Brooklyn, New York, United States
I’m the Founder and Executive Director of afikra | عفكرة, a global platform that is reframing the image of the Arab world through new media, community-driven events, and education. Over the past decade, I’ve built afikra into a globally-respected network active in 30 cities and connecting a community of over 250,000 people. Our work bridges culture, media, and education through live events, educational programming, our cultural journal Daftar, and the afikra Podcast Network—one of the leading podcast platforms dedicated to arts, history, and culture in the Arab world, with 500+ interviews and more than 20 million views worldwide. I collaborate with institutions, educators, and cultural leaders to design programs and conversations that deepen public understanding and strengthen cultural discourse. Partners include Netflix, TED, Google Arts & Culture, the Islamic Arts Biennale, the Saudi Museums Commission, Misk Art Institute, Qatar Foundation, Qatar Museums, the UAE Ministry of Culture, Harvard, Northwestern, VCUarts, and NYU Abu Dhabi. As a host, interviewer, and curator of public programs, I’ve led hundreds of conversations with artists, scholars, business leaders, and policymakers, and have delivered keynote talks on global stages including Lincoln Center, The Public Theater, Yale, Harvard, Oxford, American University of Beirut, National University of Singapore, Northwestern University in Qatar, NYU, Shubbak Festival in London, the Islamic Arts Biennale in Jeddah, and Jaou Tunis Biennale. Earlier in my career, I worked in finance, consulting, and policy, leading reform projects across the Levant and East Africa, and began as a Teach For America corps member in post-Katrina New Orleans. Reach out if you are interested in collaborations related to the Cultural and Creative Industries (CCI) in the Arab World, new media & public engagement (podcasting, documentaries, summit curation), or developing new education models for creativity, curiosity, and innovation in the Arab World.
• Member of senior corporate management team focused on company strategy, business development, human resources and operations. • Co-lead on the actuarial consulting teams focused on national healthcare projects and private insurance consulting engagements throughout the Middle East and East Africa • Help manage a team of 30 actuaries, support staff, and subcontractors (subject matter experts) across the firm’s three offices in Cyprus, Lebanon, & Tanzania • Managed actuarial projects for national healthcare and social protection schemes for the following governments: Jordan (Ministry of Health & Ministry of Planning), Rwanda (Rwanda Social Security Board), Tanzania (National Healthcare Insurance Fund & Social Security Regulator), Ivory Coast (World Bank, Ministry of Health), Zanzibar (Zanzibar Healthcare Insurance Fund) • Redesigned internal actuarial model for managing insurance client projects across Levant, GCC and East Africa - training new actuarial analysts on reserving methodologies & other actuarial functions. • Co-authored study in 2018 that was commissioned for the East and Central Africa Social Security Association on best practices in governance and management for social security schemes throughout East and Central Africa
New York City Metropolitan Area
New York City Metropolitan Area