Nihal Miaaz is a postgraduate student at Leiden University, where she is pursuing a master's degree in International Relations with a specialization in Culture and Politics. Her research focuses on the intersection of cultural production and politics, with a particular emphasis on the SWANA (South West Asia and North Africa) region. Nihal’s work delves into topics like cultural resistance, decolonial cultural production, and the complex relationship between culture and power. For her master’s thesis, she critically examined the concept of neutrality in cultural institutions and explored the cultural boycott movement against Israel, highlighting the ways in which art and culture can become powerful tools of resistance.

Nefret El-Masry is a postgraduate student at Leiden University, where she is pursuing a master's degree in international relations with a specialization in Culture and Politics. Her thesis examines the effects of neoliberal policies on urban space throughout the Assad regime, focusing on post-war urban reconstruction in Aleppo, Syria, and its socio-political impact on its residents. Her broader research interests span decolonial studies, social movements, and non-state power formations.

Isabella Lombardi holds a Law Degree from São Paulo Fundação Getúlio Vargas Law School and is currently doing her MSc in Islamic and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Edinburgh. Her research is focused on the weaponization of narratives by Western newspapers when covering Middle Eastern conflicts.

Zozan is a journalist, researcher, and documentary filmmaker. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in IMES at the University of Edinburgh. Her research explores contemporary settler colonialism, demographic engineering, and identity erasure in northeast Syria/Rojava. She has worked for The New Humanitarian, VOA, and Internews, and she co-produced/directed two documentaries exploring the challenges faced by displaced communities.

María Martín Rodríguez is an MA International Relations student at Leiden University, specializing in Global Conflicts. Her interests lie in interregional cooperation, geopolitics and human security, themes she is excited to discuss in this program. As such, her MA thesis analyses state practices regarding Search and Rescue operations for boat migration, specifically centering in Malta. Other topics that she has researched include foreign influences on the status of the Western Sahara, and the role of journalism in Israel-Palestine.

Olivia is a 24-year-old master's student in the MSc Globalized Muslim World at the University of Edinburgh. Her hobbies include art, politics and literature. She has a specific interest in Islamic feminism and the misconceptions of Muslim women globally. She believes that Islamic feminist discourse holds power in its perceptions of Islamic culture.

Egi is a dual-degree student in MSc The Globalized Muslim World at the University of Edinburgh and MA Islamic Studies at Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia. His research interests include Qur'ān hermeneutics, philology, and Southeast Asian Islam. Egi's MSc dissertation examines the bowdlerization and publication of Southeast Asian Qur'ān commentaries from the nineteenth-century Ottoman Empire onward and their circulation across the Indian Ocean (1885-2023).

Francesco holds a bachelor's degree in history from the University of Milan and a master's in history and Oriental Studies from the University of Bologna, where he focused on British colonialism in the Indian Ocean. He conducted research for his thesis at the British Library and is now completing an MA in International Relations at Leiden University. He taught history and humanities at the International European School of Warsaw for one year. He is currently writing a thesis that explores U.S. cultural diplomacy in post-war Italy under the supervision of Professor William Michael Schmidli.

Two focus groups (one in Edinburgh, one in The Hague) brought together civil society representatives, researchers, and local community members to discuss the future of the region and its implications for EU foreign policy. The Focus Group took place on April 10th, 2025, at Leiden University with two sessions followed by roundtable discussions. Between the two sessions, there were two parallel informal discussions that took place.

Session 1: Global Justice

• Sarah Wolff, Moderator, Professor in International Studies and Global Politics at Leiden University
• Matteo Colombo, Speaker, Research Fellow at Clingendael
• Emine Kaya, Speaker, Program Manager Gender, Peace and Security at WO=MEN
• Goran Batic, Speaker, Syria Head of Operations at International Commission on Missing Persons
• Angelique Eijpe, Speaker, Former Diplomat and Civil Servant, Dutch Foreign Affairs

Session 2: The Mediterranean as a Region

• Nadia Bouras, Moderator, Lecturer at Leiden University
• Joumana El Zein El Khoudry, Speaker, Executive Director of the World Press Photo Foundation
• Speaker of the Representative of Syrian Volunteers in the Netherlands 
• Sara Bolghiran, Speaker, PhD candidate at Leiden University

The policy workshop was designed to explore the effects of policy on communities as well as how approaches to policy can be reimagined.

Session 1: Muslims in Europe

• Dr. Richard McNeil-Willson, Moderator, Alwaleed Research Fellow and Lecturer in Global Muslim Studies at the University of Edinburgh
• Marion Lalisse, European Commission Coordinator for Combatting Muslim Hatred
• Tahir Abbas, Chair of Radicalization Studies, University of Leiden

Session 2: European Diplomacy - Thinking Outside of the Box

• Sarah Wolff, Moderator, Professor in International Studies and Global Politics at Leiden University
• Baukje Dijkstra, Speaker, Coordinator Shiraka Program for sustainable societal development in the MENA, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• Asma Hashi, Speaker, Policy Officer at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs-Department of Stabilization and Humanitarian Aid