Class Visit, Abu Dhabi, January 20, 2019
Turning to the ways in which boys and men are implicated in policy discourses and practices often focused on women’s empowerment and work, we received Natasha Ridge, Executive Director of Sheikh Saud Bin Saqr Al Qasimi Foundation for Policy Research, in our classroom. Dr. Ridge spoke to us about what she sees as the “other side” of striving for modernity through women’s empowerment—for example, the issues boys face in primary and secondary schooling, particularly in the case she knows, Ras Al Khaimah—and insight into the shortcomings of public education especially for lower class Emiratis, particularly boys. Her visit was helpful for thinking through gender as relational, and for unpacking the complexity of educational or workforce statistics.