CBRL news June 2018
Message from the Chairman
Welcome to our first newsletter about CBRL’s activities. We have so much going on that there’s plenty more to say, and a regular series of newsletters will follow. 

The world of research, and the region in which we work, are both changing, and CBRL is adapting with plenty of new ideas and possibilities. Our enduring purpose is to produce knowledge independently of political or other agendas, to the highest academic standards, to publish it, and to provide clear public benefit by doing so. We are proud of the many scholars, and in particular early-career academics, whom we are able to encourage and support in different ways. I hope the items on this newsletter will give you a taste of what we have been working on.

James Watt CVO
Chairman, Council for British Research in the Levant
Call for papers (Prize for Best Article) Contemporary Levant 
CBRL's international peer-reviewed journal Contemporary Levant  is launching a prize for best article. Read more   
New undergraduate dissertation prize 2018
For 2018, CBRL will award two undergraduate dissertations on topics relating to the Levant. Read more  
New Alta’ir partnership: a Jordan - Durham Creative Collaboration
A new literary exchange between the North East of England and Jordan, this project aims to enable dialogue and cultural exchange between the Arab world and the UK. Applications are now open for a published writer from the North East to travel to Jordan on a month-long residency. Read more
To mark the centenary of the Egyptian revolution of 1919, CBRL is partnering with the British Egyptian Society and the London Middle East Institute at SOAS University of London for a two-day conference on 27-28 March 2019. Read more
News from the field
WF museum opening
Faynan museum soft opening
On 4 March 2018,the Faynan Museum  was opened to visitors by Her Excellency Ms Lina Annab, Jordan’s Minister of Tourism and Antiquities. The soft opening was a culmination of almost 30 years of CBRL involvement in archaeological research in the Faynan region and the efforts of the  Department of Antiquities of Jordan . Read more
The Balfour legacy at 100
In partnership with the British Council and the Educational Bookshop, last November CBRL’s Kenyon Institute hosted a half-day conference, The British Legacy in Palestine - Balfour and Beyond at the Palestine National Theatre with 400 people attending. The keynote address was given by Avi Shlaim with two further panel discussions. Catch-up on the event in full here .
In London, a half-day conference was held at the British Academy with speakers Dr Jonathan Schneer, Prof. Rosemary Hollis and Dr Victor Kattan, chaired by Sir Adam Roberts. Listen to the lectures here .
People at CBRL
Good wishes for CBRL’s long-serving Director
In March, long-serving Director Prof Bill Finlayson left his post. Bill played a major role in transforming the CBRL from a small archaeological research base into a multi-disciplinary research body with a vibrant research culture. We wish Bill all the very best as he pursues his own research interests. Read more
Award winner for CBRL’s Mandy Turner
CBRL’s Mandy Turner, Director of the Kenyon Institute was presented with the Susan S Northcutt Award at the International Studies Association’s conference in San Francisco in April. This award was to recognise Mandy’s outstanding work in mentoring women in academia as well as her contribution to international studies. Well done Mandy!
Upcoming events...
CBRL at the British Academy Summer Showcase:
22nd – 23rd June
CBRL will be presenting at the British Academy’s first Summer Showcase where archaeologist Dr Jennie Bradbury and anthropologist Dr Philip Proudfoot draw on CBRL funded research to ask: Was the 2011 Syrian uprising an agrarian revolt? Read more
Recent CBRL publications

2018 Contemporary Levant special issue, Gendering Everyday Islam , is online now: bit.ly/2sLQaWK

The latest issue of CBRL’s archaeology and history journal Levant is available online here: bit.ly/2sBELJS

CBRL members are automatically subscribed to either Levant or Contemporary Levant and receive both a printed copy and online access throughout the year.
Catch up on recent CBRL lectures…
Devastated Lands: Lebanon at the end of the Great War, 1919
Prof Eugene Rogan 
Troublemaker, Liberator, Scapegoat; Spears in Lebanon
1941 – 44
Tom Young  bit.ly/2rjTk3i
How the West Undermined Women’s Rights in the Arab World Dr Nicola Pratt