Insight Dubai Conference applications due Monday

For the past few weeks, Smith students have had the opportunity to apply for college funding to attend next year’s Insight Dubai Conference. The annual conference is held each March at the Dubai Women’s College in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Applications for this year’s conference are due Monday, November 12 at 9 a.m.

Approximately fifty undergraduate women from around the world attend the conference. Smith usually sends three—but sometimes as many as six—students. Each student is paired with a student of the university; the rooming situations also encourage international mingling by including four students from four different countries in each room. The five-day event focuses in large part on debunking myths about the UAE and creating opportunities for dialogue between women from around the world.

Smith senior Kenzie Green’13 attended the conference in 2011. A government major and religion minor, she assured me that Smith attempts to send as diverse a group of students as possible. Although it’s essentially impossible to represent Smith’s diversity in just a handful of students, the Center for Work and Life tries to send students from different class years, majors, and backgrounds.

The Insight Dubai conference days usually open with a plenary session featuring prominent citizens of Dubai. The students then break into small groups with equal numbers of Emirati and international students for discussions that integrate information from the opening session. Afternoons and evenings are spent participating in organized sight-seeing excursions varying from desert safaris to trips to areas of the city that resemble pre-developed Dubai. Upon returning to Smith students complete a follow-up presentation or other reflection.

Kenzie said she has formed lasting friendships despite the short time spent at the conference. She remains in touch with women from Kenya and Australia, for example, and said that most of her “class” maintains casual contact. The opportunity to spend several days with other highly achieving young women from around the world opens more doors both as a citizen of the Smith community and the world.