Ten years since the beginning of the events that have come to be understood as the Arab Uprisings, the Jadaliyya Environment Page invites submissions that provide critical analyses of the relationship between the uprisings and environmental questions in the Middle East and North Africa.
In keeping with our editorial mission, we employ a broad understanding of “environmental issues,” and encourage submissions that unpack, challenge, and redefine the often narrow confines that have determined what counts as an environmental concern in the region. The majority of environmental analyses of the Arab Uprisings have drawn uncritical connections between the climate crisis and the Syrian conflict, identifying it as the first “climate war.” The Jadaliyya Environment Page welcomes submissions that interrogate these claims and shed new light on other under-examined connections. While we welcome submissions that directly address the major events of 2010–11 in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Syria, and Libya, our interest in the connections between the uprisings and environmental issues extends well beyond these events and particular locations. We are also especially interested in the transnational impacts of the uprisings on countries and communities within the region that have felt the effects of the events of 2010–11. Some locales may be less-often discussed in discourse about the uprisings, or have not been extensively analyzed in terms of the relationship between the uprisings and environmental concerns. Additionally, we encourage analyses that are transregional in scope, and examine how governments and communities have responded, and continue to respond, to the uprisings.
Topics to be addressed by authors may include:
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critical engagement with myths surrounding the notions of “climate wars”
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the uprisings’ relationship with dominant narratives about resource scarcity and resource inequity in the region (e.g. oil, water)
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historical analyses of environmental events and trends predating and precipitating the uprisings
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the construction and destruction of the built environment and urban environmental issues in relation to the uprisings
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issues of agriculture and development in relation to the uprisings
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the formation and evolution of environmental activism movements before, during, and since the uprisings
We invite those interested in contributing to submit either a) a full-length draft (in the range of 1000 to 3000 words) for consideration by the editors; or b) an article proposal, including a description of the topics to be covered, summary of the central argument of the piece, and an outline of the approach the author(s) plan to take. At this time, our call is focused on articles. Audio and visual contributions such as podcast interviews for our “Environment in Context” series and photo essays are currently solicited directly by the editors, but we welcome authors to indicate an interest in these other forms of contribution.
With all submissions, please include full author name(s), short bio(s), and the email address at which you may be contacted about the submission. This is an open call; pieces will be reviewed as received, and selected pieces will be published throughout the duration of 2021.
We also continue to welcome general submissions on the wide range of contemporary and historical topics within the page’s purview. Please take a look at articles recently published by the page as the best starting point for understanding the range of topics we cover, and approaches contributors may wish to take.
Jadaliyya is a forum for public scholarship and analysis of the Middle East and North Africa that welcomes submissions from academics, artists, and activists. Please send your submissions and any questions to environment@jadaliyya.com. We look forward to hearing from you.