Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 1930, Graduate School

Committee: Not Provided (Other) Subjects:

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2023, Near Eastern Languages and Cultures

Agriculture and power are deeply intertwined in Moroccan society, and a central pillar of this control is the role played by forms of soft power—one form being institutional media. This relationship was seen during the implementation of the Green Morocco Plan from 2008 to 2020, typified by apolitical, and government source reliant reporting. The advent of the new Green Generation 2020-2030 Strategy presents a new opportunity to check in on this relationship, and the new cracks that have formed through the pressures of COVID-19, a changing political landscape, and unfulfilled promises of the previous program. Specifically, this thesis asks what changes exist in coverage between the two agricultural reform programs? Eight media sources, connected to the various web of business interests, political factions, and the nobility itself are surveyed for use of the Green Generation strategy, with analysis on various factors regarding the goals, values, and support offered by Morocco's institutional media, with findings demonstrating a noteworthy shift in journalistic practice between the two programs.

Committee: Scott Levi Dr. (Committee Member); Morgan Liu Dr. (Advisor) Subjects: Near Eastern Studies

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 1951, History

Committee: R. Stanley McCordock (Advisor) Subjects: History

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2021, Political Science

Past literature in democratization, nationalism, and autocratic regime maintenance illustrate how education invites both risk and reward for autocratic states. Education is simultaneously linked with pro-democratic attitudes, political disengagement, and autocratic failure. At the same time, autocrats are predicted to be hesitant towards investing in disenfranchised populations. However, education has also been found to bolster national loyalty and identity, human capital, and long-term development. Nor is the real-world variation clear, autocratic states display significant variation in educational investment and attainment in addition to varied relationships between education and political outcomes. I argue that education can sustain or compromise autocratic stability depending on two factors: the ethnic composition of the state and the extent to which the state uses propaganda in schools. Education does not have a uniform effect. Education will not instill similarly pro-democratic attitudes or identity affiliations across a diverse population, even if the education “treatment” is constant. At the state level, similar educational policies and initiatives across autocratic states can have opposite outcomes, jeopardizing or strengthening autocratic stability. Similarly, at the individual level, increased education can lead to individuals becoming more or less attached to the national identity. My dissertation presents three papers to investigate the factors leading to differences in this real-world variation.

Committee: Jan Pierskalla PhD (Committee Chair); Amanda Robinson PhD (Committee Member); Sara Watson PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Economics; Education; Education Policy; Political Science

Doctor of Philosophy, University of Toledo, 2021, Spatially Integrated Social Science

This dissertation bridges the gap between spatial econometrics and machine learning under the theoretical banner of spatial data science. Methodologically, it uses the spatial error model, spatial lag model, and the randomForest algorithm in order to predict Human Development Index (HDI) values within Morocco at the commune scale. This prediction task is done using the Moroccan censuses of 2004 and 2014. The results of this process show that randomForest can outperform the traditional spatial econometric models in terms of numeric accuracy within this specific case. Since spatial thinkers are just as concerned with spatial accuracy as they are with numeric accuracy, post-estimation procedures were developed in order to assess the spatial accuracy of the spatial error model, spatial lag model, and randomForest in the Moroccan case. These post-estimation procedures were developed for both the global and local levels. In both cases, it is shown that randomForest outperforms both of the spatial econometric models in terms of spatial accuracy within the Moroccan case. With the Morocco specific results complete, the dissertation moves to simulated data experiments in order to assess different properties of randomForest vs. the spatial lag model, and randomForest vs. the spatial error model. The simulation experiments are carried out using five different data generation processes. Throughout the experiments bias, consistency, efficiency, and spatial prediction performance are evaluated and compared. These experiments show that when either the spatial lag model or spatial error model are the correct model specification, randomForest is unable to outperform either of them in terms of bias, consistency, efficiency, or spatial prediction performance. Therefore, it is concluded that if randomForest does outperform the traditional spatial econometric models, as happened in the Moroccan case, neither the spatial lag model nor the spatial error model are the correct m (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Oleg Smirnov Dr. (Advisor); Neil Reid Dr. (Committee Member); Sujata Shetty Dr. (Committee Member); David Nemeth Dr. (Committee Member); Jack Kalpakian Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Geographic Information Science; Geography

BA, Oberlin College, 2020, Politics

What is the political and economic significance of old buildings, neighborhoods, and monuments in contemporary Moroccan cities? I address this question by studying historic preservation efforts of state and non-state actors in two Moroccan cities: Tetouan and Rabat. In this study, I argue that two separate elite coalitions of state officials, architects, artists, academics, and activists in the Moroccan cities of Tetouan and Rabat frame their historic architecture and urban spaces (from before Moroccan independence) as demonstrating the city and nation's enduring cosmopolitanism. By framing their urban heritage, and subsequently their history as cosmopolitan, this elite coalition asserts that Morocco has always been multicultural, tolerant, and open to new ideas. This allows Moroccans to more effectively insert themselves into contemporary global capital and cultural flows while ​simultaneously​ promoting a sense of national and local identity. This identity is grounded in the idea of “Moroccan exceptionalism,” where locals define Morocco as a unique crossroads of cultures between the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. Ultimately, by using the historic cityscape as proof of Morocco's authentic and enduring cosmopolitanism, these coalitions view present-day globalization as reinforcing Moroccan identity. This pushes back against the widely-held idea that globalization erodes national borders and identity.

Committee: Eve Sandberg (Advisor); Zeinab Abul-Magd (Committee Member); Erik Inglis (Committee Member) Subjects: Architecture; Geography; Modern History; North African Studies; Political Science

MCP, University of Cincinnati, 2019, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Community Planning

The Cities without Slums Program (CWSP) is the most notorious slum eradication program in the history of Morocco. It was launched in 2004 under royal instructions, after the terrorist attacks that shook the economic capital of the country, Casablanca, in 2003. The slum clearance program has achieved a relocation rate exceeding 66%, an equivalent of 277,583 households living in better conditions. This high rate of slums' reduction led in 2010 the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development in Morocco and Al Omrane Holding (both key actors in CWSP) to win the UN-Habitat Scroll of Honour award. Nevertheless, slums are still resisting in major cities such as Casablanca, Rabat and Marrakech, due to exogenous systemic issues like the informal sector, but also due to shortcomings inherent to the housing delivery system in the context of the clearance program, that impact the level of desirability of affordable housing units. Among these shortcomings is the inadaptability of financial tools aimed at households living in slums to access home ownership, and specifically the three first deciles of the urban population. This research explores primarily the existing literature related to slums in the Global South to situate the problematic in a theoretical framework. The literature review explores key concepts correlated to the right to the city, urban poverty, self-help construction, as well as financial tools and subsidies, to cite only those. Afterwards, the emphasis is placed on the housing delivery system in Morocco by analyzing housing options delivered in the context of CWSP (i.e., sites-and-services and capped-price apartment units), while highlighting financial, social and technical aspects associated with each option. Then, the financial tools implemented for slum households are introduced, explicating its constraints and limitations. The focus is placed next on the first three deciles of the slum population, using a quantitative analysis, to explore the suitabilit (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: David Edelman Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Hassan Radoine Ph.D . (Committee Member); Rainer vom Hofe Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Urban Planning

MCP, University of Cincinnati, 2018, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Community Planning

The Mediterranean region has a rich history of ancient civilizations and traditions, which makes the entire area a tourist hotspot, attracting one-third of the world's tourists yearly. A traditional staple is the olive oil industry, with 95 percent of the world's olive trees located in the region. As a result, many municipalities suffer from excess waste produced by the tourist industry, while also struggling to find a solution to the wastewater produced by olive oil production. The Marrakech-Safi region has additional environmental challenges within the artisanal sector, particularly in Tameslouht, located in the El Haouz province. A small town located 10 miles southwest of Marrakech, Tameslouht's artisan sector is the main economic driver, aside from olive oil, with a reputation for their pottery. However, the production of the pottery presents its own environmental issues. Due to its arid climate, wood is scarce, which forces potters to burn tires to power their kilns. Tameslouht's predicament has made it difficult to find a feasible alternative energy source to best serve the potters' needs. When considering alternative designs for Tameslouht's pottery sector it is important to consciously merge traditional with modern practice and design. Technology, cost, and environmental and social sustainability are central to identifying a viable solution. Appropriate technology comes down to simplicity in terms of design, practical use, and efficient production, with consistent returns and compatibility with existing infrastructure in relation to environmental and cultural conditions to achieve the intended purpose. In terms of sustainable development, King Mohammad VI's ascent to the throne in 1999 set off a now-impressive list of environmental reforms, programs, and projects. These accomplishments were showcased in 2016, when Morocco hosted 196 countries for the 22nd Conference of Parties, a follow-up to the Paris Agreement of 2015, which drafted a collection (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Johanna Looye Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Margaret Kupferle Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Urban Planning

BA, Oberlin College, 2018, Anthropology

With the advent of user-generated social media, people are able to assert their ideas, opinions and positionality through online multi-way communication and participation. One such website is YouTube, a video platform where language production and identity negotiation are common. This thesis looks at a series of videos published on YouTube, entitled the "Moroccan Tag" to examine the ways five second-generation French-Moroccan YouTubers assert their national identities online. Using methods of guerrilla ethnography, I glean discourse from video content and comments to outline three key scaler processes through which identity performance manifests: through semiotic ideologies surrounding authenticity, language and imagined community. Together, my observations add to continuing conversations on diasporic identity, translanguaging and digital discourse.

Committee: Erika Hoffman-Dilloway (Advisor); Baron L. Pineda (Advisor) Subjects: Cultural Anthropology; Ethnic Studies; Linguistics; Web Studies

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, 2014, English (Arts and Sciences)

This dissertation explores the development of a risky but empowering culture-specific women's consciousness by the protagonists of Sefi Atta and Laila Lalami's early novels. My insertion of Jameson's primacy of the national situation in the development of a woman's composite consciousness allows the reader to gain an understanding of women's marginalization and subsequent empowerment in a specific setting such as Casablanca, Morocco or Lagos, Nigeria. The composite factor is essential to understand the lived experiences of people in specific cultures within the postcolonial nation, for it acknowledges the importance of traditional resources but also the modern liberation tools available to the women. This study places Atta and Lalami's characters squarely in their cultural milieu so that they are read in their social, economic, political, racial, ethnic, and religious contexts. Just as Abouzeid argued that progress in studying women must be centered on women's social and political milieu because it is there that women's agency and oppression can be localized and contextualized, this study argues that women's empowerment is, in fact, grounded on what it means to be a woman in her particular society with its cultural expressions and norms. This approach focuses on a very practical and empowering experience for women as it ties them even more closely to their communities, even as they advocate for more options than were previously available to them. This culture-specificity empowers these characters to function even more efficiently as women who continually change and improve their communities in Nigeria and Morocco. Atta and Lalami's use of the concept of the composite consciousness in the frame of the local tradition serves as a unifying metaphor for each novel. This composite consciousness approach has the potential to answer Chandra Talpade Mohanty's call for a paradigm that is culture-specific yet creates solidarity across subjectivities and across the globe witho (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Joseph McLaughlin Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Mara Holt Ph.D. (Committee Member); Nicole Reynolds Ph.D. (Committee Member); Julie White Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: African Literature; African Studies; Comparative Literature; Folklore; Gender; Islamic Studies; Literature; Womens Studies

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2014, Music

Is one of the most common approaches to intervention in the realm of culture in recent years – the safeguarding of tradition – the right path to take? In this dissertation, I argue that it is not, and that a different formulation of goals and methods is necessary. Using a case study of Jemaa el Fnaa Square in Marrakech, Morocco, I discuss the flawed concepts contained within the idea of safeguarding, outline their consequences, and put forth an alternative possibility for how things might be done differently. As a focus for criticism of the safeguarding approach, I will discuss UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage program, arguably the most internationally powerful institutional voice in the area of the conserving cultural practices. Since the Declarations of Masterpieces in 2001, 2003, and 2005 and the highly successful 2003 ICH Convention, the UNESCO paradigms of Intangible Cultural Heritage and "safeguarding" have become influential concepts in international, national, and local cultural policy. However, this concept of safeguarding attempts to impose onto the flow of human activity a way of thinking better suited to physical sites: culture as a static edifice with clear boundaries that is under threat of erosion, with safeguarding as a process of "shoring up." This results in an awkward fit of both theory and practice that leads to projects with unattainable goals, poorly-directed resources, and limited benefits for their intended recipients. As an alternative framework for intervention, I will discuss the Capability Approach, initially developed by economist Amartya Sen. The capabilities approach seeks ways of enhancing the possible range of choices and abilities of individuals and communities, privileging it over the prescribing of particular activities as a goal and evaluative space. This approach is well-suited to projects relating to culture, which is a fluid and dynamic process resistant to static, prescriptive notions. I will discuss ways in whi (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Udo Will (Advisor); Danielle Fosler-Lussier (Committee Member); Dorothy Noyes (Committee Member) Subjects: African Studies; Cultural Resources Management; Folklore; Middle Eastern Studies; Music; North African Studies

Bachelor of Science of Journalism (BSJ), Ohio University, 2012, Journalism

This professional project studies the underreported and traditional culture of the Tighza Valley, a remote and impoverished area of Morocco that is located in the Atlas Mountains. The Tighza Valley has a population of approximately 1,500 people, who use subsistence farming and agriculture as a means of survival and for their economy. The project contains two parts: a published magazine and a scholarly analysis. Through ethnographic and immersion journalism, the magazine tells the stories of the people living in the village and captures their daily lives using extensive interviews with villagers and observations of the TIghza lifestyle. The scholarly analysis examines the methods and theories of the project as it relates to the journalism field as a whole.

Committee: Michael S. Sweeney PhD (Advisor) Subjects: Journalism

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2010, Political Science

Islamist political parties – once marked by their uniformity across countries in their oppositional and non-democratic platforms, and the goal of Islamizing state and society – face challenges leading to the emergence of a qualitatively-different and more moderate kind of political party: the Muslim democratic party (MDP). My dissertation answers two interrelated questions on the rise of MDPs: What explains the emergence of Muslim Democratic Parties recently, and why have these parties been successful in some cases, but not others? I theorize that the way in which a country liberalizes its economy shapes the social foundations of Islamic party politics. MDPs emerge and find societal support when Islamic peripheral businesses find a chance to compete economically – a feature of competitive liberalization –, and peripheral masses experience an improved income. In contrast, when economic liberalization's reach remains limited because of its uncompetitive character and the perpetuation of pre-liberalization economic structure, societal support for MDPs fails to materialize, leaving Islamist parties' societal support intact. I call this process crony liberalization. I test my theory in a three-country, structured comparison of Egypt, Morocco and Turkey. These countries were selected in order to maximize the variance I observe on my key causal variables while holding other factors constant following the most similar systems design. In Egypt, I analyze the Muslim Brotherhood (Ikhwan al-Muslimin) and the Wasat Party as cases of Islamist and Muslim democratic parties, respectively. In Morocco, the Party for Justice and Development represents the Muslim democratic platform whereas Al-Adl wal-Ihsan functions as the Islamist opposition party. Finally, in Turkey the Justice and Development Party is the Muslim democratic case compared with the National Outlook Movement's current political representative, the Felicity Party.

Committee: Sarah Brooks PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Amaney Jamal PhD (Committee Co-Chair); Marcus Kurtz PhD (Committee Member); Irfan Nooruddin PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Political Science

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2008, Art Education

Over the last several decades numerous scholarly articles and books have been published on Moroccan art forms. Yet, these studies have consistently examined Morocco's traditional works or its older forms of artistic practices. Specifically, Morocco's ceramics objects and textiles are among the most commonly examined works. As a result of this emphasis, only a partial view of Morocco's rich artistic production has been presented. Currently, Moroccan Art is consistently viewed as static and the 19th century western Orientalist image of Morocco has more or less remained. Visual Culture within the country and beyond its border continues to reinforce these antiquated perceptions. To identify the range of works of art produced within Morocco, a multi-method ethnographic approach was utilized. Using information drawn from fieldwork conducted in Morocco in 2002, 2004, and 2006, contemporary artistic practices were examined and analyzed within a social and historical context. Personal narratives from my fieldwork in 2006 added layers of information to enrich my study of Moroccan art and culture. My findings revealed that Morocco's rich historical past includes a multiplicity of cultures and influences. As a result, the country's contemporary artistic production mirrors the complexity of this past. Additionally, works produced today address current social and political issues within a global environment. Moroccan Art is not static, but diverse and fluid. By studying a range of contemporary works of art and visual culture produced within the country, perceptions about Morocco's art forms and its people will be redefined.

Committee: Patricia Stuhr PhD (Advisor) Subjects: Art Education; Art History

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2006, History

This world women's history is a comparative legal study tracing two thousand years of cultural contact through 1830 between the Saharan-based, gynecentric, Berian culture foundational to the Maliki Islam of the Berbers, Southern Arabs and Iberians, and the Mesopotamian and eastern Mediterranean patriarchy foundational to West Asiatic Islam and Western Christianity. The work explores the female-friendly Berian values common to the Saharan salt marsh diaspora and Almoravid Andalusia and North Africa, correcting patriarchal Sassanid influences upon Abbasid and Almohad omissions of female politicians from their imperial histories of the Maghrib. The European patriarchal bias began during Isabel I's Reconquista Spain when the Spanish Inquisition attempted a purge of Berian matriliny. It continued with British harem envy, hyper-virility and political jealousy as Anglo-Americans engaged Barbary states. Western Christian philosophers, Freemasons, politicians and ministers used misperceptions of the harem to limit Western women's economic and legal rights. In the U.S., this resulted in the simultaneous rise of domesticity, left-handed marriages, and de facto American polygyny. The Berber cultural influence on the U.S. occurred in the 1833 U.S. v. Percheman decision when the Supreme Court adopted married women's property rights from the Siete Partidas after the Florida cession.

Committee: Claire Robertson (Advisor) Subjects:

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2010, Linguistics (Arts and Sciences)

This mixed-methods study of 221 Moroccan university student looks at the attitudes of the L2, French, and the L3, English. It specifically attempts to find out how L3 learning and attitudes are affected by the attitude of the L2 experience. The population consisted of French Studies students and English Studies students. The data of this study were collected through a questionnaire and a focus group interview. Results showed that there was no relationship found between the attitudes of L2 and L3 of the English Studies group. However, a weak relationship was found in the attitudes of the French Studies group. Further tests proved that the relationship was coincidental. Thus, the attitudes of the L2 and the L3 are independent from each other.

Committee: Peter Githinji (Committee Chair); David Bell (Committee Member); Christopher Thompson (Committee Member) Subjects: Bilingual Education; Education; Educational Psychology; Educational Sociology; Language; Linguistics

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2009, Political Science (Arts and Sciences)

In modern international relations, the analysis of UN peace-keeping operations involved in the civil wars is increasingly important because of its significant impact on international security. To understand the effectiveness and limitations of UN peacekeeping operations, first, I define the terms of successes and failures of peace-keeping missions and the fundamental factors for successful missions, and introduce realism and liberalism as the framework of the analysis in this thesis. Second, I examine two case studies – peace-keeping operations in Nicaragua (ONUCA) and in Western Sahara/Morocco (MINURSO). Finally, I will discuss contemporary UN peace-keeping and the theoretical implications on the case studies through the framework of realism and liberalism. The analysis reveals that the UN is useful in settling civil wars because it provides a favorable environment for peace. On the other hand, it is almost powerless when warring parties and other actors in the conflict are not willing to cooperate.

Committee: Patricia A. Weitsman PhD (Committee Chair); Myra Waterbury PhD (Committee Member); Andrew Ross PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: International Relations; Political Science

BA, Oberlin College, 1997, Anthropology

This study will demonstrate that the Amazight are a distinct ethnic group in Morocco, despite the common interpretation in scholarly and everyday discourse that they are merely groups of people speaking one of the Amazight language and not representing a distinct cultural entity. The study will go on to examine the ramifications of this ethnic identity and the heritage of the historical and tribal roots of the Amazight in light of nationalism, state building, ethnicity, and cultural marginalization.

Committee: Jack Glazier (Advisor) Subjects: African Studies; Cultural Anthropology; Ethnic Studies

Master of Arts, University of Toledo, 2013, Geography

This Thesis explores the interrelatedness of hauntology, the methods of madness, and non-representational theory to take a simulacramous view of a Moroccan forest. The author intertwines journal entries written during a manic episode to argue for a schizoaffective turn, which is taking place in the social sciences. The thesis flows in five acts. Act one discusses non-representational theory and its relationship to hauntology and the methods of madness. Act two juxtaposes `intimate sensing' and `remote sensing' of a Moroccan forest. Forest coverage is measured and deforestation rates are given from 1984-2011. Act three discusses the narrative of the environment constructed by the French about North Africa. Act four discusses a new agricultural program in Morocco which the author deconstructs using the work of David Harvey. The author concludes that this agricultural program is a threat to the health of the forest in question. The thesis concludes with thoughts on the nature of gathering knowledge, and what it means in today's post-modern epoch.

Committee: Sujata Shetty (Committee Chair); David Nemeth (Committee Member); Bhuyian Alam (Committee Member) Subjects: African History; African Studies; Environmental Justice; Environmental Philosophy; Environmental Studies; Forestry; Geography; International Relations; Islamic Studies; Mental Health; North African Studies; Philosophy; Political Science; Remote Sensing