Cairo, 2 December 2012 – Despite the increasingly difficult and complex conditions in Cairo and most Arab capitals these days, we are NONETHELESS expected to live, work, think, produce, participate and excel. Above all, we are supposed to be happy and make others happy!
In the midst of this seemingly impossible situation, a single extraordinary day can go far in boosting morale. This day was the TEDx Cairo conference, held on 1st December 2012. Everyone was committed to freedom of speech, taking the time to speak openly, listen and appreciate each other in a positive environment. It was empowering, and most importantly, it made us all smile.
The New Arab Debates contributed to TEDx by establishing a model of intellectual debate around the following motion: “This House believes development in Egypt is achieved through practice, not theory”.
Both speakers were Political Science students from the American University in Cairo. They were articulate and enthusiastic, and the public clearly had a fond appreciation for them.
Speaking for the motion was Saif Abu Zeid, the Executive Director of “Nabadat” (pulses), a non-profit organization that focuses on education, increasing political awareness and fighting poverty. Nabadat is also the parent organization of the ‘Al-Tahrir” Academy for alternative education. Saif Abu Zeid’s political engagement focuses on personal freedoms and rights. He also heads the Strategic Planning Unit for the political party “The Strong Egypt,” a party which he co-founded.
Speaking against the motion was Ibrahim El Houdaiby, researcher at the “Bait Al-Hekma “( House of Wisdom) Foundation for Strategic Studies and lecturer at AMIDEAST. Ibrahim specialises in Islamic movements, as well as economic and political transitions to democracy in the Middle East. He holds a diploma in Islamic studies from the High Institute for Islamic Studies.
The dialogue between the paneslists was not heated although their different views were clear. Both sides agreed that both theory and practice are important, but their views differed on the priority that should be given to the former versus the latter.
Saif believes that solutions come from the base of the pyramid and not from the top, and used Brazil’s example to prove his point. He emphasized the importance of acknowledging the specific characteristics of Egyptian culture. For example, if “Fahlawi” (cleverness) is an Egyptian trait, it should not be suppressed and can be incorporated into problem-solving techniques.
Ibrahim argues that working without theory is like walking without a specific destination, and he gave the example of a set of people driving their car to Alexandria only to discover they were on their way to Ismailia. Ibrahim interpreted the Brazil example as evidence that Saif himself was using theories about the power of individuals to defend his claim.
Thirty minutes was not sufficient to weigh in on the optimal model for development in Egypt, whether it was theory or practice driven. That being said, the event was a great challenge to the speakers who were able to summarize their positions in a short period of time and successfully attracted the audience’s attention to the different nature of dialogue in a debate setting.
Every participant at the event had their own characteristics, but I was struck by their impressive ability to speak simply, with depth and spontaneity that comes straight from the heart and goes straight to the heart of audiences. We experienced tears, laughter, applause and occasional outbursts of speech. Overall, we were successful in challenging participants, encouraging them to think critically about themselves and their future.
Thank you to the organisers of TEDx Cairo, to all the speakers, and to The New Arab Debates team… it was an inspiring day.