As part of my senior capstone project in 2016-17, I intend to research the history and current state of leftist movements in the Gulf through a case study of the leftist organisation ‘the Kuwaiti Progressive Movement’ (KPM) which was established in 2011. There has been little previous literature in English on leftist movements in the Gulf. I hope to fill some of this gap through a study of KPM, and their position within a history of continuous political struggle in the Gulf since the emergence of nation states in the region. I have received a research grant from NYU Abu Dhabi, and an offer to stay with Centre Français d'Archéologie et de Sciences Sociales in Kuwait, which will allow me to conduct research in Kuwait City throughout July and August. There I will examine the demography and extent of support of leftist movements in Kuwait historically and post 2011, the party’s historical and contemporary relationship with international solidarity movements, and its cooperation with sister organizations across borders. I will moreover study the organization’s intellectual and ideological history by identifying the strands of Marxist ideologies it draws on, and how it conceptualizes its own history in relation to leftist movements in neighboring countries and in a global context. Finally, and focusing on the Arab Spring, I will enquire into how KPM situates itself in relation to the popular protests across the region in 2011, the impact these have had on the party, and on politics in Kuwait since. Throughout my research I will be in direct contact with the KPM, the Kuwait Trade Union Federation and members of leftist movements from the 50s and up until today. I will conduct interviews and ethnographic field research with party members, and follow their publications online. I also hope to access archival material of leftist newspaper publications since the 1950s. Social media and current newspapers will be useful to follow the latest political developments and contestations in the country.