March is the Month of the Francophonie in Lebanon and other French-speaking countries. The month full of events is organized with the Lebanese Ministry of Culture, in partnership with the Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (AUF) and the embassies of other French-speaking countries in Lebanon.

Blog Baladi is a proud partner in this year’s “Mois de la Francophonie”, a yearly cultural highlight in Lebanon. Below, I’ve mentioned a few of the events I highly recommend, but I also urge you to check out the full schedule here, you are guaranteed to find something that interests you.

The International Francophone Debate Championship (11–16 March)

This year’s International Francophone Debate Championship is happening in Beirut, and will see participants from Asia, Europe and Africa compete in Molière’s language. The debate participants have been asked to imagine they’re elected officials defending or elaborating on several themes and topics that are pertinent in today’s world. The final will take place on March 16, 2018.

This event is organized by USJ, along with the AUF Middle East, French Institute in Lebanon and the Swiss Embassy in Beirut.

A Colloquium at USEK addressing coexistence, state neutrality, radicalization, international uprisings and identitarian closure (14–16 March)

This academic seminar will be held at USEK, in partnership with the Canadian Embassy in Beirut, AUF Middle East , the Swedish Institute of Alexandria (SwedAlex), the Center for Research on Society, Law and Religion of Sherbrooke University (SoDRUS) and the Institute of Missiology Missio. I find this topic extremely relevant and important to discuss in today’s world, far from the often toxic conversations on social media and online.

International Francophonie Day (March 20)

On the International Francophonie Day, Nicolas Masson from the embassy of Switzerland in Beirut will give a conference on the topic: “Crazy Enough to Change the World? Swiss Mediators in Armed Conflicts”. It’s happening on March 20 at 6:00PM in theWalid Ben Talal Amphitheater at Institute of Political Sciences, on the USK Campus of social sciences.

“Twitterature” Contest for French-speaking high-school students in Akkar (March 27)

AUF’s francophone digital campus in Tripoli and MAK for creativity are hosting a “Twitterature: Digital literature” contest which honors the writing skills of the French-speaking high-school students in Berkayel, a village in Akkar. The contest encourages senior students to tweet in French about technology and how it can impact Lebanon.

The above events are just a snapshot of what’s available for you to participate in. There’s a ton of other amazing events, conferences, exhibitions and fun activities this month on the occasion of the Francophonie month, make sure you check them out [here].