CAES Morocco: Advanced Leadership Theories, Ethics, and Culture

I always knew that farming required hard work, but I needed to realize how much science, research, money, investments, and time it takes to have a successful agricultural business. This trip opened my eyes to understand many facets of the farming industry. This trip made me realize that diversity is essential in the crop production business. You can only have some of your money on one crop to grow in the industry because demand changes, climate, and environmental threats all impact the success of the farming industry. Farmers must ensure they have many options, as I Berry founder and managing Director Mr. Ismailli stated today at his farm. Farming needs to evolve to adapt to climate change; for example, to respond to consumers' demands and concerns like using green energy.  I -Berry, a company that started ten years ago, began with growing berries, and strawberries only had to diversify to sustain its business, respond to consumer demand, and compete on the international market. As...

While growing up in the US there has always been an uproar about Islam and the treatment of Muslim women.   Many opinions in the US state women are forced to cover their bodies, discouraged from education, mutilated, and shunned for making their own choices.  This may occur in other countries but travelling in Morocco I’ve see quite the contrary.  While touring the Iberry farms and agricultural research facilities we’ve been introduced to many women with master’s degrees, engineers, and scientists.   Also from personal experience I had the privilege of working with a young woman, Authra Khreis,  from Jordan who practiced Islam.  She explained she was never forced to cover but rather it was a choice she made in deference to Allah.  She further explained that women do not cover for their husbands or for men, but as a religious choice in regards to purity and cleanliness for God, or Allah.  In the same spirit, Naiema, our guide for the mosq...

       Cultures are a constantly evolving process. They are always changing, spreading, and most importantly, mixing. Before this study abroad started, I was in Portugal and Spain for some time. Every tour I took and historical place I visited didn't fail to mention the effects of the Moorish invasions. In this blog, I am going to explore the effects that these less-than-peaceful exchanges left on the culture while explaining a few examples to explore both the cultures of Spain and Morocco.      First, we are going to start our story with a young Islamic civilization in 711 AD. This civilization is itself a mix of Berbers and Syrians forming the civilization of Al-Andalus (the Moors). They crossed the Strait of Gibraltar and began to conquer Iberia. At this time there were a few Kingdoms that together ruled the Iberian Penisula. These powerful kingdoms banded together to fight off these invaders ... and almost lost. These once powerful kingdoms were pu...

  During the first day of the program, we had the opportunity to visit the Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca. The mosque is the largest mosque in Africa and one of the largest in the world ( Mosquée Hassan 2) . King Hassan II developed the mosque as a “ great spiritual and civilizational monument of Morocco” ( Mosquée Hassan 2). Mosques are places of worship for those who follow the Islam faith. To follow Islam is “To declare that there is no god but God and that Muhammad is His messenger; pray; give charity; fast the month of Ramadan; and make the Hajj pilgrimage, if you can.” (Patel, 2018). While Islam has been defined in other ways by religious scholars, this definition seemed to encompass the basic tenets of the faith. This faith and way of is far from basic, in my opinion. Visiting the Hassan II Mosque was the most intimate interaction I have had with the Muslim faith . The Mosque is a testament to the commitment Muslim people have to their faith. In touring the Mosque, I was e...

       While in Morocco, the most interesting thing I learned and observed is how women are total participants in the workforce. Our tour guide informed us that King Mohammed V encouraged women to be active members of society and the workforce. Morocco produced the first women pilot in the Arab world in 1951. According to the Technical Manager at the IBerry, a woman herself, women make up a good amount of the workforce in the agricultural sector. Women serve as sorters and middle management administrators at the IBerry packing plant and other plants. Women also actively lead supply chain management at the ports for both the government and private companies.       In the United States, women are underrepresented in S.T.E.M. and agriculture industries. Historically, women have had to fight to be complete and active participants in the workforce and even when given access, they were discriminated against for specific jobs. To come to Morocco and lear...

During my time in France last year, I noticed a significant recognition of Islamic art and history in museum exhibits (such as at the Louvre Museum, where there is an independent Department of Islamic Art ). As I was strolling a university campus in Paris, I noticed the Institute of Islamic Culture. I was curious about this because of France's reputation as a historically Christian nation. I asked my colleague, Kevin, about the large nod to Islamic cultures within France. He told me this was because France has the largest Muslim population in Western Europe, with many Moroccan and Algerian persons immigrating to France due to the colonial past and shared language.  Upon further exploration, I found that in recent years there have been several recent outcries from French Muslims because of France's laws that have favored secularism over any religious traditions - Christian, Islamic, or otherwise. France has become one of the most secular nations in the world in recent years. In ...