Majdoulin Almwaka is a Research Assistant at the Center for Conflict and Humanitarian Studies (CHS). She holds an MA in Women, Society, and Development (WSD) from Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU) and a BA in Political Science/ International Affairs with a Minor in Psychology with Distinction from the Lebanese American University (LAU).
She was awarded the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI) Tomorrow's Leaders (TL) Scholarship whose values were founded upon producing future leaders of the Middle East and North African (MENA) region.
Her MA thesis was titled: "#PriorityToo Deyman Wa'ata: The Politics of Crisis, State-Sanctioned Gendered Violence, and Guardianship". Her research interests are in the field of international relations, Middle East and North African gender politics, feminist solidarities and activism, gender-based violence (GBV), and legal reforms.
Aiming to effect tangible legal changes, before joining CHS, she contributed to legal advocacy efforts at the Doha International Family Institute (DIFI), focusing on family-friendly work policies in Qatar and the Gulf. Additionally, she served as a research associate on a QATAR NATIONAL RESEARCH FUND (QNRF) grant at the Doha Institute (DI), exploring women's empowerment and work-life balance in the region. Furthermore, she sought to document and preserve the oral history of women in the Middle East and North Africa as part of her role as a research associate/web content manager on the ISMAHA project at HBKU.
Focusing primarily on Afghanistan, her research with the CHS team aims to spearhead multifaceted initiatives towards fostering inter-Afghan dialogue, advocating for the rights of Afghan women in education and employment, and enhancing the capacities of official Afghan institutions.