This year's Cline Symposium will provide a retrospective on the Arab Spring that is both conceptual and policy-oriented. In light of the ongoing transformation in the Middle East, we will examine the conditions under which popular uprisings emerge (Would these changes occur without the self-immolation that triggered the Tunisian uprising?) as well as factors that shape their dynamics and success (Are revolutions contagious? Why have they overthrown dictators in Tunisia and Egypt but not Bahrain and Jordan?); we will consider the role of repression and ideology in authoritarian governance (Does repression instigate or impede protest? Were the aging dictators of the region and their successors too slow to adapt to technological change?); we will discuss the role of economic conditions (Did increasing world food prices play a role? What about the worldwide financial crisis?, as well as the role of American and European foreign policy (Did the cautious, indirect support that the Obama administration has given to protesters facilitate or slow down the uprisings?).