Middle East Institute | 34,970 followers on LinkedIn. Increasing knowledge of the Middle East among US citizens & promoting understanding between the two regions. | Founded in 1946, the Middle East Institute (MEI) is the oldest Washington, DC-based institution dedicated exclusively to the study of the Middle East. Its founders, scholar George Camp Keiser and former US Secretary of State Christian Herter laid out a simple mandate: “to increase knowledge of the Middle East among the citizens of the United States and to promote a better understanding between the people of these two areas.” MEI is a respected, non-partisan voice in the field of Middle East studies.