THE APRIL SEMINAR

April Seminar discussion in the Legation room

Former Board President the late Dr. I. William Zartman began the tradition of April Seminars in 2000 with support from Morocco’s Cherifian Office for Phosphates (OCP) and the tradition continued under his successor Dr. Dale Eickelman. Every year, the Seminar brings together scholars, researchers, and graduate students to discuss current and historical issues related to Morocco and the U.S. The April Seminar is named to commemorate Sultan Mohammed V’s seminal speech calling for Morocco’s independence delivered in Tangier on April 9th, 1947 in the Grand Socco square (a few hundred feet from the Legation).

SELECTED PODCASTS FROM THE APRIL SEMINAR

2017 APRIL SEMINAR: “TANGIER 1947 -- TWO SPEECHES: INDEPENDENCE AND WOMEN'S EDUCATION”

Seventy years ago, on 9 April 1947, King Mohammed V delivered a speech in Tangier calling for Moroccan independence. Two days later his daughter, Princess Lalla Aicha Alaoui, gave her own speech calling for the education of women. Presenters considered the historic nature of the speech and its reverberations in Moroccan society to the present day.

TALIM President Dr. Dale F. EICKELMAN, Professor Emeritus, Dartmouth College
Dr. Bernabé LÓPEZ GARCIA, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid — “The Events of April 1947: A Spanish Perspective”
Dr. Assia BEN SALAH ALAOUI, Ambassador-at-Large of HM King Mohamed VI — “The Primacy of Education”
Dr. Karim BEJJIT, Abdelmalek Essaâdi University — “US–Moroccan relations in the 1940s: A New Beginning”
Dr. M’hamed BENABOUD, Tetouan Asmir Association — “Princess Lalla Aïsha’s Historical Speech in Tangier of April 1947 in the Light of the Varela Archives”

Podcast 2018 - Cultural Heritage of Northern Morocco

2018 APRIL SEMINAR: “DOCUMENTING THE CULTURAL HERITAGE OF NORTHERN MOROCCO”

Dr. M’hammed BENABOUD: “Documenting the Cultural Heritage of the North Moroccan Medinas”
Jordi MAS GARRIGA: “Towards Valuing Tangier’s Alaouite heritage”
Dr. Michael A. TOLER: “Documenting the Cultural Heritage: a Society in Transition”
Dr. Sharon C. SMITH: “Documenting the Built Environment: Why and How?”

PREVIOUS EDITIONS INCLUDED

2025: Language Frontiers: Morocco and Beyond
2024: Education Outside Classroom Walls
2023: Center and Peripheries in Morocco and the Social Sciences
2022: Language, Authority, and Translation in Morocco’s Humanities and Social Sciences
2021: The Tangier American Legation’s First 200 Years: Where We’ve Been, and What Might Be Next?
2020: Anthropology in China and Morocco Today: What We Learn from Zheng He and Ibn Battuta
2019: Jews and Judaism in Moroccan Society: History in the Present
2018: Documenting Cultural Heritage in Northern Morocco
2017: Tangier April 1947: Two Speeches: Independence and Women’s Education
2016: TALIM at 40: An Anniversary Celebration of the Tangier American Legation
2015: Crisis in Higher Education: Jobs, Gender, and Science
2014: Moroccan and U.S. Strategic Dialogue: Politics, Economy, Security, and Education/Culture.
2013: The Future of Higher Education in Morocco
2012: Civic Participation: Citizenship 101 in Tangier
2011: Tangier’s Ports: Circles of Impact
2010: "Moroccan Universities and the Job Market"
2007: "Le Maroc: les défis du XXI siècle"
2006: "Collaborative Relationship in Public Diplomacy"
2005: "Un Avenir à Construire, Un Patrimoine à Conserver"