Author: MENA2050

Walaa Esam Elboushi

Sudan
Sudan

Walaa Esam Elboushi: Former Minister of Youth and Sports, Sudan’s Transtional Government. Was selected at the age of 33 as the youngest female minister in the history of Sudan, the first woman to hold the position of the minister of youth and sports. Former Chairperson of the East and Central African Regional Advisory Board for the Mandela Washington Fellowship for young African Leaders. Walaa served in Public Sector, she was the first female mechanical engineer in Sudan’s Sugar Company’s workshop since its establishment, she also worked at Sudanese Standards and Metrology Organization. In addtion to that she worked at Private Sector as Process Integration Specialist at DAL Group, Sudan’s Largest Conglomerate, the Civil Society, and as a Lecturer at Sudan University for Science and Technology . Walaa founded and led several initiatives in Sudan and across the African continent, she was part of the peaceful revolution that overthrown the 30 years of dictatorship in Sudan in 2019. Walaa was selected among the 100 most influentail young Africans in 2020 by Africa Youth Award and among the 100 most influential African women by Avance Media. Walaa is a mechanical Engineer with a MSc and DIC in Advanced Mechanical Engineering, Imperial College London and a Chevening scholar.

Yael Shany

Israel
Israel

A Hi-Tech diplomacy entrepreneur
Rain Maker (500M$), vision builder, speaker on Innovation Ecosystem bridges. An expert in creating long term relationships between decision makers and diplomats (soft power). Developed an elite community and network of 1,500 innovation leaders of multinational companies, startups, VC’s, NGO’s , governments, &diplomats.

– Founder & CEO of HiTech Ambassadors NGO foundation (since 2015). Bridging Innovation nations through leaders, for mutual growth opportunities. www.hitechambassadors.com

Mehdi El Amiri

Morocco
Morocco

PhD student driven by the hope of achieving coexistence among different ethnic groups
Background: My educational background is quite diverse, as I have gone through different specialities, including science, economics, literature and currently working on a PhD regarding different theories of representation of ethnicities
Professional experience: Coming from a family of entrepreneurs, I am currently the manager of the family business, as well as an English teacher.
My certifications include a TEFL (teaching English as a foreign language) which is crucial in order to incorporate different techniques during the classes taught, which in turn will help students assimilate the language in a smoother way.
Personal interests: I would like to conduct business in different parts of the world, as well as offer my teaching services, both of of these fields are crucial for bringing people together in order to achieve peace worldwide. By creating jobs and easing relationships through a common language.
My hobbies include playing chess and learning about watches, which are also two of my passionsPositive Impacts: Through teaching English, I have been able to transmit not only the language, but also ideas that helped my students see different perspectives of life, which has brought more students to my classes in order to benefit from engaging conversations.
Current involvements: Lately I have been solely focused on pursuing my studies by committing to my PhD, as well as growing the family business, I still teach whenever I can in order to make an impact among my students.
Closing statement: After recent turmoils that have been spread through different incidents as well as misunderstandings, I believe it is time for everyone to cone together in order to reestablish the well deserved peace that many people from different parts of the world are longing for. Education and business are certainly two of the fields through which it is possible to achieve this hope.

Jalal Charaf

Morocco
Morocco

Mr. Jalal CHARAF is Senior Advisor North Africa at IFC (International Finance Corporation / World Bank Group) since March 2023. In October 2021, he joined the OCP Group as Head of Farmer Solutions within the SBU Fertilizers & Farmer Solutions before being Sponsor of the corporate function “Talent & Organizational Development” of the Group. From 2019 to 2021, he was Managing Director of CGEM (The Employers’ Organization of Morocco) and Chairman of the Management Board of the Observatoire des Branches (OdB), whose mission was to ensure that the right skills were properly forecasted for all professional branches. Before CGEM and OdB, Jalal began his professional career in 1999 and worked in the fields of the concrete industry (PREFAB Industries), international technical assistance (IFC / World Bank), teaching and training (Al Akhawayn University and OFPPT), and agriculture (Les Domaines Agricoles and Atlassence). Jalal holds an engineering degree from Ecole Centrale Paris, a Master of Engineering from Cornell University, a PLD from Harvard Business School and an Executive MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology.

Ariel Ezrahi, Chair

Germany
Germany

Ariel Ezrahi, based in Berlin, is a nonresident senior fellow with the Atlantic Council’s Middle East Programs where he is working on a range of regional projects and initiatives. Ezrahi is an energy and sustainability diplomacy expert who appears regularly in the media.

Previously, he was the first director of energy at the Office of the Quartet where he shaped all energy aspects from conventional to renewable energy, and sustainability initiatives.

Ezrahi was the architect of the Gas for Gaza project and chaired its task force since inception, where he worked closely with the project’s key international actors, on this cornerstone Palestinian project, in close cooperation with Israel.

Ezrahi was the Energy Adviser to former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair, the Quartet Representative. Prior to that role, he worked for international law firms, in the corporate energy field, with an emphasis on the Middle East and North Africa region.

He holds an M.Phil. in modern Middle Eastern studies from the University of Oxford (St. Antony’s College), an LLM in international law from Georgetown University, and an LLB from the University of Manchester.

Pierre Henri Guignard

France
France

After studying Economics and Public Affairs,
he joined the Foreign Affairs ministry and served in Peru, Mexico, Canada and the United States and, later..

Alexander Eliezer

Israel, UK
Israel, UK

Alexander Eliezer is a British-Israeli businessman with experience in natural resources

such as oil and gold in Central Asia and Africa, as well as the Israeli high tech sector,

where he is currently an investor and board member of a cyber security company. He

is based in Europe and Israel and speaks reasonable Arabic and Hebrew.

Prof. Salah Arafa

Egypt 
Egypt 

Professor Salah Arafa is a tenured faculty member at the Physics Department, School of Sciences and Engineering of the American University in Cairo (AUC). He joined AUC in 1968. Before joining the University, he worked as a physics researcher at the Egyptian Atomic Energy Authority from 1962 till 1968.
Arafa holds a B.Sc. in Physics and Chemistry (1962), M.Sc. in Nuclear Physics (1966), and a Ph.D. in Solid State Physics (1969); all from Cairo University.
In 1967-68, he was a research fellow of the International Seminar in Physics, Uppsala University, and later in 1971-1972 was a visiting Scientist at the Physics Department of Uppsala University, Sweden.
He joined the American University in 1968 and was the Chair of the Science Department twice and served as senator at large in the University Senate.
Professor Arafa is well known as one of the leading Social Entrepreneurs in Egypt and the Arab World. He was selected a Senior Ashoka Fellow in 2004 and was awarded as the Man of the Year for Environment and Development in 2009. Since 1974, Arafa is involved in many Civil Society activities and is today the chairman and founder for few of the leading NGOs in Egypt. He has also served as consultant to many international organizations: US-AID, UNICEF, GTZ, EU, and UNDP. He is a member of the National Committee on Climate Change and also a member of the Research Council on Environment and Development at the Egyptian Academy for Scientific Research and Technology.
Professor Arafa’s work in the fields of Experimental Physics, Advanced Materials, Renewable Energies, Climate Change Impacts, Sustainable Community Development, Child Protection and Eco-communities is nationally and internationally recognized.

Shirahan Alwakily

Israel
Israel

Shirahan Alwakily is a BA student at Reichman University, focusing on government diplomacy and strategy. Shirahan is a youth advisor for the NGOCSD-NY and have been actively engaged as a public speaker in various communities worldwide. Shirahan has also been involved in several projects as a U.S Embassy alumni, including Access, Career Planning Course, Empathy Storytelling, In Blink of an Eye, Bridge of Peace, Asfar NGO in the UK, and JPB program at Houston&Texas. In January 2023, She introduced the Moot Court project on human rights at the United Nations in New York. Shirahan Alwakily is also a group guidance facilitator, mindfulness deepening guide, animal welfare activist, and MUN conferences activist. Additionally, Shirahan serve as a mentor for the Jewish Agency’s youth.

Azad Ali

Kurdistan (Iraq), Syria
Kurdistan (Iraq), Syria

Azad Ali is a dedicated activist and scholar who has embarked on a journey of education, advocacy, and integration. Born in Aldeba, he pursued his primary and secondary education in Kurdistan, Northern Iraq. Afterward, he ventured to Lebanon, where he engaged in preparatory studies for higher education in Germany.

Azad’s commitment to social justice led him to work with the United Nations in Kurdistan, broadening his perspective on global issues. Upon arriving in Germany in 2015, he embarked on an integration course and achieved proficiency in the German language.

Azad’s passion for politics and human rights has driven him to take on leadership roles, such as serving as the President of the Kurdish-European Network Association. He has also undertaken further language courses, attaining fluency in German at the B2 and C1 levels.

Throughout his journey, Azad Ali has exemplified resilience, dedication, and a strong commitment to making a positive impact. His diverse experiences and unwavering determination continue to shape his path as he pursues his academic and activist endeavors.