Renowned Lebanese businessman and philanthropist Farouk K. Jabre has made a generous donation to the American University of Beirut to fund the establishment of a new center for Arabic and Islamic science and philosophy, whose mission is to support research on Arabic and Islamic science and Philosophy and raise awareness about these fields through outreach and education.
The Farouk K. Jabre Center for Arabic and Islamic Science and Philosophy helps the University expand the store of the Arab and Islamic world’s legacy in science and philosophy in the region and complements –and, in some cases, completes – other nascent initiatives at AUB that focus on Islamic studies from the historical, philosophical or business and financial aspects.
The center also allows the University to offer additional undergraduate courses on Arabic science and philosophy, and to organize lectures and conferences to educate the public about the Arab world’s rich legacy to science and philosophy.
The center aims at producing research in Arabic Science and philosophy at AUB by supporting postdocs, hosting scholars in residence and visiting researchers. It promotes and sponsors campus-wide research in cooperation with other AUB departments, schools and centers. It also fosters relationships with academic and research institutions worldwide.
The center capitalizes on the rich historical collections across AUB's Libraries dealing with the history of Arabic Science and Philosophy.
The center is a major hub for researchers and educators in such diverse fields as Arabic philosophy, astronomy, mathematics, medicine, physics and technology.