Will Todman

Deputy Director and Senior Fellow, Middle East Program
Will Todman

Will Todman is the deputy director and senior fellow in the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Since joining CSIS in 2016, his research has focused on aid, sustainability, and displacement in the Middle East, with an emphasis on the Levant. He has conducted field research in nine countries across the Middle East and North Africa, and his analysis has been published by peer-reviewed journals, think tanks, and major publications, including the Washington Post. Will has briefed officials from various U.S. government departments and agencies, the UN Security Council, and foreign governments. He has also commented in print and on live television to various outlets, including the BBC, CBS, and CNN. Will is also a 2022–23 Penn Kemble Fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy, a fellow at the Centre for Syrian Studies at St. Andrews University, and a former Global Diversity Fellow at the Atlantic Council. Will previously lived in Beirut, where he worked at the British embassy and for the office of the UN special envoy to Syria. He cofounded KAMA DC, a nonprofit that works with refugees and immigrants, and led the organization for seven years. Will holds a BA in Arabic and modern Hebrew from Oxford University and an MA in Arab studies with a certificate in refugee and humanitarian emergencies from Georgetown University, where he studied Persian intensively. 

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Babel: Translating the Middle East

Isabelle Werenfels: North Africa's Relationship with Europe

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Isabelle Werenfels about the ways in which relations between Europe and North Africa are changing.

Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman, Will Todman, and Leah Hickert — September 4, 2024

CSIS Babel
Babel: Translating the Middle East

Hasan Alhasan: The Strategies of Gulf States

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Dr. Hasan Alhasan, a research fellow at the International Institute for Strategic Studies based in Manama, Bahrain. Prior to joining IISS, he served for five years on the staff of the Crown Prince of Bahrain as a senior analyst on foreign policy and national security. Together, they compare Gulf states’ foreign policies and their underlying strategies. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Leah Hickert to discuss how Gulf states handle shifts in U.S. strategies and what the Gulf expects from its Great Power partners.

Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman, Will Todman, and Leah Hickert — July 23, 2024

CSIS Babel
Babel: Translating the Middle East

Karim Elgendy: Climate Diplomacy in the Middle East

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Karim Elgendy, an expert on climate and energy policy in the Middle East and North Africa. Elgendy is the associate director at Buro Happold, an associate fellow at Chatham House, and a senior non-resident scholar at the Middle East Institute. They talk about the geopolitics of climate change, the challenges hindering climate diplomacy, and the factors driving energy production in the region. Then, he continues the conversation with Will Todman and Leah Hickert to discuss climate's role in regional diplomacy and the public discourse around climate in the Middle East.


 

Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman, Will Todman, and Leah Hickert — June 25, 2024

CSIS Babel
Babel: Translating the Middle East

Analysis: Lebanon's Dangerous Campaign against Refugees

Recently, the Lebanese government developed a plan to deport Syrian refugees who were not registered with the United Nations, which accounts for almost half of all refugees in Lebanon. Although Lebanon’s sovereignty is important, so are its humanitarian obligations and its role in regional security. A new Analysis from the CSIS Middle East Program.

Podcast Episode by Natasha Hall, Will Todman, and Mennah Abdelwahab — June 18, 2024

CSIS Babel
Babel: Translating the Middle East

Jonathan Rynhold: Israel's Divided Politics

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Professor Jonathan Rynhold, the head of the Department of Political Studies at Bar Ilan University and a senior researcher at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies. Together, they talk about how Israeli public opinion has evolved since October 7th, the divisions within Israeli politics, and Israeli attitudes towards President Biden. Then, Jon continues the conversation with Will Todman and Leah Hickert to discuss the dynamics in Israeli strategic thinking and President Biden’s efforts to move the conflict closer to resolution.

Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman, Leah Hickert, and Will Todman — June 11, 2024

CSIS Babel

Lebanon’s Dangerous Campaign against Refugees

Surging anti-refugee rhetoric in Lebanon could spiral into further regional violence and outward migration. To prevent a conflict, the EU and the U.S. must step up resettlement efforts and condition their aid to Lebanon to stop forced deportations and growing violence.

Commentary by Natasha Hall and Will Todman — June 4, 2024

Audio Briefs

Lebanon’s Dangerous Campaign against Refugees

An audio version of “Lebanon’s Dangerous Campaign against Refugees,” a new commentary by CSIS’s Natasha Hall and Will Todman. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs. 

Podcast Episode by Natasha Hall and Will Todman — June 4, 2024

Audio Briefs
Babel: Translating the Middle East

Nicholas Blanford: Hezbollah’s Struggle Against Israel

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Nicholas Blanford, a Beirut-based security consultant, the author of two books on Lebanon, and a non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. They talk about Hezbollah’s evolution, its ties to other actors in the region, and the role the group is playing in the current Israeli-Palestinian conflict. 

Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman, Leah Hickert, and Will Todman — May 14, 2024

CSIS Babel
Babel: Translating the Middle East

Hiba Husseini: Peacemaking After Oslo

This week on Babel, Jon Alterman speaks with Hiba Husseini, a Palestinian lawyer and a legal adviser to Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations for 30 years, to discuss the state of pro-peace communities after October 7th and the war in Gaza's effect on future peacemaking efforts.

Podcast Episode by Jon B. Alterman, Will Todman, and Leah Hickert — April 16, 2024

CSIS Babel
Babel: Translating the Middle East

Analysis: Support for Refugees Erodes in the Middle East

This week, Leah Hickert speaks with Will Todman, deputy director and senior fellow with the CSIS Middle East Program, about how displacement has become a flashpoint across the region and the innovative solutions necessary to mitigate these crises. A new Analysis from the CSIS Middle East Program.

Podcast Episode by Leah Hickert and Will Todman — April 10, 2024

CSIS Babel