About

We work on long-term systems change and collective liberation in the MENA region, by envisioning and implementing projects that have a potentially revolutionary impact on the state of human rights.

Our disinformation research program exposed how authoritarian governments use online disinformation as a tool to influence the policy and actions of allies, shift domestic public opinion, and hound or intimidate dissent. The most high-profile examples of this include the Saudi government’s hack of Jeff Bezos to attempt to quell reporting on the murder of Jamal Khashoggi (through the Washington Post, which he owned), and influence operations to dilute human rights standards and attract western support for regional dictatorships through the Abrahamic Accords with Israel. This work informed policy decisions at major tech platforms, as well as the European Union.

I also led Shefa, our pioneering program to develop a culturally grounded and highly-effective protocol for trauma recovery in activists. It has supported the successful recovery of dozens of frontline activists, helping rebuild the personal resilience that underpins sustained civic action.

I’m a strategic advisor at the Albert Einstein Institution, where we study and educate on what makes strategic nonviolent action more effective and form part of a recursive link between research and frontline movements.

I joined the organisation after the passing of its founder, the legendary nonviolent action theorist Dr Gene Sharp, when its continued existence was in question. Alongside the Executive Director I worked on developing the organisation’s future strategy, recruiting senior staff, fundraising, and planning and implementing new projects, including the People-Powered Training Platform and a new program on inorporating Unarmed Civilian-Based Defense into defense policy.

My book, The Middle East Crisis Factory, is a primer on our region’s past and how the vicious cycle of terrorism, tyranny and foreign intervention was born, as well as how we can build a better future.

Developed and industrialised new mechanical products for machinery manufacturers. Responsible for full R&D lifecycle: design engineering, simulation and testing, prototype development, validation, manufacturing engineering, cost optimisation, and production readiness. Experience spanned CAD, FEA, test rig development, advanced metrology, additive manufacturing, tooling and fixture design, supplier collaboration, and design-for-manufacture.

First engineering hire at an optical metrology startup developing advanced non-contact measurement systems for aerospace manufacturing. Contributed across product design, experimental development, process engineering and manufacturing processes, as the company scaled to production use with leading aerospace manufacturers.