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Welcome to the AMSS UK

IIIT LONDON OFFICE ACADEMIC ADVISOR ON THE QUEEN'S HONOURS LIST
	Dr. Anas Al-Shaikh-Ali, Director and Academic Advisor, IIIT London Office, has been recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list for June 2009 by being awarded a CBE (Commander of the Civil Division of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire). The citation in The London Gazette reads as follows: Dr. Anas Al-Shaikh Ali, Academic Advisor, London Office, International Institute of Islamic Thought. For Services to Community Relations.
According to Directgov website the “honours are given to people from all walks of life and all sections of society who have made a difference to their community. There are several different types of award, each one recognising a different type of contribution.” It adds that “the British honours system is one of the oldest in the world. It has evolved over 650 years as the country has found alternative means of recognising merit, gallantry and service”.
(Article originally posted on IIIT US website, 23rd June 2009)
Click here to read article in Asharq Al-Awsat (online edition)

Lifetime Achievement Awards Presentation at the Prince Alwaleed
Bin Talal Centre for Muslim-Christian Understanding,
Georgetown University, USA, 7th October 2009


The AMSS (UK) Lifetime Achievement Award for 2009 presented to Professor John Esposito and Professor Charles Butterworth, by Dr. Ibrahim Kalin, Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister of Turkey, and Shaikh Amr Khaled on behalf of Dr. Anas S. Al-Shaikh-Ali, CBE, Chair, AMSS UK. Click here for more information.	The AMSS (UK) Lifetime Achievement Award for 2009 presented to Professor John Esposito and Professor Charles Butterworth. Click on name above to see award.

AWARDS: BUILDING BRIDGES AWARD 2009

The AMSS UK is pleased to announce that its prestigious Building Bridges Award for 2009 has been jointly given to the British Council, in recognition of the 'Our Shared Europe' project which seeks to generate awareness and better understanding of Muslim contributions to European culture and society; and to 1001 Inventions, in recognition of the notable contribution of the 1001 Inventions educational project to reveal the rich heritage that the Muslim community share with other communities in the UK, Europe and across the World. Both awards were presented during the third AMSS(UK) Annual Zaki Badawi Memorial Lecture held on 5th June 2009 at the University of Westminster, London, UK. Click here for awards page.

AWARDS: LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD 2009

The AMSS UK is pleased to announce that its prestigious 2009 Lifetime Achievement Award has been presented to two recipients at the A Common Word Between Us and You: A Global Agenda for Change Conference, 6-8 October 2009 at the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Centre for Muslim-Christian Understanding, Georgetown University, USA. The Award was presented by Dr. Ibrahim Kalin, Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister of Turkey, and Shaikh Amr Khaled on behalf of Dr. Anas S. Al-Shaikh-Ali, CBE, Chair, AMSS UK. Click here for the Awards Press Release (pdf). Click here for awards page.

Professor John L. Esposito, Founding Director, Prince Alwaleed Centre for Muslim-Christian Understanding, USA, in recognition of his outstanding academic contributions and pioneering work in developing the academic study and understanding of Faiths and their relations.

Professor Charles E. Butterworth, Emeritus Professor, University of Maryland, USA, in recognition of outstanding scholarly service to the study of Islamic political philosophy and medieval Arabic giving academic prominence to advanced Islamic philosophical discourse and its relevance for the current era.

Dr. Anas S. Al-Shaikh-Ali, CBE sent the following message to the conference:

I would like to express my deep thanks to President DeGioia, Prince Ghazi, and Professor Esposito for their kind invitation to attend the conference. Although I was looking forward with keen interest to take part in such an important event it is unfortunate that my Visa, although already issued, has not yet been delivered with my passport even as late as Wednesday morning. I much regret therefore that I will not have the privilege to be with you.

The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Centre is a superb initiative which aims to build stronger bridges of understanding between the Muslim world and the West as well as between Islam and Christianity. It is groundbreaking that it has come together with A Common Word (the largest Muslim interfaith initiative towards Christians to date), to focus on global issues and initiatives for change and develop concrete proposals to advance global peace and security between Muslim and Western societies.

My colleagues at the AMSS UK Executive Committee join me in sending our warm congratulations to Professor Esposito and Professor Butterworth on receiving the AMSS Life Achievement Award 2009. We are honoured to present this Award as a tribute to two exceptional scholars who have shown great dedication and vision throughout their career.

I wish the Conference every success.

Dr. Anas S. Al-Shaikh-Ali, CBE

British Council Event, London, UK, 9th June 2009


Speech delivered by Martin Davidson CMG, Director, British Council. Click here for speech by Martin Davidson.	Speech delivered by Dr Anas Al-Shaikh-Ali, Chair, AMSS (UK), Academic Advisor, IIIT. Click here for speech by Dr Anas Al-Shaikh-Ali.	The AMSS (UK) Building Bridges Award for 2009 presented to the British Council's 'Our Shared Europe' Project

British Council Event, London, UK on 9th June 2009.

PHOTOS

INFORMATION

Martin Rose delivered the Third AMSS Annual Zaki Badawi Lecture,
London, UK, 5th June 2009

Martin Rose, Director of the British Council (Canada) & Director of the 'Our Shared Europe' project, delivering the third
AMSS(UK) Annual Zaki Badawi Memorial Lecture, entitled 'A Shared Past for a Shared Future' at the University of
Westminster on 5th June 2009.

The Occasional Paper from this lecture is now available. Click her for more details.

Third AMSS Annual Zaki Badawi Memorial Lecture delivered by Martin Rose at University of Westminster, UK on 5th June 2009.

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INFORMATION

2009 Building Bridges Awards Jointly Presented to the
British Council and 1001 Inventions


Award presented by Dr Anas Al-Shaikh-Ali, Chair of AMSS UK (left) to Professor Mike Hardy (right), who received it on behalf of the British Council's 'Our Shared Europe' project	Award presented by Dr Anas Al-Shaikh-Ali, Chair of AMSS UK (left) to Professor Salim al-Hassani (right), who received it on behalf of 1001 Inventions - Muslim Heritage in Our World.

2009 Building Bridges Awards Jointly Presented to the British Council and 1001 Inventions.

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INFORMATION

Muslim Youth Conference held at University of Chester,
UK on 20-22 March 2009

Muslim Youth Conference: Dr Anas Al-Shaikh-Ali, Chair, AMSS UK (left), Professor Timothy Wheeler, Vice-Chancellor,
University of Chester (middle), Dr Jamal Barzinji, Vice-President, IIIT (right)

Muslim Youth Conference held at University of Chester, UK on 20-22 March 2009.

PHOTOS

INFORMATION

Welcome Message from Dr. Anas S. Al-Shaikh-Ali, CBE, Chair of AMSS (UK)

I would like to welcome you to the website of the Association of Muslim Social Scientists (AMSS) UK. Here you will find information about our organisation, our publications and our events and conferences.

AMSS (UK) is dedicated to advancing Muslim scholarship; the promotion of the Islamic position in various academic disciplines; to keep Muslim scholars informed about current conceptual, methodological and analytical developments and promote greater interdisciplinary co-operation, in an effort towards generating informed, critical and creative Islamic alternatives and opinions on topical and emerging issues of academic relevance to Muslims.

AMSS (UK) has introduced two prestigous awards, namely the Lifetime Achievement and Building Bridges awards, that are intended to recognise and highlight the achievement of individuals who have made a significant contribution to Islamic thought and promotion. We were honoured to award recent recipients: Dr Mustafa Ceric The Grand Mufti of Bosnia (pictured above); Dr Rowan Williams The Archbishop of Canterbury; and jointly award Recep Tayyip Erdogan The Prime Minister of Turkey and J.L. Rodriquez Zapatero The Prime Minister of Spain.

HEADLINES:

AN AUDIENCE WITH THE POPE - A COMMON WORD

AMSS UK was honoured to participate in the recent A Common Word seminar which culminated in an audience with His Holiness Benedict XVI the Pope. The First Seminar of the Catholic-Muslim Forum was held in the Vatican Rome on 4-6 November 2008 and attended by 29 Muslim and 29 Christian scholars, including His Eminence Mustafa Ceric, the Grand Mufti of Bosnia. The Forum, speeches, and addresses by both His Eminence Mustafa Ceric and His Holiness Benedict XVI, called for mutual love and respect between Christians and Muslims to heal tension between the two faiths. See links below for more details.

Dr Anas Al-Shaikh-Ali, Chair of AMSS UK, meeting His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI

BUILDING BRIDGES AWARD 2009

CONFERENCE 2009 ON MUSLIM YOUTH

The AMSS UK and the University of Chester jointly organised a conference on Muslim Youth: Challenges, Opportunities & Expectations. The conference was held at the University of Chester, Chester, UK on 20-22 March 2009. More information on the conference themes, programme, sessions and lectures can be found in the Conference Briefing (pdf).

MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS:

INVITATION TO BECOME A MEMBER

Members will receive complimentary copies of A.J.I.S.S. (American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences) and (for those who know arabic) Islamiyat Al-Ma'rifah. Note that AMSS (UK) members and students are usually entitled to a discount for conference fees. If you are not a member already then how about joining today to get your discount for forthcoming conferences and also enjoy the other membership benefits as well. Click here for a printable membership form (PDF ).