Invited Presentations

“Beyond Cool Japan: The Special Role of Japan in Saudi Modernity and Reform.” Paper sponsored by Waseda University and Sophia University and presented to Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan, May 2024.

“Changing Saudi Arabia: Overview Discussion.” Conversation, discussion, and presentation, with Dr. Hatem Alzahrani. The event was sponsored by Adab Publishing and the Saudi Ministry of Culture and held at Jeem Stage, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, May 2023.

“Art’s Mission is Freeing Life: The Creative Class and Social Change in Contemporary Saudi Arabia.” Paper presented to the Islamic Civilization & Societies Program at Boston College, Chestnut Hill, MA, March 2023.

“Building a Sound Community in the Kingdom: Music and Saudi Arabia’s Creative Class.” Paper presented via Zoom to Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan, September 2022.

“MEI Speaks: Online Discussion 2: Changing Saudi Arabia: Art, Culture, and Society in the Kingdom.” Paper presented via Zoom to Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India, July 2020.

“#Cometogether: Cultural and Social Change in Saudi Arabia.” Paper presented to National Council of US-Arab Relations, Washington, DC May 2020.

“‘People need to listen to the artist’: How Saudi Arabia’s Creative Class Is Transforming the Kingdom in the twenty-first century.” Paper presented to Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan, December 2019.

“Saudi Arabia’s Artistic Movement.” Paper presented to Yale University, New Haven, CT, December 2019.

“Inside Saudi Arabia’s Growing Arts and Culture Scene.” Paper given as part of an academic round table at the Middle East Institute, Washington, DC, March, 2019.

“Changing Saudi Arabia: Art, Culture, and Society in the Kingdom.” Paper delivered at the Prince Alwaleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding at Georgetown University, Washington, DC., February 2019.

“Change from the Bottom Up: Art, Society, and Southern Saudi Arabia.” Paper delivered at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, DC, February 2019.

“The Ottoman Empire, the Middle East, and World War I.” Paper delivered to Texas State University, San Marcos, TX, March 2018.

“Culture and Sino-Saudi Relations: An American Professor’s Perspective.” Paper delivered to the School of Arabic Studies, Beijing Foreign Studies University, Beijing, China, December 2016.

“When dissonance becomes unexpected harmony: How artists are re-imagining Saudi Arabia’s culture and society.” Paper delivered to the Centre for Middle East Studies, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan, May 2016.

“When the Quran was America’s weapon for freedom in the Middle East.” Paper delivered to University Malaysia, Perlis (UniMAP), Arau, Perlis, Malaysia, December 2015.

“The unacknowledged legislators of the kingdom: Arts and Culture in Contemporary Saudi Arabia.” Paper delivered to the Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences, International Islamic University, Malaysia, Gombak (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), December 2015.

“To Forgive but Not Forget: Saudi Arabia and Middle East in the Age of ISIS.” Paper delivered to the University Forum Lecture Series, the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Nevada, April 2015.

“Go With All of Your Heart: An American Scholar’s Pursuit of Knowledge of and Understanding.” Paper presented to Beijing Foreign Studies University, School of Asian and African Studies, Beijing,  March 2015.

“A Kingdom of Many Colors: How Artists, Culture, and Technology Are Redefining Contemporary Saudi Arabia.” MTSU History Department Fall 2014 Faculty Brown Bag Talks, October 2014.

“No Woman, No Drive: How a new generation of artists is transforming Saudi Arabia.” Paper presented to the Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia, August 2014.

“Gender and Social Change in Saudi Arabia: Rights versus the Optimal Social Choice.” Paper presented to the Centre for Muslim States and Societies, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia, August 2014.

“The Gulf and the Arab Spring: An American’s Perspective.” Paper presented to the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Institute of Diplomatic Studies, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, June 2013.

“Awakening Records, Maher Zain, and the Rise of the New Muslim Sound.” Paper presented to the Wednesday Lecture Series, The International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (ISTAC), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, September 2012.

“The Latent Desire: The Arab Spring and the Rise of the New Order in the Middle East and the Modern World.” Paper sponsored by the IIUM Academic Staff Association and the Department of Political Science, Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences, International Islamic University, Malaysia, Gombak (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia), September 2012.

“Shaykh Tahir, al-Manar, and the Rise of Islamic Modernism in Southeast Asia.” Paper sponsored by the Fulbright Alumni Association Malaysia in collaboration with IIUM Academic Staff Association and the Kulliyyah of Islamic Revealed Knowledge and Human Sciences, International Islamic University, Malaysia, Gombak (Kuala Lumpur), Malaysia, June, 2012.

“I told u I’m optimistic abt the future:” Maher Zain, Technology, and the Rise of the New Order in the Arab World.” Paper presented to the College of Law, Government, and International Studies, Universiti Utara Malaysia, Kedah, Malaysia, November 2011.

“Creating a Modern Muslim Identity Through Music: Maher Zain, the Arab Spring, and the Rise of a New Order in the Middle East.” Paper presented to Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand, November 2011.

“Shaykh Tahir, al-Manar, and the rise of Islamic Modernism in Southeast Asia.” Paper presented to Beijing Foreign Studies University, School of Asian and African Studies, Beijing, China, November 2011.

“When the people want to change the system: the Arab Spring and New Middle East.” Paper presented to Capital Normal University, Beijing, China, October 2011.

“When Life Imitates Art: The Arab Spring, Social Change, and the Rise of the New Order in the Middle East.” Paper presented to the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies (IAIS) Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, October, 2011.

“The 2011 Arab Awakening and the New Disorders of Hope in the Middle East.”  Paper presented to the Pusat Penataran Ilmu dan Bahasa (Centre for the Promotion of Knowledge and Language Learning), University of Malaysia, Sabah, September 2011.

“Sing a Song: Touch the World” Maher Zain and the Arab Spring.” Paper Presented to the Perpustakaan Awam Sabah (Sabah State Public Library) and the Lincoln Resource Center, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia, September 2011.

“Sing a Song: Touch the World” Maher Zain and the Arab Spring.” Paper Presented to the Pustaka Negeri Sarawak (Sarawak State Library), Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia, September 2011.

“How Muslim Medicine Promoted Reason, Science and Public Health in the West.” Paper presented to Universiti Putra Malaysia, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia, August 2011.

“How Islam and Melaka Shaped the West and the Modern World.” Paper presented to the Perbadanan Perpustakaan Awam Melaka (Melaka State Public Library) and the Lincoln Resource Center, Melaka, Melaka, Malaysia, July 2011.

“Southeast Asia’s Unique Role in the Rise of the Muslim World.” Paper Presented to Center for the Study of Islam and Social Transformation (CISForm), Universitas Islam Negeri Sunan Kalijaga Yogyakarta, Yogyakarta, Indonesia, June 2011.

“The Influence of the Arab Awakening on Southeast Asian Islam.” Paper presented to the Sekolah Pascasarjana (Post Graduate School), Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) Syarif Hidayatullah Jakarta, Ciputat, South Tangerang, Banten, Indonesia, June 2011.

“Obama’s Speech May 19th on the Middle East and North Africa.” Paper presented to U.S. Embassy Roundtable at the Malaysian American Commission on Educational Exchange, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, May 2011.

“Islam and the Rise of Freedom in the West.”  Paper presented to the Perbadanan Perpustakaan Awam Kedah (Kedah State Public Library) and the Lincoln Resource Center, Alor Setar, Kedah, Malaysia, May 2011.

“Paradox of Power: America in the Middle East in 2011.”  Paper presented to “Current Political Crisis in the Middle East: Implications for U.S. Foreign Policy,” Dinner Talk-CUM Seminar sponsored by the Centre for American Studies (KAMERA), Institute of Occidental Studies (IKON), Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM) in Cooperation with the Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS), UKM and the Malaysian Association for American Studies, April 2011.

“Islam and the Rise of Freedom in the West.”  Paper presented to the Perbadanan Perpustakaan Awam Kelantan (Kelantan State Public Library) and to the Lincoln Resource Center, Kota Bharu, Kelantan, Malaysia, April 2011.

“Briefing on the Middle East Revolt: Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya.”  Commissioned Lecture, 2011 Management Conference, Employees Provident Fund/Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja (Malaysia), Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia, April 2011.

“Blaming the West for Everything? Modernity, Money, and the Gulf States in the Contemporary Era.”  Paper presented to the Center for West Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India, April 2011.

“Southeast Asia’s Unique Role in the Rise of the Muslim World, 1875-1935.” Paper presented to the MUIS Academy, Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, February 2011.

“When Only Women Will Work.” Paper presented to the Middle East Institute, National University Singapore, Singapore, February 2011.

“Buatan Asia Tenggara: Southeast Asia’s Unique Role in the Rise of the Modern Muslim World, 1875-1935.” Paper presented to the Asian Research Institute, National University Singapore, Singapore, February 2011.

“Center and Frontier: Southeast Asia’s Unique Role in the Rise of the Modern Muslim World, 1875-1935.” Paper presented to the History Department, National University of Singapore, February 2011.

“Arab Gulf States: Beyond Oil and Islam.” Commissioned Lecture, Indian National Seminar: “Conflict in South and West Asia: Prospects for Peace,” Centre For West Asian Studies, Aligarh University, Aligarh, India, December 2010.

“Down and Out on the Ninetieth Floor: The Arab Gulf States in the Twenty-First Century.” Paper presented to Indian-Arab Cultural Center, Jamia Millia University, New Delhi, India, December 2010.

“Islam and the rise of liberty in the West.”  Paper presented to the monthly speaker series at the International Institute for Muslim Unity, International Islamic University, Malaysia, Gombak (Kuala Lumpur), Malaysia, December 2010.

“Has America At Last Found God’s Way? The United States, the 1952 Hajj and the Cold War in the Middle East.”  Paper presented to the Friday Night Lecture Series, The International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (ISTAC), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, October 2010.

“The sons of Anatolia return to the scorching sands: Turkey and the Gulf States in the 21st Century.” Paper presented to Izmir University, Izmir, Turkey, May 2010.

“Arab Gulf States: Beyond Oil and Islam.” Paper presented to the Middle East Institute, Washington, DC, April 2010.

“When Only Women Will Work: Gender and Social Change in the Gulf.” Paper Presented to the MTSU Spring 2010 Honors Lectures Series, April 2010.

“Is Iran America’s Fifty-First Red State?” Paper presented to the American University of Beirut Social and Behavioral Science Department’s Brown Bag Series, Beirut, Lebanon, March 2010.

“Camels and Cadillacs: Down in the Depths on the Ninetieth Floor – New Perspectives on Politics and Society in the Gulf.” Paper presented at the American University of Beirut Center for Arab and Middle Eastern Studies, Beirut, Lebanon, March 2010.

“Revolution or Secular Tajdid: Islam, Thomas Jefferson, and the Rise of American Liberty.”  Paper presented to the American University of Beirut, Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz al-Saud Center for American Studies & Research, January 2009.

“The History of Modern Iraq.”  Paper presented atthe U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Iraqi Law Symposium, Arlington, Virginia, November 2008.

“The Middle East and the Islamic World.” Paper presented to the ROTC Cadets, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN, February 2008.

“Sufism, Global Networks, Gender, and Television.” Paper presented at Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, Virginia, December 2007.

“The Middle East and Islamic World.” Paper presented to the ROTC Cadets, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN, February 2007.

“The Religious, Ethnic, and Geographic Diversity of the Middle East.” Paper presented to the Fort Knox Staff Judge Advocate General Attorneys, Ft. Knox, KY, October 2006.

“Shaykh Khalid and the Naqshbandiyya-Khalidiyya, 1776-2006.” Paper presented as part of the Middle Tennessee State University’s Middle East Center’s Brown Bag Lecture Series, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN, October 2006.

“History and U.S. Media Coverage of the Middle East.” Paper presented at a Panel Discussion Sponsored by Americans for Informed Democracy on U.S. Media Coverage of the 2006 Crisis in Lebanon, Middle Tennessee State University, Murfreesboro, TN, September 2006.

“Iran, the United States, and Nuclear Weapons.” Paper presented at Butler University to the Indiana Council on World Affairs, Indianapolis, IN, February 2006.

“North Africa’s Road to Independence: Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and France, 1830-1960.”  Paper presented at Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, MI, February 2006.

“Saints, Shayks, and Satellites.” Paper presented at Seton Hall University, Newark, NJ, February 2006.

“History, Grammar, and a Backpack: Shaykh Khalid and Modern Islamic Sainthood.”  Paper presented at Arizona State University, Tempe, AR, January 2006.

“World History as a Framework for Islamic and Middle East History.” Paper presented at Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, November 2005.
“The Missing Link: Arab Nationalism and the History of the Modern Middle East, 1860-2005.” Paper presented at DePauw University, Greencastle, IN, March 2005.

“Shaykh Khalid and the Naqshbandiyya-Khalidiyya: A Muslim Social Movement, 1776-2005.”  Paper presented at Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, February 2005.

“In the Eye of the Storm: My Life as a Fulbright Scholar, 2002-2003.” Paper presented to a Cultural Affairs Officers’ Course on the Fulbright Program sponsored by the George Shultz Foreign Service Institute, Arlington, VA, January 2004.

“تـأثيرالمسلمين على تاريخ أمريكا قبل القرن التاسع عشر” [Muslims’ Influence on the History of America Before the Nineteenth Century], (delivered in Arabic), Damascus University, March 12, 2003, under the joint sponsorship of the U.S. Cultural Center in Damascus and Damascus University.