Mizan is a digital initiative that seeks to make the expertise of scholars of Muslim societies and civilizations available to a wider public, particularly by distributing original scholarship of contemporary relevance through digital channels.

Due to the generous support of ILEX Foundation, we are able to publish all materials on this site open access, free of pay or permission barriers. Free dissemination of scholarly material is at the core of our ethos and identity; we believe that one of the most effective ways to contribute to an improvement of online discourse is to make balanced, objective discussion of subject matter pertaining to Islam and Muslim culture and history freely available worldwide via the Internet.

We publish short features on Mizan Project and Mizan Pop every two weeks; these articles are aimed at a variety of audiences, from the general public to scholars working in field related to Islamic Studies. The academic journal Mizan: Journal for the Study of Muslim Societies and Civilizations is published twice annually. The journal is generally organized into thematic issues; individual submissions are subjected to a strenuous process of double-blind peer review (with neither the author nor the reviewers knowing the identity of the other).

We encourage civil, informed comments on our short features. Additionally, the Mizan journal features a dynamic annotation tool that allows users to insert comments and questions into the digital fabric of journal articles, to which authors or other users may reply. Instructions on how to use this functionality may be found on our Help page.

Although all material on this site may be accessed freely, you must be a registered user in order to post comments on features on Project and Pop, or to use the annotation function on the Mizan journal. To join our community of registered users, please complete this brief Mizan Community Member application form. In order to maintain accountability and encourage civil discourse, your identity must be authenticated and you will only be able to post comments and annotations under your real name. We generally require affiliation with an institution of higher learning, though members of the general public who wish to register and use the site may request to do so by contacting the Interlocutor directly. Your membership information will be displayed in the Community Directory.

All comments and annotations submitted to the site will be reviewed carefully, as they are integrated into the larger scholarly environment of Mizan. While we seek to promote an open discussion of ideas, standards of civil discourse will be enforced, and any language that is hostile, obscene, harassing, or otherwise deemed inappropriate will not be permitted. Repeated attempts to publish such material on the site will result in revocation of membership. We urge all of our users to abide by our standards and maintain a high standard of constructive criticism and civil discussion on our site.

We welcome your ideas for features for Project or Pop, or for thematic issues of Mizan: Journal for the Study of Muslim Societies and Civilizations. We generally seek submissions that fit into our main subject areas of interest or present types of content that we seek to make available to both the general public and the scholarly community (discussions of current events, translations of primary texts, examinations of literary works or visual culture, and so forth). Please contact the Interlocutor to discuss your ideas!