The Future of Peace and Democracy in the Middle East

Join us for this important conversation between Thomas Friedman and Salam Fayyad about the future of peace and democracy in the Middle East, hosted by Dean Christa Acampora. This is the third event in the Arts & Sciences Enabling Difficult Conversations Series. This event series seeks to bring in conversation partners with expertise in the area of enabling difficult conversations. This event is open to the public, but registration is required. A catered reception will follow the event.

Thomas Friedman is the bestselling author of The World is Flat and New York Times foreign affairs columnist. He is renowned for his direct reporting and accessible analysis of complex issues shaping the world. According to Foreign Policy magazine, “Friedman doesn't just report on events; he helps shape them.” The winner of three Pulitzer Prizes, he has covered monumental stories from around the globe for The New York Times since 1981. With clear and compelling language, Friedman discusses the opportunities and challenges that “accelerations,” including technology and connectivity, present. He also explores solutions — on a local and global level — to ensure the future of work, skills, income, and prosperity.

He has written seven books since 1989 that have sold 10 million copies in 40 different languages. They include From Beirut to Jerusalem, The Lexus and the Olive Tree, The World is Flat and, most recently, his latest bestseller, Thank You for Being Late: An Optimist's Guide to Thriving in the Age of Accelerations, in which Friedman offers a blueprint for overcoming the stresses and challenges of a world being transformed by technology, globalization, and climate change.

Friedman was featured in Showtime's climate change documentary series Years of Living Dangerously, executive produced by James Cameron and Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Salam Fayyad is an economist and former prime minister of the Palestinian Authority. With the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from 1987 to 2001, his tenure included serving as IMF resident representative in the West Bank and Gaza Strip from 1996 to 2001. He then served as manager of the Arab Bank in Palestine, and, in June 2002, he was named minister of finance of the Palestinian Authority. Until he resigned in December 2005, Dr. Fayyad served in that capacity on several cabinets, introducing in the process extensive financial reforms. In January 2006, he ran for elections on a slate of independents and was elected for the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC), where he served as chairman of the Finance Committee. In March 2007, Fayyad was appointed again as minister of finance in a national unity government, and in June 2007, he was appointed prime minister, a position he held until he stepped down in June 2013. In August 2013, Fayyad founded "Future for Palestine," a nonprofit development foundation. Currently, Dr. Fayyad is a Visiting Senior Scholar and Lecturer in Public Policy and Daniella Lipper Coules ’95 Distinguished Visitor in Foreign Affairs at the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University. He is also a Distinguished Statesman with the Atlantic Council’s Brent Scowcroft Center on International Security and a Distinguished Fellow at the Brookings Institution. Dr. Fayyad holds a BSc from the American University of Beirut, an MBA from St. Edward's University, and a PhD in economics from the University of Texas at Austin.

This event is co-sponsored by the UVA Jewish Studies Program, the Miller Center and the Middle Eastern & South Asian Languages & Cultures Department.

The event will take place in Old Cabell Hall, located at the south end of the historic Lawn, directly opposite the Rotunda. Free street parking is available nearby. Additional paid parking is available in the Central Grounds Garage, a ten-minute walk from Old Cabell Hall.

Host or Publisher UVA College and Graduate School of Arts & Sciences