Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Michigan State University Dr. Farha Abbasi is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Michigan State University and core faculty member of the Muslim Studies Program. She is from Pakistan and settled in the United States in 2000 with her three daughters. In January 2009, Dr. Abbasi received the American Psychiatric association SAMSHA Minority fellowship. She used the grant money to create awareness about cultural competency, to redefine it as not just tolerance but acceptance. Her areas of interest are cultural psychiatry and teaching medical students how to provide culturally appropriate care to Muslim patients. She works directly with the Muslim-American community to encourage integration rather than isolation from mainstream society. In addition to her efforts to build bridges between the two cultures, Dr. Abbasi work as a psychiatrist has led her to address the barriers that stigmatize and silence mental health. She is the founding director of the Annual Muslim Mental Health Conference. In 2018 the tenth conference was held at the United State Institute Of Peace in Washington, DC. In addition, she launched a Global Muslim Mental Health Conference in Malaysia and Jordan. She is also the managing editor of the Journal of Muslim Mental Health and Director of the Muslim Mental Health Consortium, Michigan State University. Dr. Abbasi has received numerous awards for her service to the community and promoting mental health. Dr. Abbasi was an Honoree, National Alliance of Mentally Ill, and American Psychiatric Foundation Award for Promoting Minority Mental Health and Globie award winner, Office of International Students Services, Community Service Award by All Pakistanis Physician of North America and Community Service Award by Pakistan Women Association of Michigan. She has served on many boards and committees including Council on Minority Mental Health and Health Disparities American Psychiatric Association. She currently chairs the Mental Health Task Force for the Mayor of Lansing, Michigan. She works relentlessly and tirelessly towards one goal: Learning to coexist and go beyond our differences to reach the common point of peace and prosperity.
Postdoctoral Research Associate, University of Technology Sydney Francesca Sidoti is a cultural studies and cultural geography scholar, who specialises in place-oriented, qualitative research across academic and applied settings. She is particularly interested in how places shape and enduringly affect people’s experience, including how this manifests in the digital space. Francesca has worked as a research consultant since 2017 and led and managed projects for government agencies, NGOs, and universities.
Senior Researcher in Atmospheric Sciences, University at Albany, State University of New York Dr. Yu holds a PhD in Atmospheric Sciences from the University of California at Los Angeles, achieved in 1998, following earlier studies in the same field and in Atmospheric Physics at Peking University and the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, China. Dr. Yu's scholarly work, highlighted through numerous publications and citations in various scientific discussions, underscores significant contributions to understanding atmospheric aerosols, their interaction with clouds and climate, and related health impacts. His professional trajectory includes extensive fundamental research and model development on atmospheric aerosol behavior, showcasing an in-depth engagement with climate change and air quality studies across multiple research institutions in the U.S. His research grants reflect a strong focus on delineating physical processes, developing state-of-the-art models, reducing uncertainties in climate change projections, and addressing emerging environmental issues.
Senior Lecturer in Library and Information Science, Linnaeus University Fredrik Hanell holds a PhD in Library and Information Studies from Lund University (2019). He is a Senior Lecturer in Library and Information Science and Head of the Department of Cultural Sciences at Linnaeus University, Sweden. His research interests include critical library studies, in particular focusing on public libraries as actors in a democratic society, and studies of media and information literacy in digital settings, as well as digital methods development and critique. He currently teaches on the Bachelor's programmes in Library and Information Science and the Master's programme in Digital Humanities.
Chargé de cours aux départements de Sciences des religions et d'Études urbaines et touristiques, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) Avec des formations de géographe, d’historien et de religiologue, Frédéric Castel mesure depuis 25 ans l’évolution du paysage ethnoreligieux du Québec à l’aide de méthodes quantitatives (statistiques) et qualitatives (enquêtes de terrain). Dans l’ouvrage collectif Le Québec APRÈS Bouchard-Taylor. Les identités religieuses de l’immigration (2012), il a cherché à voir comment se joue l’équation ethnicité/religion aux échelles des groupes ethniques et des univers religieux. Au fil des ans, il a publié des articles dans l’État du Québec dont la synthèse « De la visibilité des lieux de culte à l’invisibilité des jeunes ». D’autre part, pour le compte de diverses instances du gouvernement du Québec et de certaines villes, il a travaillé sur divers dossiers comprenant une dimension religieuse. Il se concentre actuellement sur l’évolution récente du paysage religieux du Québec à partir des nouvelles données de recensements. Il vient de terminer des articles sur l’immigration musulmane et sur l’immigration des chrétiens du Moyen-Orient au Québec. Ces dernières années, il a écrit de courts articles sur certains aspects de la géopolitique électorale (mairie de Montréal, élections partielles au Québec, géopolitique du cabinet Trudeau, élection sénatoriale en Alabama, élections primaires américaines).
Country Economist - IGC, London School of Economics and Political Science Félix Mambo is an economist at the International Growth Centre (IGC) in Mozambique. Before joining the IGC, he worked as a Research Consultant for UNICEF, supporting public finance initiatives for children and advising lawmakers on financial oversight. Between 2016 and 2018, he collaborated with UNU-WIDER as part of the Inclusive Growth program in Mozambique. Ricardo Santos is a Research Fellow with UNU-WIDER at Mozambique.. He holds a PhD in Economics from the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) at the University of Sussex, a Master degree in Economics from the Nova University in Lisbon and an MA in Development Studies from IDS. His doctoral research examined the post-conflict labour market and education sector in Timor-Leste, looking at the medium-run impact of exposure to violence and conflict produce on the households ’choices regarding education, namely inquiring on impacts over the economic incentives for education. His previous work in the development field includes voluntary work for one year in Timor-Leste as a member of a Portuguese NGO and, Program Manager for Timor-Leste and Angola and Deputy Executive Officer of the same NGO. In his previous position, he was is Social Policy Specialist on Public Finance for Children with UNICEF Mozambique.
