|  Global Classrooms: Beirut
Global Classrooms: Beirut Navigation About Global Classrooms: Beirut Global Classrooms: Beirut operates in partnership with Lebanese American University and in concert with local program sponsor, the Bank of Beirut and the Arab Countries (BBAC). Our partners implement Global Classrooms resources in a year-long program where they teach Model UN skills such as research, writing, public speaking and debate. Students from 95 schools in the region participate, while over 1,000 attend the annual Global Classrooms conference, our largest international event. This past year, Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal joined our ranks of local supporters through the Al Walid Foundation. Merrill Lynch has had a strong presence with the Beirut program since inception - Makram Zaccour, Chairman of Merrill Lynch Middle East will be speaking at conference opening ceremonies on April 3rd this year. For the fourth year, students from Beirut will travel to New York in May to participate in the UNAUSAMUN Conference at UN Headquarters.
About Beirut
Beirut is the heart of the historical world. The circle with the smallest radius that includes the ten most influential cities in history: Athens, Istanbul, Antioch, Damascus, Baghdad, Jerusalem, Alexandria, Cairo, Mecca, and Beirut, is the circle that has Beirut as its center. Beirut is the capital of The Lebanese Republic. It projects from the eastern coast of the Mediterranean where it enjoys a Mediterranean climate with mild, rainy winters and long warm summers. Beirut stands on a settlement going back at least 5,000 years and its three museums witness the greatness of this venerable past.
 The "Pearl of the orient" is a city of diversity and differences. Its 1.8 million dwellers share eighteen acknowledged sects. It is a cosmopolitan city where tourists, western as well as oriental, feel at home in its wide-range of international hotels. Beirut is a cultural center and "Education is the ancestral tradition of the city." Beirut speaks the language of emotions, Arabic. From its eight prime universities it conveys to the world a steady stream of doctors, teachers, engineers, businessmen, artists and great persons who move and shape our lives. Beirut is the womb of art. In its 10 theaters and 16 art galleries, the finest sparkles of art illuminate and attain the remote sectors of the world. It hosts continuously foreign repertory groups, vocalists, orchestras and international, regional and local conferences. What distinguishes Beirut from its neighboring capitals is its tolerance for controversial ideas and freedom of expression. Its 11 newspapers (since 1858), 20 magazines and numerous satellite televisions are the incarnation of this fact. It is also the residence of many foreign news services. While Plato in the Republic constructed his ideal city, Beirut is modeled the impossible city where bewildering mosaics of cultures fertilize each other in peace. As the intersecting road between the three continents of Asia, Africa and Europe, and the gateway to the East, Beirut constitutes a commercial centre. Its 80 banks, port and airport as well as a free exchange market fulfill this role.
Beirut is a sleepless city with nightlife, thriving countless night clubs, restaurants, cafés and bars and 20 cinemas. Entertainment never ends in the heart of a city that in no way surrenders to exhaustion.
Beirut destroyed and rebuilt seven times deserves to be titled the death-defying city. Neither earthquakes nor invasions succeeded in annihilating this immortal metropolis. Certainly, there is still plenty to love about the immortal Beirut surging like the Phoenix from its ashes.
Lebanese American University Lebanese American University is the proud project partner for Global Classrooms: Beirut. Learn more about LAU and its mission. Contact Us www.gc-laumun.com
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