The first program in this season’s Camden Conference Community Events at the Rockport Public Library will take place Wednesday, Oct. 15, at 6 p.m. Arthur Levin will provide an insider’s look at life in the Middle East with a slideshow presentation entitled, “An Expatriate Perspective on Living in the United Arab Emirates.” The program is free and open to the public.

Levin and his wife, Joan Pew, resided in the UAE from 2012 to 2015. Levin will share what initially brought them there, what life was like as American expatriates, and some of the cultural experiences they encountered in their journeys throughout the Middle East. Levin will conclude with a broad reflection on the positive and negative aspects of their time in the UAE.

Arthur Levin most recently served as Senior Security Specialist and Regional Lead with Chemonics International, one of USAID’s largest implementing partners. In this role, he oversaw risk management for more than 40 complex humanitarian programs across Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, with a focus on intelligence analysis, physical security, and emergency preparedness. He has led and supported crisis response efforts for USAID programming in Ukraine, Sudan, Afghanistan, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and Palestine.

Levin also spent three years living in the United Arab Emirates. There, he served as a Senior Manager for CTG Global, providing staffing, logistics, and security solutions to organizations such as UNOPS, WFP, UNDP, and the World Bank. His portfolio spanned projects in 25 countries across Africa and the Middle East, covering areas from humanitarian relief and disaster response to education and governance. In 2014, he collaborated with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East to deliver emergency assistance to displaced Palestinians following the Gaza War (Operation Protective Edge).

Levin received his B.A. in International Relations from Webster University.

Find event information here.