Kurdish academic awarded prestigious post at top French university
ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) - Dr. Nazand Begikhani has been awarded the prestigious Vincent Wright Chair at the School of International Affairs at the Paris Institute of Political Sciences (known informally as Sciences Po), a post she will begin later this year.
“I am truly honored to be awarded the Vincent Wright Chair by the prestigious Sciences Po, which is recognized as one of the best ‘Grand Ecoles’ in France,” Begikhani told Kurdistan 24.
Seven recent French presidents (including Emmanuel Macron), 13 French prime ministers, 12 foreign heads of state or government, and six CEO’s of France’s largest companies have all studied at the university since its founding in 1872.
“It is not the Chair itself which means most to me, but rather the recognition of my work and academic achievement, accomplished in such difficult circumstances,” Dr. Begikhani said.
“I have come very far given my personal history, having had to struggle to conduct research, to teach, and to fight against gender inequality and discrimination,” she continued, “not only within academia, but also in patriarchal societies and among war-torn populations.”
Honoured to have been awarded prestigious Vincent Wright Chair at Paris @sciencespo
— Dr Nazand Begikhani (@begikhani) January 24, 2020
for 2020, working as Visiting Professor with thriving @PRESAGEgenre & @PSIASciencesPo
on SGBV & Displacement.https://t.co/NPvI4ZPDp4 via @BristolUni
“The Chair is yet another encouragement for me to carry on and continue in my struggle for a just and egalitarian world.”
Inaugurated in 2003, the Vincent Wright Chair is a visiting professorship that promotes academic exchanges between France and Britain by welcoming a senior academic member from the UK to Sciences Po each year. The position aims to encourage European comparative research and helps develop cooperation between Sciences Po and British universities such as the University of Bristol, where she is a research fellow.
Dr. Begikhani will contribute to the activities of PRESAGE, the Research and Educational Programs on Gender Studies. She will be working on a program dealing with gender-based violence and displacement that will focus on the Middle East and Middle Eastern diaspora.
An internationally recognized poet, she will also teach a course on creative writing entitled, “Exploring Human Experiences Through Poetry.”
Dr. Begikhani has conducted research on many aspects of violence and gender relations, including honor-based violence and honor killings, both in the UK and the Kurdistan Region.
Additionally, she has worked as an expert advisor with a range of national and international organizations and government departments and initiated the establishment of gender studies programs at Kurdistan Region universities. She is also currently advising the president of the Kurdistan Region on higher education and gender.
Editing by John J. Catherine
