Seven of AQB Economics and Finance students have had the opportunity to participate in Bard College’s Economic Democracy Initiative (EDI) in New York. The EDI is the Open Society University Network program focusing on economic democracy and basic economic rights as preconditions for economic stability, security, and opportunity in a global economy that works for all.

AQB students Nihal Almasri, Hala Ananni, Mudallala Abeid, Ahmed Hijawi, Ahmed Duraidi, Jalal Salama, and Qais Ayasa, attend the five-day workshop in public finance and economic policy. This opportunity has opened the doors to them, as Qais Ayasa is very grateful to attend the workshop in Annandale. He goes on saying, "the conference has helped us in gaining a new perspective on what it means to be an economist. It also gave me the chance to link and exchange ideas with other passionate economics students from around the world. The experience that we gained as students gave us a scoop of how economics in general will continue to evolve as well as how to keep up with constant development and how we can apply it in our environment." 

Another student, Ahmad Duraidi mentions, "It was an intensive program of training in the field of economic policy and public finance that has both introduced orthodox ideas and also suggested some potential alternatives that promise more economic stability through the vision of MMT (Modern Monetary Theory)." He also explains the advantages of the program at Bard college, "The program has also included cultural and historical trip breaks on and off campus. Such an opportunity was an incredible break of inspiration and education in the macroeconomic field and economic administration."

Further, Nihal Almasri states, “the workshop allowed us to think about the role of different governments when the country faces crises and challenges such as COVID and climate change, and what policies should be considered to remedy these crises, taking into account the actual or financial constraints these governments face. The other topics discussed, such as monetary sovereignty, sectoral balances, government spending and taxes, full employment, and job security, allowed us to develop a new framework for thinking about economic stabilization, full employment, and poverty alleviation, in addition to the policies to address climate change and COVID-related concerns."