in a 2022 workshop<\/a> and is named for the late Sen. Joseph Lieberman, who felt strongly about the need to help MENA countries build social and economic links between each other and the U.S.<\/p>\n\u201cWe need to develop programs that will create opportunities for collaboration among the countries in the MENA region to deepen the ties between the countries so that this remarkable breakthrough, the Abraham Accords, will essentially be permanent because it will be of such value to all the member countries. That\u2019s my vision and my hope for this program that we effectively begin today,\u201d Lieberman said at the 2022 workshop that kicked off the program bearing his name.<\/p>\n
Lieberman represented Connecticut in the U.S. Senate from 1989 to 2013 and was the Democratic nominee for Vice President in the 2000 election, making him the first Jewish candidate on the presidential ticket of a major American political party. He died in March 2024.<\/p>\n
The Lieberman Program works to build a community of leading entrepreneurial universities, creating fruitful dialogue and collaboration between academics, the business community, and policymakers while also contributing to peace-making in a region suffering from conflict. In doing so, universities can be empowered to increase capacity to produce innovative research that supports economic growth and more equitable development.<\/p>\n
In addition to student hackathons, UConn Abrahamic Programs include collaborative curriculum development with its partners, including a shared online course; experiential study-abroad programs; and a Middle East and North African (MENA region) Abrahamic hub. It also includes support for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and virtual and on-site workshops.<\/p>\n
The idea for the hackathon began during a 2024 planning workshop in Stamford as part of the Lieberman program. It included representatives from UConn and Tel Aviv University, whose Entrepreneurship Center worked with UConn to lead the Hackathon.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe hackathon was the first project we chose to pursue, to see how the students responded to the opportunity to work with students from the other countries,\u201d says Yair Sakov, founder and managing director of TAU\u2019s Entrepreneurship Center.<\/p>\n
In addition to UConn and TAU as core institutional partners for the hackathon, the other participating institutions were Ben-Gurion University of the Negev; EcoPeace Middle East Palestine Office; INTERMID (Bahrain); International University of Rabat (Morocco); SP Jain School of Global Management (the UAE); and The Dealmakers, formerly known as the Abrahamic Business Circle (the UAE).<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was an impactful opportunity to not only build a cool solution, but also a chance to further develop my cultural competency,\u201d says UConn’s Garrett Breslin \u201923 (BUS). \u201cThanks to the collaboration of business, technology – and positive energy – our team was able to produce a unique solution.\u201d<\/p>\n
In addition to the 42 students, 12 mentors and seven judges from the MENA region and the U.S. participated in the hackathon. Mentors and staff met individually with the teams in breakout rooms, and the event also offered group activity sessions for all participants.<\/p>\n
\u201cAmid growing violence and polarization on campuses worldwide – often undermining colleges’ missions to promote diversity of thought and civil dialogue – our pilot Abrahamic Hackathon brought together dozens of participants from Bahrain, Israel, Morocco, Palestine, the UAE, and the U.S.,\u201d says Sercan Canbolat, director of UConn Abrahamic Programs.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe event fostered a dynamic exchange of collaboration, inspiration, and Abrahamic epistemologies, all centered on innovation and entrepreneurship,\u201d he adds. \u201cThe success of the Lieberman Abrahamic Hackathon served as a subtle yet powerful reminder that academic collaboration across boundaries remains not only possible but increasingly vital.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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