Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East
Developing pragmatic policy approaches to the region’s enduring political, economic and societal concerns.
Featured Research
Featured Experts
Migration Initiative
With an interdisciplinary and interrelated approach, the Baker Institute Migration Initiative — a collaboration between the Center for Health and Biosciences, Center for the U.S. and Mexico and Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East — focuses on the economic, legal, health and social and environmental aspects of migration.
Middle East Energy Roundtable
The Middle East Energy Roundtable (MEER), a joint initiative of the Center for Energy Studies and Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East, brings together the energy industry, diplomatic community, and scholars to deepen policy research on Middle Eastern energy and geopolitics, improve understanding of the region within the Houston community, and generate partnerships.
Recent Events
Research
Unable or Unwilling To Move? How Climate Change Impacts the Decision To Migrate Among Turkish Farmers
Introduction
Climate change effects, including drought, sea level rise, floods, storms, and land…
A Synergistic Approach to the OAU Refugee Convention and the Kampala Convention
Introduction
Data released by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in mid-2022…
Keeping the Refugee Convention Relevant: Expanding Protection for Environmentally Displaced Populations
Introduction
Migration is not a new phenomenon. Historically, it has been a mechanism for adapting to…
A Framework for Protecting Human Rights in the Context of Internal Climate-Induced Displacement
Introduction
Climate change and disasters, both slow- and rapid-onset, contribute to displacement…
The Weaponization of Natural Resources and Disasters During Conflict: The Refugee Convention’s Relevance for Syria and Yemen
Introduction
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region is the most water-scarce region in the…
Moving Beyond the Refugee Convention Impasse on Climate Displacement: Skills Mobility Partnerships
Introduction
Efforts to reopen the 1951 Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees to enshrine…
Past Events
Fellows and Scholars
Affiliated Experts
Research Staff
About the Center
The Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East provides policymakers, scholars and the general public with comprehensive analyses of regional issues, events and trends that impact U.S. policy and global stability. Named in honor of Ambassador Edward P. Djerejian, the founding director of the Baker Institute, the center focuses on key policy areas including, Israeli-Palestinian conflict resolution, the political economy of the Gulf, refugees, human rights and women’s right issues in the MENA, U.S.-Iranian relations and Islamist movements.
The center builds on the Baker Institute’s long engagement with the Middle East and provides support for research, lectures, conferences and affiliations with other experts and organizations addressing policy challenges in the region. The center offers a nonpartisan voice relying on data-driven research and direct engagement with decision-makers in the United States and in the region. The center also collaborates with experts at the institute’s Center for Energy Studies as well as Rice University academics studying the history, politics and societies of the Middle East. As a meeting point for different academic disciplines and viewpoints, the center fosters informed, policy-relevant dialogue and recommendations.
In May 2022, Rice University President David Leebron announced, “With the approval and endorsement of Rice University’s Board of Trustees, the Baker Institute’s Center for the Middle East will henceforth be known as the Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East” in recognition of Djerejian’s role as founding director of the Baker Institute and his “extraordinary leadership and deeply impactful foreign service career.”
For more information:
Ana Martín Gil
Research Manager
Edward P. Djerejian Center for the Middle East
Email: am165@rice.edu
Office Phone: (713) 348-5637