A new hope

For the first time in a very long time, I am hopeful that activism in Lebanon is opening up to new ways of mobilizing and engaging citizens in public life. I have been involved in a range of civil-society work for more than a decade. My PhD thesis addressed the challenges imposed by Lebanon’s political system on the ability of civil society to influence reform. I have designed and delivered a number of training sessions for civil society on how to advocate for policy reform, and I have come out frustrated and disappointed each and every time. Here is what I know to be true about what has held back Lebanese politics: Lebanese national institutions are the least important actors when it comes to decisions on public policy-making. In fact, many important policy issues are governed by a non-policy or by the absence of a clear policy framework, not the