At AIMEE, we believe that every student deserves an accurate, nuanced, and meaningful understanding of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Too often, Middle Eastern and North African identity is flattened into a single, homogenous category, one that fails to reflect the region’s extraordinary ethnic and religious diversity, its multitude of Indigenous peoples, and its rich cultural, linguistic, and religious landscapes. For far too long, K–12 curriculum has portrayed the Middle East through narrow binaries and outdated or politicized narratives that erase the lived realities, histories, and contemporary experiences of its communities.

Our communities are calling for accurate and equal representation in classroom materials. The Middle East is home to some of the world’s most ancient Indigenous cultures, yet their contemporary stories, of resilience and belonging, as well as genocide, ethnic cleansing, and continued oppression, are almost entirely absent from public-school education. Students are rarely given a clear or truthful view into the complexities of the region or the people who inhabit it today.

AIMEE was created to change that.

We are committed to building a collaborative network of educators, scholars, community leaders, and culture-bearers who share a vision for a more honest and humanized approach to Middle East education. We develop and curate accessible educational resources, amplify community voices, and support teachers who want to bring deeper, more representative content into their classrooms. Our work uplifts the stories, traditions, and contributions of Middle Eastern peoples, honoring each community’s unique history while presenting our narratives collectively and with dignity.

We aim to disrupt the binary frameworks that have shaped how the Middle East is taught, replacing oversimplification with complexity, accuracy, and beauty. We want the world to see the Middle East and North Africa through the fullness of its Indigenous people: stories of cultural survival in the face of extraordinary adversity, of color and pride, of heritage and joy, of ancient roots and contemporary life.

We are not only history, we are present, evolving, and very much alive.

Through AIMEE, we work to ensure that students and educators alike encounter the Middle East in all its richness: resilient, diverse, multifaceted, and deeply human.