Doha, May 18 (QNA) - The 35th Doha International Book Fair (DIBF) 2026 featured a panel discussion on the role of Arab intellectuals in confronting crises.

The panel highlighted the pivotal role of Arab intellectuals in safeguarding public consciousness and shielding cultural identity, in pursuit of helping develop a rational discourse capable of addressing the challenges facing Arab societies today.

Keynote panelists included Executive Director of the Middle East Council on Global Affairs Dr. Khalid Al Jaber, Qatari writer Khalifa Al Mahmoud, alongside Dr. Liqaa Maki, senior researcher at the Al Jazeera Center for Studies.

Moderated by media practitioner Mohammed Al Hammadi, the panel debated the intellectual and cultural challenges facing Arab thought leaders given the rapid socioeconomic and technological crises.

Having weighed in on these matters, Dr. Al Jaber said Arab intellectuals have long been wielding ambitions for years, striving to contribute to an overall advancement project.

However, the accelerated crises and realignments the region has witnessed throughout the recent decades triggered the [cultural compass] to shift from a question of how the future is built to a more exigent question of how collapse is prevented, he wondered.

These transformations lay bare the number of formidable challenges the Arab mindset has grappled with in the past period, Dr. Al Jaber suggested, clarifying that true advancement isn't built through slogans, but is openly based on institutions, knowledge, freedom, and humanitarian development.

He further noted that intellectuals living in weak nations are incapable of changing the reality alone, but can literally maintain the function of a critical mindset and prevent the collapse of meaning and the loss of the ability to think about a different future.

  Dr. Al Jaber drilled down on the key issues Arab intellectuals encounter, primarily their relationship with the upper-echelon authority and communication with society, along with the internal rife they live with between their thoughtful convictions and reality requirements, as well as the persistent debate about the relationship with the others.

Al Mahmoud stressed that Arab intellectuals are required today to engage more profoundly in societal and humanitarian issues rather than confining themselves to elite or closed discourse.

He suggested that the successive crises facing the Arab world have underscored the need for a more grounded cultural discourse capable of resonating with the public and influencing people.

The role of real intellectuals isn't solely confined to crisis description but goes beyond helping build consciousness and provide thoughtful models that assist society to remain tight-knit and think rationally, particularly amid the rapid changes the world is going through, Al Mahmoud said.

He added that preserving cultural identity doesn't imply either insularity or rebuffing advancement but requires a literal awareness capable of combining authenticity and openness and capitalizing on the state-of-the-art tools without being oblivious to cultural immutable tenets.

Al Mahmoud stressed that what matters most is utilizing reading and writing to confront the intellectual distraction imposed by the cutting-edge communication technologies.

He confirmed that culture will always remain one of the human-building tools that boost intellectual and social stability.

Dr. Maki discussed the social and advocacy role of intellectuals during times of crisis, stressing the criticality of their contribution to promoting national identity, reinforcing public culture, and countering propaganda and foreign narratives, in addition to raising public awareness of the challenges posed by rapid technological and digital transformations.

  He reminded that book fairs have become amorphous and no longer remain spaces to showcase releases, but rather platforms for thoughtful conversations and creating awareness, in addition to bolstering communication between intellectuals and the public.

This move, Dr. Maki outlined, helps protect the public culture from declining in the face of the dominance of fast content and digital platforms. (QNA)