West. The book chapters generate ideas on how perceptions came about and ways to improve cultural and political realities on the ground in the Arab Gulf States. Thus, it paves the way for a new area of research in the field of Gulf Studies that extends beyond traditional international relations frameworks by weaving elements of intercultural communication into the mix. Recognizing, yet extending beyond, a traditionally realist framework, which had dominated the analysis of Arab Gulf States foreign relations

This volume explores the challenges to diversification in Gulf countries, which can no longer rely on profits from hydrocarbons to fund national expenditures. It elaborates on the problem of weak institutions, lack of coordination between policy makers and executors, limited investment in research and development, and a workforce that is too poorly skilled to compete in the private sector. In addition to analyzing issues in areas such as education, labor, business, and trade, the contributors underscore the importance of using global best practices to overcome fundamental weaknesses in the Gulf Cooperation Council’s economic structure that limit opportunities for economic diversification.

Among the many strategic and economic issues facing the Gulf in the coming years, those relating to the Indian Ocean are set to be among the most challenging. In the re-ordering of global economic and political power which is currently underway, the Indian Ocean constitutes a key arena for regional and global competition and rivalry. With the leading Asian powers playing a more proactive role in the region, sometimes with conflicting ambitions, and the United States intent on maintaining its established maritime hegemony there, the potential dangers for the Gulf states are considerable. Gulf economic interests and perhaps regime stability would be severely affected by conflict. This book contends that the Gulf states need to play an active part in the promotion of Indian Ocean stability and security, working with other Indian Ocean states to develop institutional structures and practices which encourage cooperation and provide avenues for conflict resolution. They have everything to gain from such a strategy. This volume is based on a workshop held at the Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Centre Cambridge in summer 2017.

This volume focuses on the role of the private sector in diversifying the economics of Gulf countries in the post-petrodollar era, when fluctuating and declining oil prices are negatively impacting national expenditures. It explores current policies of countries in the Gulf Cooperation Council and their efforts to shift their economies away from heavy dependence on hydrocarbons. The structural changes will create favorable conditions for the private sector to flourish, shift production dependence from public to private sector, and allow for more efficient resource allocation. Such changes will also allow local banks to provide financial support to small and medium enterprises, boost entrepreneurship for job creation, and strengthen organizational structure and efficiency.

The bitter confrontation between Saudi Arabia and Iran is not only stoking conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen, but now threatens the stability, security and well-being of the whole Gulf region. All the major global powers have significant interests in this area, and the pursuit of these interests adds further layers of division and conflict. This book goes to the heart of this issue, examining the critical modalities whereby the “Gulf Cold War” can be brought to an end. What is needed, the contributors argue, is the creation of a security community among the states of the Gulf. The processes through which this could be achieved are carefully examined. All those interested in the future and well-being of the Gulf region should give consideration to the perspectives advanced. This volume is based on a workshop held at the Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center Cambridge in summer 2016.

Diversification is the principal economic objective for the Gulf States. The steep and sustained fall in oil prices over the last few years has added to the collective urgency to seek new sources of revenue. As such, the overriding theme of regional economic summits in recent years has focused on the question, “how do we transition to a knowledge-based economy?” This is the central question taken up by the contributors to this volume. A growing body of literature has begun to address how state policy in conjunction with universities, think tanks, and businesses can create the groundwork to support knowledge-intensive industries. But, so far, comparatively little work has been done on the potential of this matrix of policies to succeed in the current political and economic context of the GCC. This volume assesses current policies designed to engender knowledge-based economies in the region and analyzes how a diverse array of actors, including government agencies, national and transnational businesses, universities, and individuals coordinate and mediate the transmission of knowledge to support knowledge-intensive industries. This volume is based on a workshop held at the Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center Cambridge in summer 2015.

As governments across the GCC strive to implement labour policies which accelerate the transition to “post oil” knowledgebased economies, this volume provides insights into the size of this challenge, along with analysis of progress to date. With a comprehensive coverage of the region (each GCC member is included in some respect), this new work provides unique insights into how the domestic policy agenda is shifting the region’s moribund labour markets inexorably towards greater productivity, positivity, sustainability and efficiency. This volume is based on a workshop held at the Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center Cambridge in summer 2016.

Yemen is the only state on the Arabian Peninsula that is not a member of the GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council). It is also the only local state not ruled by a royal family. Relations between Yemen and the GCC states go back for centuries with some tribes in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman tracing genealogy back to ancient Yemen. In this timely volume six scholars analyze Yemen’s relations with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Iran with a focus on recent developments, including the conflict after the fall of Ali Abdullah Salih in Yemen. This volume is based on a workshop held at the Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center Cambridge in summer 2016.

Sustainability is a topic of great interest today, particularly for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, which have witnessed very rapid economic and demographic growth over the past decade. The observed growth has led to unsustainable consumption patterns of vital resources such as water, energy, and food, highlighting the need for an urgent shift towards green growth and sustainable development strategies. Sustainability in the Gulf covers the region’s contemporary development challenges through the lens of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which place sustainability at the centre of the solution to the current environmental, economic, and social imbalances facing GCC countries. The book presents multiple analyses of Gulf-specific sustainability topics, examining the current status, challenges, and opportunities, as well as identifying key lesssons learned. Innovative and practical policy recommendations are provided, as well as new conceptual angles to the evolving academic debates on the post-oil era in the Gulf. Through chapters covering sector-related studies, as well as the socio-economic dimensions of the sustainability paradigm, this volume offers valuable insights into current research efforts made by the GCC states, proposing a way forward based on lessons learned.

The Gulf States are among the most sought-after destinations by global migrants. Part of this migration is irregular, due to five main causes: entering with no proper visa; overstaying once a visa or residence permit has expired; being employed by someone who is not the sponsor; absconding from a sponsor; and being born in the Gulf to parents with an irregular status. The treatment reserved for migrants in an irregular situation marks out the Gulf States. Arrest and detention are widespread practices in spite of constitutional guarantees against arbitrary imprisonment. Staying without a proper visa or absconding from a sponsor is regarded as a criminal act, and foreign nationals who commit such acts are detained in the same prisons as common law criminals with no clear right of recourse. Domestic workers, most of whom are women employed by private households and, therefore, not protected by labour laws which in the Gulf apply only to businesses, are particularly subject to arbitrary sanctions and jail. Lived experiences suggest that migrants may not see their irregular status as being disastrous. Many, in fact, are willing to perpetuate this situation, despite their awareness about possible arrest, jail term, and deportation. A theme that emerges repeatedly in interviews indicates the lack of options open to migrants elsewhere, including their country of origin. Migrants in an irregular situation learn to negotiate the formal and informal spaces and systems they encounter. They have specific goals they want to achieve during their Gulf stay, whatever the cost. Education of their children and building a house in the origin country are paramount among these goals. Most irregular migrants seem to share one characteristic: resilience. As their stay in the Gulf lengthens, they gather enough capacity to exercise their agency to achieve a skilful survival in the face of adversity. A wide-ranging system of mutual benefits constituting win-win situations for varied actors enables and perpetuates irregular migration. The volume has 15 original contributions and is freely available from the GRC and the GLMM websites.

This volume examines the applied and theoretical frames of reference that operate in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and probes the relevant aspects of scale, proportion, and the grounding of education in the Gulf region. The five papers included in this volume discuss elements of policy and curriculum, teachers and teacher identity, students and student identity, and social conditions that affect teaching and learning in the 21st century in the GCC states. Together, these papers raise and discuss issues of critical importance as we plan for education in the GCC for the 21st century.

Small states are often believed to have been resigned to the margins of international politics. However, the recent increase in the number of small states has increased their influence and forced the international community to incorporate some of them into the global governance system. This is particularly evident in the Middle East where small Gulf States have played an important role in the changing dynamics of the region in the last decade. The Small Gulf States analyses the evolution of these states’ foreign and security policies since the Arab Spring. With particular focus on Oman, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, it explores how these states have been successful in not only guaranteeing their survival, but also in increasing their influence in the region. It then discusses the security dilemmas small states face, and suggests a multitude of foreign and security policy options, ranging from autonomy to influence, in order to deal with this. The book also looks at the influence of regional and international actors on the policies of these countries. It concludes with a discussion of the peculiarities and contributions of the Gulf states for the study of small states’ foreign and security policies in general. Providing a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of the unique foreign and security policies of the states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) before and after the Arab Spring, this book will be a valuable resource for students and scholars of Middle East studies, foreign policy and international relations.

The Arab states of the Gulf, currently heavily reliant on oil and gas exports, have stated their intention to promote economic diversification and have embarked on reforming existing institutions for higher education, scientific research, and technology innovation. The region has witnessed huge population growth in recent decades, and in some cases (e.g. Saudi Arabia) almost half the population is under the age of twenty-five and in need of access to quality education and meaningful employment opportunities. This book provides an in-depth discussion of what is needed to accelerate the development of science, technology and innovation in the Gulf. Among other issues, the authors discuss the need for regional collaboration, and tackle systemic challenges such as immigration policies, career incentives for GCC citizens, and increased inclusion of women in the workforce.

Egypt continues to be cultural and political beacon in the Middle East. Its control of the Suez Canal, cold peace with Israel, concern about Gaza, mediation and interest in the Israel-Palestine conflict, and the marginalization of the Muslim Brotherhood are all points of significance. There is a close, and expanding, defence and security relationship between Egypt and the GCC states, most evident in the inclusion of Egypt in Saudi Arabia’s new Sunni counter-terrorism alliance. The authors of this book contextualise historical linkages, and allies add to this the real postures (especially contentious relations with Qatar and Turkey) and study Egypt’s strategic relations with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE in particular. The book’s main argument derives from a complex web of political, socio-economic and military issues in a changing regional and international system. It states that the Egyptian regional policy under Sisi will generally remain consistent with existing parameters (such as broad counter-terrorism efforts, including against the Muslim brotherhood). There is strong evidence to support the idea that Cairo wishes to maintain a GCC-first policy

Over the last half-century, the GCC states have invested on a huge scale in higher education, but the stated commitment to internationally recognized excellence has also to come to terms with tradition. These pressure points are examined here in a number of comparative studies, and cover among other topics: - higher education as soft power to promote regional or global influence - intense reliance on foreign instructors - citizen entitlements - badu and hadar divisions - gender separation- different visions of language of instruction - marginalization of foreign students and faculty outside work - branch campuses of foreign universities Despite efforts to train and employ nationals, the vast majority of health workers remain non-local, and major challenges remain in fields such as science and technology. Expenditure has not always led to the effective reform of underperforming educational systems, and institutions often fall short of their world-class aspirations. The studies in this book explore ways of making institutions better realise the balance between global and local.

How the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) relates to BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) is, in the light of the growing strength and importance of this organisation in the countries which comprise it, of critical importance. The GCC countries have fastgrowing economies, and they share some of the attributes and concerns of BRICS countries. The objective of this book is to examine the commonalities and the differences in economic and political interest between the BRICS countries and the GCC countries, so as to assess the potential for cooperation and collective action. Whether the GCC could itself become a part of BRICS is also worth consideration. While the focus is on the GCC, the GCC’s relations with the BRICS countries have been, and will continue to be, closely affected by the wider Gulf dimension – the state of their relations with Iran and Iraq, and the manner in which the BRICS countries relate to those two countries.

The Gulf is in the first rank of potential global flashpoints. It is the largest market for weapons imports in the world and is considered to be a vital interest of all the great powers. Ran is viewed as an expansionist threat by Arab states of the Gulf, who have built considerable militaries in a historically short timeframe. Security in the Gulf, however, is a complicated matter. The Arab states of the Gulf have pursued different defense policies, as well as different ways of building up their forces. In some instances, the establishment of a strong military is not just a way to ensure security, but also a way to build a national identity. In other cases, great powers (such as the United States) seek to promote cooperation between the Arab Gulf militaries as an interim step to promote political reform and integration.

GCC-Iran relations are at the heart of important political dynamics in the Middle East today. This is not limited to the ongoing disputes in the Gulf, one of the most important strategic locations globally. Iran and the GCC states also find themselves on opposing sides in the Syrian and to some extend the Iraqi conflicts. This volume traces the origins of the troubled relations between Iran and the majority of the GCC monarchies. It discusses not only geostrategic rivalries, but also matters of identity which have been of increased importance since 2010. While important differences are noticeable among the GCC monarchies in regard to their willingness to engage Iran, the difficult relationship between Saudi Arabia and Iran puts a strain on the possibilities for engagement between Iran and the GCC as a whole.

The ties that bind Africa and the Gulf region have deep historical roots that influence both what Braudel called the longue durée and the short-term events of current policy shifts, market-based economic fluctuations, and global and local political vicissitudes. This book, a collaboration of historians, political scientists, development planners, and a biomedical engineer, explores Arabian- African relationships in their many overlapping dimensions. Thus histories constructed from the “bottom up” – records of the everyday activities of commerce, intermarriage, and gender roles – offer an incisive complement to the “top down” histories of dynasties and the elite. Topics such as migration, collective memory, scriptural and oral narratives, and contemporary notions of food security and “soft” power pose new questions about the ties that bind Africa to the Gulf. This volume is based on a workshop held at the 5th Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center Cambridge in summer 2014.

Filling a void in academic and policy-relevant literature on the topic of the green economy in the Arabian Gulf, this edited volume provides a multidisciplinary analysis of the key themes and challenges relating to the green economy in the region, including in the energy and water sectors and the urban environment, as well as with respect to cross-cutting issues, such as labour, intellectual property and South-South cooperation. Over the course of the book, academics and practitioners from various fields demonstrate why transitioning into a ‘green economy’ – a future economy based on environmental sustainability, social equity and improved well-being – is not an option but a necessity for the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States. Through chapters covering key economic sectors and cross-cutting issues, the book examines the GCC states’ quest to align their economies and economic development with the imperatives of environmental sustainability and social welfare, and proposes a way forward, based on lessons learned from experiences in the region and beyond. This volume will be of great relevance to scholars and policy makers with an interest in environmental economics and policy.

The concept of sustainable development first presented in the Brundtland Report in 1987 underlined the simultaneous and mutually reinforcing pursuit of economic growth, environmental improvement, as well as global and social equity together with an emphasis on global distribution. It marked the start of a new phase in the hitherto antagonistic environment-economy relationship based on the recognition that ecosystem degradation and global warming pose serious threats both for poverty reduction and development. During the 1990s, sustainable development became the predominant feature of the environmental discourse, underlying global, supranational, national, regional, and local environmental policy strategies. A key implication of the interdependence of environmental-development goals as outlined in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA) Scenario Report emphasizes the need for a meaningful integration of environmental sustainability concerns in national development plans and strategies of individual donors and inter-governmental development agencies. In addition, there is also the need for closer coordination between multilateral environmental agreements and other international institutions in the development policy sphere. It is necessary to understand the forces that will determine environmental change as well as to choose a set of environmental policies that will move us toward a sustainable future. This, in turn, needs a better understanding of social institutions, and ecological and economic processes. After an extensive analysis of these issues, this paper presents steps that the GCC could take in framing the right environment policies.

This volume includes a range of topics addressing aspects of the current status of intellectual property (IP) protection regimes in the Gulf Cooperation Council and its individual member states, and aspiring GCC members Jordan and Yemen. It examines the opportunities and challenges facing the GCC in becoming a real union with common, or at least harmonized, IP laws and regulations, while still allowing flexibility for domestic imperatives and interests. IP is a crucial part of commercial and trade activity which the GCC needs to address as a union to maximize outcomes and benefits for the GCC members collectively and individually. Contributions represent a broad-based and truly international interest in Gulf IP, with authors from Australia, Bahrain, China, Egypt, Indonesia, Jordan, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The volume provides a catalyst for further deliberation and debate on these above issues and other Gulf-related IP issues, as well as a worthy contribution to the expansion of Gulf studies in the broader context.

Following the Arab Spring, the use of social media has become instrumental in organising activist movements and spreading political dissent in the Middle East. New online behaviours have transformed traditional communication channels, enabling young people of all backgrounds to feel politically empowered. But now that spring has turned to winter, what are the long-term implications of internet activism in the region? Social Media in the Arab World provides a unique insight into the role of online communications as a force for change in the Gulf States. Featuring examples as diverse as neo-patrimonial politics in Saudi Arabia and the ways an online presence affects the status of women in Kuwait, the chapters examine shifts in the political, social and religious identities of citizens as a result of increased digital activism. With contributions from a variety of inter-disciplinary experts, this wide-ranging study examines the consequences of changing power dynamics brought about by popular social media. In doing so, this book offers an original perspective on the long-term implications of internet usage in the Arab world and is essential reading for students and researchers working across the region.

This volume contains the contributions to the Gulf Research Center workshop entitled: “Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Relations with Post-War Iraq: A Strategic Perspective,” held during the July 2013 Gulf Research Meeting in Cambridge, UK. The papers examine the history and future of the often fractious relationship between Iraq and the GCC countries. The backdrop is the US dominance of security arrangements in the Arabian Gulf region for most of the post-war period. Prior to the new millennium, the region’s major security threat was perceived to be the mounting rivalry between a GCC-US camp on the one hand and an Iranian camp on the other. Some semblance of equilibrium had been achieved through the late 1990s, but the US invasion of Iraq in 2003 created new fault lines. In the invasion’s aftermath, regional peace was maintained by the overwhelming presence of US troops both in Iraq and in the GCC more generally. The 2011 withdrawal of US troops from Iraq plunged the region into a state of disequilibrium, and current developments suggest a trajectory of mounting instability. The volume’s contributions explore the underlying reasons for the region’s instability from a variety of perspectives and with an emphasis on the GCC’s relationship with Iraq. Topics covered include: Iraq’s federal architecture, the highly controversial role of Iran, the effects of regional sectarianism, the possibility of Iraq becoming a member of the GCC, the impact of Chinese oil demand, the evolving nature of US regional military deployments, and the expanding use of social media by religious clerics. The volume’s goal is to produce operational recommendations for senior government figures. To that end, each author provides two lists of recommendations for improving the region’s stability: one targeting GCC policymakers and the other targeting their Iraqi counterparts. There is a strong consensus concerning the need for a more inclusive and multilateral approach to regional security, and for any such approach to be spearheaded by the region’s principle stakeholders: Iraq, Iran and the GCC countries themselves. However, the precise nature of a potentially successful common security strategy remains an area of considerable controversy.

Housing is what creates and defines cities, and affordable housing is what makes successful and scalable cities. Indeed, housing is the spatial expression of a society’s values and morality, and of its commitment to an inclusive society. In the Gulf region, characterized by rapid urbanization and astonishing transformation over the last two decades, housing is absolutely urgent as a national priority. In the twenty-first century, nations will compete economically based on the effectiveness and efficiency of their cities, which throughout history have been the engines of ideas, innovation, and wealth creation. As nations urbanize, and even more as they become progressively wealthier, housing rises as a national policy priority, because housing quality, availability, and affordability are all matters in the national economic and political interest. The inescapable gravity of land-use economics means that as a nation’s cities become engines of wealth generation, housing cost rises even as the definition of ‘market quality’ is likewise rising. The result is that affordable housing is always a national imperative, because below-market-income people can never afford market quality housing. The Gulf region has an unusually large number of factors that make the emergence and development of quality affordable housing a challenge without obvious parallels or examples elsewhere in the world. As a result, the region presents a set of housing and affordable housing delivery challenges unique in their own right. These challenges will require solutions based on innovation in both the private and public sectors.

The Gulf region’s primary economic relationships are rapidly shifting from West to East. Relations with China, Japan and South Korea are becoming increasingly strategic in nature: based on a degree of mutual dependence far greater than is present in Gulf-Western relations. The balance of global politics will be critically affected by this powerful emerging relationship. This book provides documentation of the trend and examines some of the political and strategic issues which follow from it.

This book examines the strategies and dynamics through which state-society relations in the Arab Gulf region have been cultivated, and explores the alternative political, social, economic and popular changes that threaten these relations. The work focuses on understanding how state sovereignty has been shifting to accommodate internal social, cultural, and intellectual forces and how these forces have managed to balance social and political powers in order to function within and co-exist alongside the state. Case-studies give specific examples of how social forces, popular movements, social media and youth culture are actively influencing cultural attitudes and practices as well as political actions.

This volume presents the outcome of an Agriculture Workshop organized by the Gulf Research Centre Cambridge (GRCC), and held at Cambridge University, UK during the Gulf Research Meeting 11-14 July 2012. Co-directed by the editors, the workshop, entitled “Environmental Cost and Changing Pace of Agriculture in the Gulf States” was attended by participants from Australia, Bahrain, India, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, UAE, UK, and Morocco. These scientists, educators, researchers, policy makers and managers share their experience in agriculture in the Gulf States, with the aim of helping to improve agriculture production and thus bridge the gap between local production and the food import. The papers gathered here were presented at the workshop, and have all passed through rigorous peer review by renowned scientists. The diverse papers present various aspects of agriculture production in the evolving face of climate change and dwindling water resources in the region. The book covers topics such as the prospects of agriculture in a changing climate; the potential of climate-smart agriculture; the impact of food prices, income and income distribution on food security; improved efficiency in water use; challenges in using treated wastewater in agriculture; investment in foreign agriculture and agricultural research and development. The papers span the nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council, with specific case studies set in Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait.

Climate change requires coordinated global responses. All nations, including major Gulf Arab oil producers, should implement policies to contain greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Yet all realistic scenarios point to the continuing global need for fossil fuels. The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) thus face a dilemma between continuing development and use of their fossil fuel endowments and increasing reliance on low carbon sources, such as nuclear, solar or wind. This book edited by Giacomo Luciani and Rabbia Ferroukhi explores various facets of the dilemma. The volume is a product of a workshop held the 2012 Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center, Cambridge.

This book edited by Ranjit Gupta, Abubaker Bagader, Talmiz Ahmed and N. Janardhan explores how growing economic ties between Asian countries and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) could impact their future relationship. It postulates that the stage is now set for strategic partnerships and highlights how some Asian countries have been explicit about showcasing their power and influence in the Gulf region. While exploring an alternative and broad-based security architecture, it identifies the challenges that any probable Asian cooperative approach could face as the countries of the Arabian Gulf show signs of looking beyond the United States to develop their long-term strategic interests. The volume is a product of a workshop held the 2012 Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center, Cambridge.

Gulf Charities and Islamic Philanthropy in the “Age of Terror” and Beyond edited by Robert Lacey and Jonathan Benthall is the first book to be published on the charities of Saudi Arabia and the Arabian Gulf, covering their work both domestically and internationally. From a diversity of viewpoints, the book addresses the historical roots of Islamic philanthropy in religious traditions and geopolitical movements; the interactions of the Gulf charities with “Western” relief and development institutions – now under pressure owing to budgetary constraints; numerous case studies from the Middle East, Africa, and South Asia; the impact of violent extremism on the sector, with the legal repercussions that have followed – especially in the USA; the recent history of attempts to alleviate the obstacles faced by bona fide Islamic charities, whose absence from major conflict zones now leaves a vacuum for extremist groups to penetrate; and the prospects for a less politicized Islamic charity sector when the so-called “war on terror” eventually loses its salience. The volume is a product of a workshop held the 2012 Gulf Research Meeting organized by the Gulf Research Center, Cambridge.

How immune is the Gulf region to the changes that have engulfed the Arab world since 2011? This volume responds to this question by examining the impact of the Arab Spring on Gulf regimes and societies and contributing to debates on political participation and citizenship; sectarianism, gender and identity formation; as well as the role of the media in exposing the paradoxes of the Gulf system and its relationship to international political actors.

Since the last decade of the 20th century, there has been an increase in South-South trade, which is also reflected in the trade between the Gulf and Latin American countries. While trade between the two sides grew substantially during the last decade, there are also renewed attempts to cooperate in other fields. The opening of embassies in Latin America by the Gulf countries and vice versa in the last few years, direct flights between Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela to some of the capitals of the Gulf region, investments by the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Qatar in some Latin American countries and the holding of the Arab-South American Summits starting from 2005, among other exchanges, reveal the growing convergence of interests between these two regions. This book covers, in particular, an aspect that is often neglected in area studies, namely the exchange as a whole between the two regions, since most studies on these regions tend to focus on the interactions with developed countries or emerging economies such as China and Russia. From a historical, economic and politically strategic point of view, the book offers a critical examination of the foreign policies pursued by the Gulf and Latin American countries in the renewed exchange that is taking place now. Attention is given to the importance that both regions place on the elaboration and implementation of their foreign policies as well as the strategies envisaged. From the Gulf perspective, some of the chapters show how Latin America became a part of the Gulf countries’ search for global engagement, as the result of a process emanating from their own internal and regional needs. From the Latin American perspective, the chapters assess the new strategies and interests which guide the development of closer links with the Gulf against the backdrop of the shifts and continuities of their foreign policies. This volume discusses the different perspectives in the evolution of recent interests and issues at stake in this emerging relationship between the Gulf and Latin American countries.

Asia constitutes the hub of the transformation of global economic power today. The Gulf, itself part of Asia, is of increasing importance in this transformation. This book documents the growing interactions between the economies of the Gulf states and those of the rest of Asia. These relationships are critical to how the world economy develops over the next decade, and how economic (and perhaps strategic) power is distributed. This volume, edited by Tim Niblock with Monica Malik, assembles cutting-edge thinking by 16 specialists on a wide variety of topics covering Arab Gulf relations with China, Japan, ASEAN, Korea and India, as well as with Russia, Iran and Turkey. The book is published by Gerlach Press.