Contributor(s): Dr Rami Zurayk | In his lecture, Rami Zurayk will discuss his current work on food and de-development in Gaza and the use of food insecurity as a weapon of siege. He will also look at Egypt and its post-revolution agricultural policies. Rami Zurayk is an agronomy professor at the American University of Beirut and a longtime activist for political and social justice. Born in Beirut during the 1958 U.S. Marines' landing in Lebanon, he has witnessed two Israeli-Arab wars, one protracted civil war, one major Israeli invasion, one Israeli retreat and one Israeli defeat. He studied at AUB and at Oxford University. He has published over a hundred articles, monographs and technical reports on agriculture, food, environment and education. His most recent book Food, Farming and Freedom: Sowing the Arab Spring was published this May.