Dr. Ali Al Marri has served as Executive President of MBRSG since March 2013, making significant contributions in the development of education, training, and research.Holder of a Bachelor's and Master’s in Law from Dubai Police Academy, and a Doctorate in Leadership and Strategy from Bradford University, UK, Dr. Al Marri also has many certificates and accolades from Dubai Police and a number of government bodies. In 2012, he won the Sheikh Rashid Award for Academic Excellence and The Best Paper Award at University of St Andrews’ 4th Annual Scottish Doctoral Management Conference. Dr. Al Marri delivers lectures and training programs in leadership, public administration and public management, strategic planning, total quality management and sustainable development and also serves as a keynote speaker at numerous local and international conferences and workshops. He has also contributed to the membership of a number of government committees and task forces specialized in corporate performance evaluations, strategies and policies development, as well as work mechanisms and processes.

Dr. Arthur King is the Acting Dean and Director of Academic Affairs at Mohammad bin Rashid School of Government. He is a career academic with over fifteen years teaching and academic management experience. Dr. King has taught at various universities in Europe, Africa and in the Middle East at under-graduate and post-graduate levels. Before joining MBSRG, Dr. King served at various managerial positions including Head of Department, Head of Accreditation, Head of Entrepreneurship Centre and more recently Dean of a university in Kuwait. He has participated in business consultancies in the area of quality evaluation in the public and private sectors.

Dr. King has expert knowledge in accreditation standards and ISO certification for educational institutions. He holds an honors degree in Business Administration from University of Zimbabwe, a Master of Business Administration from University of Science Malaysia and a PhD from Bedfordshire University, in the United Kingdom with a specialization in the quality management field. Dr King is an alumnus of Harvard University’s Entrepreneurship program (US).

Prior to joining academia, Dr. King worked in various positions including a foreign service role in the ASEAN region. He also worked as a Senior Business Analyst for an organization which specializes in providing start-up capital and consultancy services to Small and Medium Enterprises in developing countries. Broadly, Dr King’s research interests are in the area of quality management, accreditation, education and entrepreneurship.

Prof. Melodena Stephens’ areas of research and consultancy are in strategy, focusing on agile government, crisis management, entrepreneurship, AI ethics, and brands. She has close to 30 years of experience in industry, government, and academia at senior levels. Before joining MBRSG, where she heads the Master in Innovation Management program, she was the first female Indian Dean of a university in Germany. Before that, she spent over a decade at the University of Wollongong in Dubai (UAE), one of the first private universities in the UAE, where she undertook the roles of Deputy Dean and MBA Program Director. She has actively managesaccreditation and accreditation committees (UAE, Germany) and institutional outreach. Before her Ph.D., she worked in India for the Tata Group. She has lived in the UAE, the USA, India, Taiwan, and Germany. Prof. Stephens is on several advisory boards and is active in AI ethics, volunteering at IEEE SA. Her active approach to teaching has been to facilitate an inter-disciplinary, co-created problem-solving competency with a global mindset. She has won several teaching and research awards, including two UAE National Research Foundation Grants, and recently was recognized as one of the 100 Admired People in Education in 2021 by Excelligent. She is passionate about emerging markets, especially the MENA region, and is frequently invited to panels and discussion forums. Prof. Stephens has published extensively – 11 books, close to 200 chapters, articles and journal publications. The most recent books are AI Smart Kit - Agile Decision Making on AI, Business With Purpose: Advancing Social Enterprise, and Agile Government. She is the founder of the Academy of International Business – the Middle East North Africa Chapter (AIBMENA), which has published cases on this region for local and international consumption. Since 2010, through this book project, she has captured organizational memories of a neglected region in international business studies to further our understanding of context. AIBMENA, a nonprofit social initiative founded in 2009, now under MBRSG, is a self-financing volunteer organization. The purpose of the organization is to act as an ambassador and champion for the MENA region by fostering research and teaching in the field of international business and policy. AIBMENA was awarded the ‘Dubai Brand Ambassador Status’ by Dubai Conventions & Events Bureau, Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing in 2012 and jointly won the bid to host the AIB annual conference in 2017.

Prof. Melodena Stephens Publications ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7933-2750

Dr. Mark Esposito is Resident Fellow and Professor of Economic Policy at Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government in Dubai, a Global Professor of Business and Economics at the Hult International Business School, as well as at Harvard University’s Division of Continuing Education. He is recognized internationally as a top global thought leader in matters relating to The Fourth Industrial Revolution, the changes and opportunities that technology will bring to a variety of industries. He is Co-Founder & Chief Learning Officer at Nexus FrontierTech, an AI scale-up venture. In 2021, he co-founded the Circular Economy Alliance where he serves as Chairman of the Strategic Foresight Board. He was inducted in 2016 in the radar of Thinkers50 as one of the 30 most prominent rising business thinkers in the world. He is a Senior Advisor to the Ideation Center of Strategy& at PwC. He is a global expert of the World Economic Forum and advisor to national governments and currently serves as Subject Matter for the Prime Minister Office in the UAE. In his academic career, Mark has held academic appointments for some of the world’s leading institutions such as Harvard University, University of Cambridge’s Judge Business School, and Arizona State University. He served as Institutes Council Co-Leader, at the Microeconomics of Competitiveness program (MOC) at the Institute of Strategy and Competitiveness, at Harvard Business School under the mentorship of Professor Michael E. Porter and still served as affiliate faculty to the program. In his career he has written hundreds of op-eds and professional publications, over 150 articles, several book chapters, over 40 case studies and 13 books, including two bestsellers. Mark is indeed the co-author of the best seller “Understanding How the Future Unfolds: Using DRIVE to Harness the Power of Today's Megatrends”. In 2019, Mark's book on AI, The AI Republic, became #1 bestseller in the US, UK, France, Germany, Spain and Italy and received global accolades. His next books are: “The Emerging Economies under the Dome of the Fourth Industrial Revolution” with Dr. Amit Kapoor, published by Cambridge University Press in summer 2022 and “The Great Remobilization: Designing A Smarter World” with Dr. Olaf Groth and Dr. Terence Tse, to be published in 2023 by MIT University Press. He holds a Doctoral Degree in Business Administration from Ecole des Ponts Paris Tech, one of France’s most prestigious Grande Ecole.

Dr. Yousif El-Ghalayini is an Associate Professor in Public Administration at Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government, Executive MPA Program Coordinator, and Senior Fellow at the Centre on Governance at the University of Ottawa. His areas of teaching focus on public sector management and governance, HRM and PM, public policy development along with organizational behavior and development. Before joining Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government, Dr. El-Ghalayini was the Program Manager of HRM Program at the School of Business affiliated to the Australian College of Kuwait. Dr. El-Ghalayini spent few years of his career working with the Canadian Federal Government. He designed several organizational capacity-building programs and helped with the implementation of several federal government training programs including public policy development, strategic thinking and results based management. Prior to that, he spent several years as a United Nations specialist in civil society development and capacity building in post-conflict zones. Dr. El-Ghalayini holds a PhD in Public Administration from University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He holds a Master in Project Management from Université du Québec en Outaouais (Gatineau), Graduate Diploma in Administration from John Molson School of Business at Concordia University (Montreal), and BSc. in Electrical Engineering from Amman National University (Salt).

Professor Immanuel Azaad Moonesar R.D. is the President of Academy of International Business (MENA) and Health Policy and Systems Research Professor at MBRSG. He hails from one of the Caribbean islands- Trinidad and Tobago. His qualifications include a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Health Services: Leadership (Superior Distinction) from Walden University, USA; Master of Quality Management (Distinction) from the University of Wollongong, Australia (UOW); a Postgraduate Diploma in Institutional Community Nutrition & Dietetics (Distinction) & a Bachelor of Science in Human Ecology: Nutrition and Dietetics from the University of West Indies (UWI), Trinidad & Tobago. He is also the President (Chapter Chair) and Executive Board member of the Academy of International Business – Middle East North Africa (AIB-MENA) Chapter. He is also a Registered Dietitian and possesses professional certifications in ‘NEBOSH Occupational Health and Safety’, ‘Project Management: Certified Business Professional (CBP)’, Emotional Intelligence Assessor, and ‘Quality Management System Internal Auditors (ISO 9001:2008)’. He has published over 250 peer-reviewed journal articles, peer-reviewed international conferences, co-authored books, and book chapters. His Ph.D. dissertation manuscript was entitled: The Role of UAE Health Professionals in Maternal and Child Health Policy. His career experience includes quality assurance and management, nutrition and dietetics, health & safety, teaching, and institutional research. While, his research interest is in Health Systems, Public Policy, Healthcare Management & Leadership, Maternal & Child Health, Health Policy & Innovation, Nutrition, Global Governance, International Business Policy, Social Policy, Public-Private Partnerships, And Quality Management.

Connect: www.linkedin.com/in/iamoonesar

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4027-3508

Dr. Mona El-Sholkamy is an Associate Professor at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government and a graduate of the Global Affairs and Public Policy Program at the American University in Cairo, Egypt. She is also an affiliate of the Harvard Business School - Microeconomics of Competitiveness group. Her research interests are in the areas of Macroeconomic Policies, Sustainable Development, Education Polcies, Food Security, Health policies and Sovereign Wealth Funds. She has published her work in research publications including International Journal of Management and Applied Sciences; Journal of Business and Economics; and Cambridge University Press; among a few. She is currently a member of the FAO-Regional Network of Experts and its Chair. She received her Ph.D. in from the Faculty of Economics and Political Science at Cairo University, and her Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in Economics from the American University in Cairo.

Khalid Al Wazani is currently Professor of Public Policies in Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government (MBRSG), before that he used to be a Freelance Consultant in Strategies, Economic Policies, Economic Modelling, and Administrative Reengineering Agility and Nudging. During 2019-2020, he served as a full time Chairman of Jordan Investment Commission (JIC). Between Oct. 2015- Aug. 2019 he served as the Strategy and Knowledge Advisor for Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Knowledge Foundation (MBRF) in Dubai, previously he was the Chief Economist/ Strategist, & Founding Partner of Issnaad Consulting. Just before that, (2006-2011), he served at the private sector as General Manger & CEO of Saraya Aqaba Real Estate, Taameer Jordan Holdings (PLC) and Darat Jordan Holdings (PLC).

Earlier in his career, Dr. Wazani was associated professor of Economics at the Department of Economics at the Hashemeyeh University. Dr. Wazani was appointed as Deputy Dean for Faculty of Economics at the same university. Just before that, he established a research, consultancy and community service center at the university, and served as the first General Manager of the center during 1997-1999. Dr. Wazani has also held the position of Director General for the Jordanian Customs Department during 1999-2001.

Later on (Jul 2001- Nov. 2005) he was appointed as an Advisor and Director of the Economic and Development Division at the Royal Hashemite Court during which he served as the Head of the Economic Team for HM King Abdullah II. In early 2004 he served as the Deputy Chairman & Director General of Social Security Corporation in Jordan till early 2006.

Dr Abdulla Alawadhi is an Assistant Professor in Public Finance at MBRSG. He holds a DBA degree in Business Administration from the UAE University, Two Master’s in Business Administration & Applied Finance from Newcastle University in Australia. He is a Financial Consultant has 25+ Years of practical experience in fields of: Finance, Accounts, Strategic Management and Business Development, in Government, Semi-Government and Private Sectors. Dr Abdulla is a Certified Public Auditor, Tax Agent, Judicial Expert and Arbitrator. Dr Abdulla is Professional Trainer & Financial Consultant specialized in Corporate Finance, Accounting, Taxation & Entrepreneurship. Dr Abdulla is a Board Member of Emirates Association for Management Consultants & Trainers, holding a position of Treasurer. Finally, Dr Abdulla is an active person in the official media and social media, his interest is to publish the Financial knowledge for public.

Dr. Drissi is an Assistant Professor with a PhD Cum Laude in political science and sociology within the area of comparative/global policy and international governance; from scuola normale superiore in Italy. She has a background in social sciences and psychology with an experience within the public and private sector where she provided research assistance, behavioral insight consultancies and data analysis. Dr. Drissi currently works on governance, behavioral insight for public policy and system thinking; with a thematic focus on health, education and decentralized technologies. She speaks fluent English, Arabic, French and Italian.

Dr. Fadi Salem is the Director of Policy Research Dept. at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government (formerly Dubai School of Government). He is also the founding Editor-in-Chief of the Dubai Policy Review journal and leads the Future Government and Innovation research Group in the School as a Senior Research Fellow. During his tenure, he founded numerous high-impact multi-year global research programs, including the Governance and Innovation Program and the MENA Digital Government Program. Earlier, he was a Research Associate with the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard Kennedy School (HKS); and a Fellow with the I+I Policy Research Centre, Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy (LKY SPP), National University of Singapore. Fadi holds a PhD in Public Policy from the University of Oxford, an MSc in Information Systems Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), and a B.Eng. in Computer Engineering from Aleppo University. Dr. Salem is an international authority in digital governance, future technology and data policy domains. He was selected among the 100 Most Influential People in Digital Government worldwide (Apolitical), and over two decades has been an influential thought-leader in numerous fields related to digital government, AI policy, data and technology governance. He serves as a member of several influential governance, boards and international expert groups, including the Artificial Intelligence Ethics Advisory Board (Dubai Digital Authority), the Digital Government Society Board (DGS), the Global Council on SDG 16 (World Government Summit), the Expert Group on Governance Implications of Artificial Intelligence (ISO SC42 Working Group) and the Open Loop initiative’s Global Experts on the Governance of Emerging Technologies. His areas of expertise extend to AI’s societal implications, data governance, digital transformation, Govtech, open government, smart cities ecosystems and the ethical implications of emerging tech. Additionally he has extensive publications on ‘future of government’ applications, electronic participation, social media and public policy, and the impact of digital transformations in the Arab region. Some of the leading publications include the influential Arab Social Media Report series (www.ArabSocialMediaReport.com) , the Arab World Online series, the Dubai Policy Review (DubaiPolicyReview.ae), the Arab SDGs Index and Dashboard (www.ArabSDGIndex.com) and the Global Economic Diversification Index (www.EconomicDiversification.com). Dr. Fadi has over twenty years of multidisciplinary working experience in top-tier centers of government, international media organizations, research institutions and policy think tanks. He also led tens of advisory projects with the World Bank, UNDESA, UNDP, UNCEPA, WEF, OECD, Arab League among others. Prior to joining the Dubai School of Government, he worked in The Executive Office of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, advising senior leaders on technology policy and digital economy. He also was an editor of two leading international information and communication technology periodicals. He is a public speaker and a frequent guest in international conferences and policy forums. He frequently comments in the media, where his work and interviews have been featured (among others) in The Economist, New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, Financial Times, Foreign Policy Magazine, Foreign Affairs, BBC, CNN, Der Spiegel and numerous other global and regional media outlets.

Lama Zakzak is a Principal Researcher at Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government specializing in sustainable development policy research, with a focus on the MENA region. She is the lead researcher on the Arab SDG Index and Dashboards report, a partnership with the UN SDSN, that has significantly contributed to understanding progress on SDGs in the region. Additionally, Lama worked on research projects on climate action in the MENA region, with a focus on policy for adaptation and resilience. She has gained interdisciplinary experience working on a number of policy-oriented research projects in education, health and wellbeing, gender equality, and public innovation. Her contributions extend to major global forums such as the World Governments Summit, COP28, and MENA Climate Week, where she has presented and participated in panel discussions.

In addition to her work in sustainable development, Lama has contributed to the production of more than 400 case studies on global public innovation, including on topics related to sustainable and green innovation.

Lama holds a MSc in Global Health Policy from the University of Edinburgh, as well as an MA from the American University of Sharjah. She focuses her research on sustainable development, climate adaptation and resilience, and health and wellbeing.

Keertana Subramani is an associate researcher at MBRSG focusing on economic policy and development, circular economy, digital economy, and education. She holds a MSc in Econometrics and Mathematical Economics from the London School of Economics (LSE) and a BSc degree in industrial and systems Engineering with a minor in Economics from Georgia Institute of Technology. Keertana has previously served as a research assistant at Georgia Tech focusing on environmental economics, as a summer scholar at UNU Macau. Her master’s thesis in development economics while at LSE focused on analyzing Consumption Poverty Traps and Impacts of Targeted subsidized Grain Distribution. She has also worked as an educator, a technology consultant, and an engineer.

Since 2003, Dr. Warner has worked in various academic and leadership positions at three major off-shore branch campuses in the UAE. A career educator with over 25 years international teaching experience, her professional engagement has been defined by her keen interest in social justice and equality. In her home country of Jamaica, she has initiated inner city community engagement projects that connected benevolent business owners with families who needed educational assistance. She also works actively in communities in Nepal, Bangladesh, and Kenya to support the development and accessibility of quality education to at risk groups. Dr. Warner holds an MA Education degree from the University of Wollongong in Australia, a PG Cert HE from Middlesex University and a Doctorate of Education from the University of Exeter (both UK). Her research interest in student engagement and learner autonomy has led to her work in curriculum redesign, teacher training, and education policy development. Her doctoral thesis at the University of Exeter explored student engagement as an alternative pedagogical approach in Higher Education institutions in the UAE. She is a member of Higher Education Teaching and Learning (HETL), the Vice President- Finance (Sponsorship & Treasurer) of the Academy of International Business - MENA Chapter, and has presented at many international conferences and published papers on the subjects of study skills, student engagement and the policy imperative of this approach.

Prior to joining MBRSG, Dr. Mohammad Habibur Rahman was faculty member at a number of universities including University Brunei Darussalam (Brunei), University of South Pacific (Fiji), Lakehead University (Canada) and University of Dhaka (Bangladesh). During his tenure at University Brunei Darussalam, he served the Faculty of Business, Economics, and Policy Studies and the Institute of Policy Studies as Program Leader of Graduate Studies. He supervised academic research by a number of graduate and doctoral students, and acted as external examiner to several doctoral theses. An active researcher, Dr. Rahman has published papers on governance, civil service reform, local government, human resource management, e-government, and knowledge sharing in top-ranked scholarly journals. His current research interests include public governance reform, smart government/e-government, knowledge management, and public sector performance. His rich professional experience also includes advising UNDP and providing consultancy to a range of international agencies, including the World Bank, Asian Development Bank, United States Agency for International Development, Commonwealth Secretariat and Asia Foundation on governance and public policy areas. He was a coordinator and facilitator of executive development programs for civil servants in Fiji and Brunei, as well as a consultant to the Government of Brunei on national service and youth development. Dr. Rahman holds a PhD from the University of Wales, UK, and has two visiting positions – as Senior Fulbright Scholar at Maxwell School of Syracuse University, USA, and Visiting Fellow at York Centre for Asian Research in York University, Canada.

Dr. Scott Fargher joined MBRSG from the University of Wollongong in Dubai, where he was Associate Dean of Research in the Faculty of Business. He has also previously served as a faculty member at the Auckland University of Technology (AUT), the Institute of Public Policy; he was Deputy Director of the New Zealand Institute of Work and Labor Market Studies (now the New Zealand Work Research Institute). His research focuses primarily on Labor Economics, Macroeconomics, Economic Development, Sustainability and Public Policy. He has produced an extensive range of reports for public and private sector organizations and is widely published in academic journals including Applied Economics, International Journal of Manpower, Journal of Policy Modeling, International Review of Administrative Sciences, and Local Economy. Dr. Fargher also co-authored, together with Susan St John, the popular text Macroeconomics and the Contemporary New Zealand Economy. Possessing extensive teaching experience, he has supervised to completion up to PhD level; with topics ranging from ‘the economic impact of immigration’ through to ‘Investigating cross-market interdependence in frontier markets’. Dr. Fargher holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh (UK), focusing on the economic evaluation of youth training programs; an MSc from Glasgow University (UK), and an MA (1st) and BA from Auckland University, New Zealand.

Malik Almadani is the Executive Director of Government Performance in the Prime Minister’s Office, where he manages the performance framework for the UAE Federal Government.Almadani has developed expertise and experience in a number of areas including leadership, global competitiveness, sustainability, government administration, strategic planning, innovation, future foresight, international relations in addition to financial services regulation and Islamic finance. His previous experience includes working in the federal and local government entities including, the Prime Minister’s Office, Minister of State Office and the Dubai Financial Services Authority. Almadani is a graduate of Impactful Leaders Program from Mohammed Bin Rashid Center for Leadership Development. On the academic side, he completed the MPA program from MBR School of Government, he holds a BBA from the American University of Dubai and a Diploma in Government Innovation from the University of Cambridge. Almadani also graduated from prestigious executive programs including the Executive Program on Artificial Intelligence from MBZUAI, the UAE Government Future Foresight program and the 4th Industrial Revolution Program by the University of Oxford in coordination with the UAE Prime Minister's Office.

Dr. Mari Luomi is a Non-resident Fellow at the MBR School of Government. Dr. Luomi is a policy-oriented social scientist who has been studying climate change, energy transitions and sustainable development policy in the Gulf and globally for 15 years. She has worked for leading energy, sustainable development, and foreign policy research institutions, including the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies, the International Institute for Sustainable Development (Earth Negotiations Bulletin), Georgetown University, the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, and the Emirates Diplomatic Academy. She currently works on carbon circularity metrics, carbon markets and climate change policy at the King Abdullah Petroleum Studies and Research Center (KAPSARC) in Riyadh. Dr. Luomi holds a master’s degree in political science and international politics from the University of Helsinki and a PhD in Middle Eastern Studies from Durham University. In addition to a broad research publications portfolio, she has substantial experience in executive training, presentations, policy advisory, and reporting services for multilateral environmental negotiations.

Salma Refass is a Non-Resident Research Fellow at Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government and she is specialized in Public Policy and Economics focusing on the MENA region. She has centered her work on government-focused public policy change theory and processes, and research relevant to the public sector in hybrid regimes. Her research addresses the complexities of translating policy texts into practice at local, national and international levels and rethinking policy implementation in complex environments. It crosses boundaries of policy analysis, gender studies, political science, international relations, institutionalist theory and sociology among others. She has gained interdisciplinary experience working in both academia and the not-for-profit sectors. Economist by training, she worked as an analyst on a number of policy programs and initiatives in the Education, Health and Social sectors and led a series of impact assessment missions for development programs implemented around the globe (Morocco, South Africa, Kenya, Pakistan…) on behalf of international organizations. Prior to that, she worked as a quantitative researcher on academic projects in the Department of International Relations, at the University of Sydney. Salma holds a Master’s degrees in Public Policy & Governance from the University of New South Wales and in Applied Economics from the University of Sydney, and a BA from Saint Louis University in Economics. She is currently working towards her PhD in Governance.

Dr Irina Berezhnova Godchaux is a non-resident Research Fellow at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government. She is a physician and public health professional with two decades of experience in HIV and TB prevention programs, Smoke Free Policy and Non-communicable disease prevention as well as in Program and Project Management, and Program Monitoring and Evaluation across Russia, Europe and CIS countries. She developed, led and taught courses designed for health care / public health professionals and managers. Her teaching interests lie in the following subject areas: Smoke Free Policy from elaboration to implementation and compliance measurement.

Dr. Ramsi Jazmati Akili, is a non-resident fellow at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government, Researcher in the Institute of culture and society and holds a PhD in Emirati Women Leadership in the department of Business and Humanism of the University of Navarra. He holds a master degree in Bioethics and an MBDU from ESADE business sdhool and a diploma in High Management from IESE business school. Additionally, he holds a specialization program in governance and cultural diplomacy from the Academy of Cultural diplomacy of Berlin Germany. He is deputy director in Choiseul Institute Spain, a think tank center with special emphasis on geo-economics and the impact of international relations in the Spanish economy. He is a member of the observatory of equity of women at the social promotion foundation in Madrid. He has held the position of Patron of the Board of Trustees in the Social Promotion Foundation. He was the Project Director of the agency for business competitiveness of the Regional Government of Catalonia in the Gulf Region, where he was responsible for expanding the presence of Catalan companies in the Gulf in order to attract capital and setting up institutional relation between the regional government of Catalonia and institutional identities in the gulf region. He is a speaker in international forums covering the leadership of Arab women, a visiting professor in different universities in Spain and has published different papers in the center of the strategic studies in Madrid. He is a regular columnist covering relations between Spain and the Arab world. He is fluent in Arabic, English and Spanish and his expertise is in Women's Leadership, Cultural Diplomacy, and Geo-economics.

Taufiq Rahim is a Research Fellow (non-resident) at the Mohammed bin Rashid School of Government and Executive Director of Globesight, a consultancy based in Dubai empowering social impact in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia. Working with leading philanthropic institutions on developing organizational, program, and partnership strategies, Globesight also publishes original insights on key regional issues. Taufiq has served as an Expert with the United Nations Alliance of Civilizations and Visiting Fellow at the Dubai School of Government. Taufiq previously worked with McKinsey & Company, the United Nations, and the Aga Khan Foundation. He obtained his M.P.P. from the Harvard Kennedy School and his A.B. from Princeton. He is originally from Vancouver, Canada.

Dr Pineda is a non-resident fellow at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government and the President of World ENABLED, Chancellor’s Research Fellow, and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of City and Regional Planning at the University of California at Berkeley. He is a leading global expert on disability rights, policy, planning and design and has worked closely with the U.S. Department of the Treasury, World Bank, United Nations, UNESCO, UNICEF, and cabinet level officials in the UAE, Qatar, Venezuela, and Serbia among others to develop policies and programs that include persons with disabilities as equal stakeholders in development. Dr. Pineda is the recipient of a National Science Foundation (NSF) innovative research grant, a Fulbright-Hays Fellowship, the Thomas Jefferson Award, the Tom Clausen Fellowship for Business and Policy, and the Paul G. Hearne Award. Dr. Pineda holds a Ph.D. from the Luskin School for Public Affairs at the University of California at Los Angeles and a Master’s in City and Regional Planning, a B.A. in Political Economy, and a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of California at Berkeley.

Khamis is a Research Fellow (Non-Resident) at the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government. He has worked for several spearhead NHS Organisations in England where he led on Public Health ‘Hot Topics’. In 2013, he was appointed the Head of Section and then as an Advisor for the Strategy and Policy Department - Department of Health Abu Dhabi and then Consultant for the Health Policy and Standards Department at Dubai Health Authority. Khamis has been involved with several national and local committees and has led and supported the development of over 80 strategic and policy documents. His experience covers wide a range of subject areas including but not limited to Public Health, Health Promotion, Health Policy and Strategy. Khamis is an enthusiastic advocate for translating policy into practice, transformative initiatives and driving value-based and sustainable improvements within the health system. Khamis attended University in England and holds a bachelor’s degree with honours in Human Biology and a Master of Science in Public Health and Health Promotion from Leeds Metropolitan University. In 2017, he was awarded a Master of Science with Distinction in Health Policy at Imperial College London. He is a PRINCE2 Practitioner, certified in Social Marketing and a Fellow for the Royal Society of Public Health. Khamis has spoken at national and international conferences, holds academic publications and is a peer reviewer for several public health journals and for the National Institute for Health and Research in England. In 2016, Khamis was awarded ‘outstanding contribution in reviewing’ by Public Health in recognition of the contributions made toward the quality of the Journal. Khamis research interests fall mainly under the umbrella of Public Health, Health Policy and Health Innovation.

Sara is a psychologist, specialized in epidemiology, with a PhD in Community Mental Health. She is a researcher at the National Scientific and Technical Research Council, Argentina and a faculty member at the School of Psychology, University of Buenos Aires with 20 years of experience of research related to the mental health care reform in Latin America. She teaches courses at undergraduate level (public health) and graduate level (information systems in mental health, evaluation on mental health services). Research interests include: Users' experiences and perspectives about health care, non-sanitary services for mental health needs, social inclusion in mental health.

Dr. Amal Sultan Al-Halyan is an Emirati journalist with extensive experience in government media work, and with more than 24 years in Dubai Media Incorporated. She has an in-depth understanding of the national media sector and experience in strategic media forecasting. She is also distinguished by the ability to analyze the trends of interactive media users and governance. Digital Media, holds a PhD in Media from the University of Malaysia (USIM) in 2023, with distinction, she holds an Executive Master’s degree in Public Administration from the Mohammed Bin Rashid School of Government in 2019, with distinction and first in the class. She worked as Director of Ain Dubai Promotional Radio, and Director of Dubai Radio, in addition to her work as Director of Radio Program Planning and Production. She has extensive experience in radio presentation and voice performance. And program production, the introduction to the famous radio program (A Date with the Sun), which turned into a release version and a podcast version with the same name (A Date with the Sun) on the “Awan” platform. She worked as an executive producer for a number of major television programs on Dubai TV. She also has extensive experience as an official voice for a number of official television channels. She has experience writing articles in a number of local newspapers, and she is one of the graduates of the “Future Journey” program, the third batch, for class leaders. First and second at the federal, local and private levels. She served as a member of the social pillar of the Dubai Government’s Vision 2020, and a member of the strategic priorities of the Dubai Plan 2030. She is considered the first journalist to win the Emirates Women’s Award in the Innovation category in 2012. She is the initiator of the idea and the founder and director of Expo 2020 Radio. The first radio station during this global event, and subsequently won the Golden Sail Award in 2022 at the Gulf Radio and Television Festival in Bahrain, in the category of creative radio breaks. She has successful experiences in formulating national initiatives, policies, and research in the national, social, and media fields. She is the owner of the idea of the slogan “Help you, my homeland” in the Year of National Identity 2008, for the Ministry of Culture and Youth, and the owner of the idea and slogan, “Raise it high so that it remains tall,” for National Day 2013, for the Ministry of Culture and Youth. Culture and Youth, which later became a slogan for Science Day, in September 2023, won second place in the Arab world, in the category of best research in the field of government communication, within the International Forum for Government Communication in Sharjah.

Sarah Shaer is a Non-Resident Research Fellow whose research focuses on Gender and Public Policy and Youth issues. Sarah compliments her academic experience with a background in strategy consulting where she was a member of the government and public sector practice at PwC. 

During her tenure at MBRSG, Sarah has worked in the Governance and Innovation Program, Gender and Public Policy Program and the Youth Initiative on projects surrounding citizen engagement in service delivery, youth empowerment, knowledge production and globalization, women and leadership, education and unemployment. 

Sarah holds a Master’s degree in Anthropology from the University of Chicago and a BA from Wellesley College specializing in women’s and gender studies. Sarah was 2010 fellow at the Albright Institute of Global Affairs. 

Yasar Jarrar holds a non-resident research fellowship at MBRSG, is a partner at Dubai-based PwC Middle East, and has led the PwC Middle East Government Consulting Group. He has worked in strategic consulting positions with a large number of companies, institutions, and government agencies in the region.

Prior to joining PWC, he served as Executive Dean of the Dubai School of Government and a Research Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School. He was also a Strategic Advisor to the Director General of the Executive Office of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum in Dubai, a Senior Advisor for public sector reform and development at the Prime Minister's Office (UAE Government), and Head of the Ministry of Government Performance in Jordan.

Previously, as the Head of Policy and Strategy in the Executive Council of the Dubai Government, Dr. Jarrar played a leading role in launching key initiatives including the Dubai Institute for Human Resource Development and the Mohammed Bin Rashid Leadership Development Program. He was also a Research Fellow at Cranfield School of Management and Bradford School of Management (both UK), jury member for the 2006 and 2007 Dubai Holding Excellence Awards, and is the author of numerous reports and papers on strategy and performance management.