The Tunisia Office, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University & CEMAT Centre d’Etudes Maghrébines à Tunis
Present:
SH’HILI (SIROCCO)
A Film by Habib Ayeb
Film-Maker, Producer and Geographer
A Film by Habib Ayeb
Film-maker, Producer and Geographer
Habib Ayeb is a filmmaker, producer and geographer whose work focuses on issues of environmental justice, food sovereignty, marginality and poverty in rural North Africa. He teaches and researches social geography at the University of Paris 8-St Denis). He is an affiliated researcher at CEDEJ (Centre d'Etudes et de Documentation Juridiques et Sociales), the Social Research Center of the American University in Cairo, the IRD (French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development). He is co-founder of the Observatory of Food Sovereignty and Environment (OSAE), a research platform dedicated to the study and promotion of sustainable development in the Maghreb region.
Habib Ayeb’s work combines academic research, activism, and cinematographic storytelling. His films show the struggles of rural communities facing ramping climate change and advocate for more sustainable and equitable environmental policies. Some of his documentaries include:
"Gabes Labess (All Is Well in Gabes)" (2014): A documentary showcasing the environmental devastation caused by phosphate industrial plants in the coastal oasis of Gabes, Tunisia;
"Couscous: The Seeds of Dignity" (2017): A film that examines food sovereignty and the pivotal role of women farmers in resisting the destruction of rural life by globalized agricultural systems;
"Om Layoun: Mother of the Springs" (2021): A documentary that explores water scarcity and inequality in Tunisia, focusing on the lives of those most affected by resource mismanagement.
In his latest film, "Sh’hili" (2024), Habib Ayeb travels across the western Mediterranean, in Tunisia, Italy, Morrocco, interviewing farmers about their struggles with climate change, desertification, and drought.
This event is organized as part of the AIMS American Institute for Maghreb Studies 2025 Pre-Conference Program
The film screening and discussion will be held in person.
Admission Free
This event is organized as part of the AIMS American Institute for Maghreb Studies 2025 Pre-Conference Program
The film screening and discussion will be held in person.
Admission Free
LOCATION:Tunisia Office, Center for Middle Eastern Studies, Harvard University STATUS:CONFIRMED DTSTART:20250110T213000Z DTEND:20250110T230000Z END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR