CAES Morocco: Leading Across Differences

     While studying in Morocco, something that was quickly apparent was the difference in gender roles. As you walk through the streets, most women are expected to cover up, even if they do not follow Islam. On tours, we are expected to wear "respectful" clothing, but men do not have to alter what they wear.  Religion has a much bigger influence on gender roles in Morocco than in America.       When passing a cafe or restaurant, you mostly see men sitting outside enjoying the sunshine. Women are rarely out in the open enjoying themselves. They are mostly seen caring for children or working. Women are still seen as manager of the home. Even though women are legally considered equal to men, societal traditions/norms keep women behind men in many ways.    Today when visiting the argon co-op, they had jobs strictly for women. When we were trying to crack the argon nuts, the boys could not try, just the girls. We do not have this in the ...

      It has been interesting to me that in most of the farm related site visits we've made, if not all, there has been a clear delineation of gender grouping according to task.  The blueberry sorting process at iBerry was predominantly done by women.  Also the oranges being sorted at COPAG were done seemingly by all women.  It was mentioned by one of our guides multiple times that it is not discrimination against women at play, but that women are just better at these tasks than the men.  It can be off-putting for someone from the United States if our cultural filter suggests to us that women are being relegated in some way to a job and disallowed to advance. Especially knowing that  "the number of women entrepreneurs stands at around 10 to 12per cent of the total number of entrepreneurs and is mainly concentrated in large cities like Rabat and Casablanca" (Aligod, 2023).  In the situations we were shown, it was also emphasized that the women...

     While studying abroad in Morocco, I’ve been paying attention to how identity shows up in everyday life, and one of the most noticeable things is how gender roles are deeply traditional. In almost every city we’ve visited, men are the ones filling cafes, sitting in chairs facing the streets like they’re part of the scenery. It’s rare to see women doing the same. In Moroccan society, men are generally seen as the providers, while women are expected to take care of the home and children. That separation plays out in very visible ways. This divide is also present within Berber communities. While Berber women have historically played strong roles in their families and villages, modern systems have pushed their visibility aside.  I noticed that it was mostly men who spoke to us, while women stayed back. One local told me, “The men go out and the women stay home. That’s just how it is.” But it made me wonder, who decided it has to be that way? Why is a woman’s voice o...

 Gender roles within Morocco are really traditional. Men are expected to be the breadwinners, while the women are expected to be caregivers to the children and take care of the home. In this blogger post, I will primarily be focusing on the male roles. As we have passed through multiple large and small Moroccan cities, there are always a plethora of men sitting at cafes. The chairs at these cafes are typically facing the street rather than each other, indicating that people watching is a common pastime.  According to a Morocco World News website, going to a cafe is a man’s common routine. If he is not retired, the man of the house will be sure to go to the cafe following there day at work and not return home  for a while after their work day ends. This may be a lie but Google also says that some men spend their days at cafes because they wanted to get away from their wife and kid(s). If this were true, it would indicate that the traditional roles of Morocco may be detrime...

  I have noticed in Morocco that there is no sign of gay people or gay pride anywhere. In the United States there are a lot of rainbows in big cities symbolizing support and love for people of the LGBTQ. In Moroccan law, homosexuality is illegal. I can imagine this would be extremely difficult to be a gay person in this country because I wouldn’t feel accepted, loved, or appreciated for who I am as a person. The maximum penalty is 3 years in jail for people who are caught in a gay sexual act. According to the article I read, there is a lot discrimination and violence towards gay people, including assault and harassment.  Work cited  “Morocco.” Human Dignity Trust , 17 Dec. 2024, www.humandignitytrust.org/country-profile/morocco/. 

  Transportation in Morocco has been something I've noticed since the first day in Casablanca when a jam-packed light rail train passed our group on a busy walking street. In Morocco, many people rely on shared taxis, buses, trains, biking, or walking. In the U.S., car ownership is often seen as a necessity and a status symbol, with big differences between driving an old car, a luxury vehicle, or using public transit (which often carries a stigma). I've given several passionate lunchtime rants by this point about trains and city accessibility, specifically. In urban areas, trains provide economic growth, connectivity, and environmental benefits, yet cities like Atlanta have yet to invest in the concept (Yes, there's MARTA…but don’t get me started on its lack of reach, underfunding, and general inefficiency). Casablanca has over 29.5 miles of effective modern tramway lines. The system connects residential neighborhoods to commercial centers, universities, hospitals, and the ...

Growing up in the United States, I often struggled with the rigid expectations of what it means to be a ‘man’ … strong, unemotional, and tough. Expressing vulnerability was often seen as weakness and showing affection towards other men would easily be misunderstood or ridiculed. The pressure to adhere to the ‘man’ image often leaves little room for softness, connection, or emotional honesty. As discussed in Framework Recovery (2025), this emotional suppression is deeply tied to the stigma men face when trying to open up with one another, even though it is critical for mental health to be able to talk about emotions and express vulnerability.  As we travel through Morocco, I’ve been witnessing something profoundly different. In city after city, I’ve seen men openly linking arms, greeting each other with a kiss on the cheek, riding closely on motorcycles,...all gestures of connection and comfort that would most likely be questioned back home in the United States. These expressions of...

  During my time in Morocco, I had the opportunity to gain a deeper understanding of the identity of Moroccan women. A  perspective very different from my own. What struck me most was the complex and evolving role of women in Moroccan society as they navigate the balance between tradition and modern change. Moroccan women live in a society deeply rooted in Islamic traditions, yet one that is also undergoing significant transformation. According to the World Bank, Morocco has made substantial progress in gender equality, particularly in education and legal rights. Throughout the trip, several people mentioned that women now have more legal protections, especially in the area of divorce. In most of the places we visited, it was predominantly women who were hard at work—doing the tedious jobs like cleaning and sorting out bad fruit—while men handled tasks involving heavy equipment. These women challenged the stereotypes I previously held about what life is like for women in a tra...

 I have noticed in Morocco that there seems to be no economic middle class, or that it is quite small. If that is not true and there are distinct classes, then I haven’t been in situations to see them, or they are not visually obvious to me. In all the towns we are in everyone seems to be dressed very similar, doing similar activities, and it seems everyone knows everyone. I would consider both of our Muhammed’s and the professors we spoke with at ENA and the scientists and engineers at our tours to be upper class in Morocco, but that is coming from my American biases. Where wealth and income mainly separate classes globally, in Morocco family, history, region, and education separate the classes. One thing that is so difficult for Moroccans relating to social status is social mobility. “  According to the enlightening  Global Social Mobility Index  compiled by the World Economic Forum in 2020, Morocco finds itself mired in a disheartening 73rd position out of 82 coun...