Conference Program, Click Here (Last updated: May 12th, 2010 @ 11:05 AM)

Plenary Speakers

Scott Atran, Ph.D, is the Research Director in Anthropology at the National Center for Scientific Research in Paris, France, a Visiting Professor of Psychology and Public Policy at the University of Michigan and a Presidential Scholar in Sociology at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.     Dr. Atran’s Work on the religious roots of suicide terrorism has been featured around the world by Reuters, the Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, the Wall Street Journal, the Sunday Times, El Mundo (Spain), La Recherche (France), Der Spiegel (Germany), Il Sole 24 Ore (Italy), the BBC National and World Service, CTV (Canada), National Public Radio, ABC, MSNBC, Discovery Channel, and CNN radio and television.  His wide-ranging, interdisciplinary approach to social, psychological and cultural issues, along with the unusual breadth and depth of his personal experience in both the Arab and Israeli Middle East, provides Dr. Atran’s analysis of the roots of suicide terrorism a rare blend of intellectual and practical force.

Amhed Herzzeni, Ph.D., was appointed by the King of Morocco to be the President of the Consultative Council for Human Rights on May 31, 2007.  In February 1972, Dr. Herzenni was arrested and subsequently sentenced to 12 years in prison as a political dissident.  Since his release from prison, he has spearheaded reconciliation efforts in his country and has been an international advocate for human rights.  Mr. Herzenni has a Ph.D. in sociology and in anthropology from the University of Kentucky and a Degree of Advanced Studies in sociology from the Rabat Faculty of Arts and Humanities.  He started his professional career as a teacher and then became a sociologist specializing in rural world affairs.  

Rahma Bourqia is President of Hassan II University – Mohammedia-Casablanca, where she was Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.  Previously a Professor of Sociology and Anthropology at Mohammed V University in Rabat, she is the first woman president of a Moroccan university.  President Bourqia has written extensively on social structures and their impact on education, gender and health within Moroccan society.  She is author of the book State, Power and Society in Morocco.

Tentative Schedule