Projects
Enhancing Science Communication for Gender and Develop
Duration: September 2022 – December 2022
The Gender-Development Research & Studies Center (GDRSC) at Sana’a University, Yemen, and CARPO are co-implementing this short-term project on science communication for gender and development funded by the German Academic Exchange Service in the framework of its Ta’ziz Partnership funding line. The objectives of this project are: a) to initiate and/or intensify the networks and cooperation between higher education partners (GDRSC), German and Yemeni students and civil society stakeholders in the fields of gender and development in Yemen; b) to contribute to the acquisition of new knowledge and methodological expertise in regard to effective and impactful science communication in the fields of gender and development; and c) to discuss how such knowledge and expertise can best be integrated into the master course on gender and development taught at GDRSC.
Enhancing the Capacities and Capabilities of Iraq’s Institutional Landscape in Adhering to Public Demands and Fostering Socioeconomic Development
Duration: December 2021 – June 2022
Severe economic challenges impose enduring hardship on the livelihoods of the Iraqi populations. To help bridge the divide between the state and the society, support the process of socioeconomic development and reform, this project aims to develop capacities of relevant Iraqi government stakeholders, private research institutions, think tanks, and NGOs to act as an intermediary between society and state. It further assists project participants to work jointly on a sustainability strategy for the promotion of dialogue and participation in Iraq that would contribute to policy reforms. After a thorough mapping and needs assessment, the implementing organizations will define tailored capacity development measures and activities for Iraqi partners.
Research Cooperation on Peacebuilding in Yemen
Duration: since February 2019
This initiative seeks to develop the capacities of Yemeni and international researchers and organizations in researching and advising on peacebuilding in Yemen. Within its framework, an ongoing series of publications, each resulting from a Yemeni-international research partnership, on aspects of peacebuilding in Yemen is developed and published. The initiative is implemented on behalf of Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH and co-financed by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the European Union.
Global Autocratic Collaboration in Times of COVID-19: Game Changer or Business as usual in Sino-Gulf Relations
Duration: February 2021 – July 2022
There is strong empirical evidence that COVID-19 acts as a booster for processes of global autocratization in which autocratic protagonists present themselves as more effective role modelsin fighting the pandemic than the ‘liberal script’ of Western societies. This project aims at explaining these corridors of autocratic collaboration based on the example of Sino-Gulf relations that challenge Europe’s and Germany’s international alliances andpartnerships. The project consists of two research blocs: Firstly, it deals with the traveling of autocratic practices and asks how global autocratic collaboration manifests itself in times of crises. Secondly, the project addresses questions of competition for China’s favor:How are regional actors competing in terms of their ‘special relations’ with China?
Impact of Oil Extraction Industries on Local Communities and the Environment in Hadhramawt, Yemen
Duration: April 2022 – April 2023
Over the past years, the oil extraction industry and climatic disasters played an important role in environmental degradation and socio-political instability in Yemen. Against the backdrop of these problems, Ettifaq, MMF and CARPO explore the impact of oil extraction in the governorate of Hadhramawt. Livelihoods and the health of local communities are at the focus, as well as the ways environmental pressures exacerbate tensions and hinder coexistence. The overall goal of this project, which will result in workshops, trainings, briefings and a publication, is to raise awareness about Yemen’s environmental stress, addressing of which constitutes a key prerequisite for sustainable peace in the country.
Iran-Saudi Dialogue Initiative
Duration: October 2015 – April 2023
Since 2015, CARPO has established an Iran-Saudi dialogue format in cooperation with the Stimson Center in Brussels. This initiative entails workshops and publications focussing on the exchange of perspectives on relevant issues between diplomats, policy analysts and security experts from both countries.
A first project phase – funded by the German Ministry for Foreign Affairs through the Institut für Auslandsbeziehungen (ifa) – ran from 2015 to 2018. Throughout this period, numerous workshops on a broad variety of topics were implemented and their insights published through publicly available policy briefs. As of 2019, the initiative has entered its second phase and is jointly funded by the Foreign Ministries of Switzerland and the Netherlands.
In 2020 and 2021, this initiative will continue to bring together distinguished stakeholders from Tehran and Riyadh to exchange viewpoints and assessments on issues of shared interest and concern in the Middle East.
kull:tour – Enhancing Cultural Dialogue between the Gulf States and Germany
Duration: Oktober – Dezember 2021
In order to enhance the Gulf-German cultural dialogue, CARPO is organizing a workshop in December 2021 that will take place in the Gulf region and brings together artists from the Gulf Arab States and Germany. The workshop offers the participants the opportunity to exchange ideas about their cultural commitment in the areas of culture and realities of life, culture and sustainability and culture in everyday life. As a result of this workshop, concrete ideas for joint cultural projects should be developed that bring together German and Gulf Arabian perspectives and insights. It is intended to realize these ideas in a later phase of the project and to present them to a wider public.
Rethinking Yemen’s Economy – A Track II Initiative
Duration: March 2017 – May 2025
This two-year project is an initiative to identify Yemen’s economic, humanitarian, social and development priorities in light of the ongoing conflict in Yemen, and to prepare for the post-conflict recovery period. It aims to build consensus in crucial policy areas through engaging and promoting informed Yemeni voices in the public discourse.
Tafahum wa Tabadul
Duration: December 2021 – May 2023 (current project phase)
This project has started in December 2021 and aims to generate further understanding (tafahum) among regional stakeholders and to foster cooperation (tabadul) on common interests in West Asia and the Arabian Peninsula (WAAP) – a region that includes the GCC states, Iran, Iraq and Yemen. In the course of this project, various stakeholders like officials, academics and experts as well as civil society actors will be engaged on various levels with the aim of generating a political climate that is more conducive to regional cooperation. Furthermore it aims at collectively examining the energy-climate-health nexus – a concept that entails economic and ecologic sustainability, as well as regional health resilience, and at fostering people-to-people mobility in the region through exchange activities in the fields of academia and civic education. This 3-year initiative is funded by the German Federal Foreign Office and builds on the results of the Tafahum project, which was implemented between 2018-2021.