Abir Chaaban Award

7th Oct 2020 by Simon Mabon

The Inaugural Abir Chaaban Award:

 In recognition of Abir Chaaban’s life and work, SEPAD announces the launch of an annual prize to go to the PhD student or Early Career Researcher who has made the best contribution to community building and collaboration in Middle East Studies over the past year.

Abir Chaaban, who passed away at the beginning of 2020, was a testament to the best of humanitarian and academic values. During her time with SEPAD and at Lancaster University, Abir acted as a bridge between different cultures and generations, offering help and support to those around her. As a person, Abir was kind hearted, generous and cared about the people surrounding her. As an academic, Abir straddled disciplines including Political Science, Philosophy, Political Theory, and Anthropology, underpinned by intellectual curiosity. Her research explored the transformation of religious identities in Lebanon.

She was an inclusive individual, generous, and happy to talk – and provide support – on all topics, from coffee to consociationalism, supported by an infectious laugh. With a critical mind, Abir would tackle the most challenging of subjects with a smile on her face. She was an example of all that is good in the academic community.

In recognition of her life and work, The Abir Chaaban Award will be awarded annually. The winner will receive a prize of £150 in book tokens. The winner will be chosen by a panel of judges on the basis of the following criteria:

Spirit of collaboration

Tolerance

Compassion

Integration

Impact of activity(ies)

Community support

The award will be announced on the 18th December at the SEPAD conference. To nominate someone, please email Professor Simon Mabon (S.Mabon@Lancaster.ac.uk) by 30th November offering a 300 word justification for why your nominee should be awarded the prize.