How are women changing science in the MENA region?
Gulf Insider interviews the 14 L’Oréal-UNESCO for Women in Science Middle East winners.
The L’Oréal-UNESCO for Women in Science Middle East Ceremony was held at Expo 2020 Dubai, honoring 14 women from the MENA region for their remarkable discoveries in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM).
For over 20 years, the Fondation L’Oréal and UNESCO have worked together to empower female scientists to achieve scientific excellence and to support them during their thesis or post-doctoral studies. With over 50 programmes including the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science, they support over 250 female researchers per year.
Post-doctorate Researcher Category
Nura Adam Mohamed (Qatar)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research focus is in the nanomedicine field, a promising area that is attracting national and international interest, especially as the world is moving towards developing targeted therapeutics and personalized medicine. Particularly, I am focused on nanoparticles that have cardio-protective effects to be used as an advanced treatment method for cardiovascular diseases/complications associated with diabetes. Diabetes is one of the most common chronic metabolic disorders in Qatar, the Gulf region and the world, and cardiovascular complications are the most common complications of diabetes. Studies have shown that uncontrolled and persistent metabolic abnormalities caused by diabetes leads to many damages to large and small blood vessels eventually causing many cardiovascular diseases. This shows the importance of developing non-traditional therapeutic tools. Therefore, my research focuses on developing nanoformulations and using them as drug carriers that in addition to transporting diabetes drugs have properties that enable them to reduce cardiovascular complications.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
Unfortunately, despite all the efforts made, women still represent a small percentage in all areas of the scientific research from basic research to decision-making levels, so this award will better highlight this aspect. In addition, this award will help me set an example for my colleagues, students, and others to encourage more women to join the scientific research community. Moreover, this award will help me better represent female researchers in Qatar, the Gulf area and the Middle East, and it will enable me to build collaborative relationships with world-leading scientists in the field of nanomedicine in both cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Most importantly, this award will help me meet our fellow scientists from the Gulf and Middle East, build relationships and form a great image of our societies. As for my advice, I encourage young female scientists to get in touch with other strong female scientists and to never give up. In my opinion empowering females in the scientific field should start at the very early stages as early as primary schools, and by hosting public engagements and welcoming young girls to open research days and later to volunteer in the research field, we can expose them at early stages to this field. This will help build their research and academic personality, improve their independency thereby preparing a strong and experienced generation.
Hend Alqaderi (Kuwait)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research focus has been on understanding the changes in oral bacteria and oral immune response to COVID-19 infection in people with mild cases of COVID-19 compared to those who developed severe cases of the disease. Identifying host–viral–bacterial interaction in the oral cavity during the course of a COVID-19 infection may help uncover new strategies for identifying at-risk individuals.
This research will further our understanding of the oral bacteria and other oral biomarkers in saliva that could potentially explain the immune response and allow us to generate a ‘frontline’ defense against infection and suppress the progression of the clinical symptoms in COVID-19 patients.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
I believe that the research infrastructure in the Middle East is still emerging, and the field is full of challenges and hurdles that make it unattractive to young women. However, my message to women who are passionate about scientific research is that you can lead a meaningful life through a career in science, by working hard, setting priorities, and taking advantage of opportunities. You can make a real impact in the scientific community. To be successful, up-and-coming women researchers need to learn how to tap into the resources by working with the right people. There is no straight path to becoming a researcher, but when you make it, the rewards are huge. My message to women junior researchers is that you can achieve success by finding the right mentors and a prosperous environment to grow and thrive. If you do this, you can build a thriving career and make a real impact in the scientific community. Supporting and engaging up-and-coming female researchers has been one of my career goals. In my research projects, I have proactively sought out opportunities to include them. Furthermore, I have been actively involved in teaching and supervising graduate students since I joined the Harvard School of Dental Medicine faculty, including advising them on their theses and research projects. As a woman in science, I seek out opportunities like this to be able to conduct high-quality independent research and mentor and train more up-and-coming female researchers. I believe that with more women represented in science, we can make the scientific arena even more welcoming for young women, and together, we can make unique contributions in our fields and communities.
Ingy Ibrahim Abdallah (Egypt)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research projects are theme-focused on the knowledge of biotechnology and natural products. My current focus is the discovery of novel drugs for the targeted therapy of breast cancer patients especially those suffering from mutations that render the available drugs ineffective. This research can be expanded and further deployed to target other types of cancer in the future for the objective of providing more effective therapies to cancer patients. I am also working on another project to create microbial cell factories for production of valuable natural products to allow their constant availability at reasonable prices.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
In the beginning, I would encourage all humans to pursue their passion and especially women. If your passion happens to be science, being research and/or academia, you should be persistent in its pursuit. I would advise you to be resilient when faced with adversity. You should keep in mind that any difficulties you might face are not obstacles really, but just temporary delays. Better yet, consider them challenges or opportunities for wining. It is important to learn to live through these delays without giving them a chance to hinder your efforts. Always keep your target in sight and work tenaciously towards it.
Irene Samy Fahim Gabriel (Egypt)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
When I was an undergrad, one of my professors in AUC (American University in Cairo) who I idolized taught me about the importance of environmental damage and that led me to focus on sustainable and circular economic projects in my research. This was the start of creating new environmentally friendly products. I want to bring awareness to the issues that are happening all around us and how we must act. I used only three types of waste in the past (shrimp peels, sugarcane waste as well as fruit and vegetable peels) to produce sustainable biodegradable products. Using these three waste products I created sustainable tableware, paint that prohibits corrosion, and thermal insulators. All these were pigmented naturally. For example, I used watermelon peels to create the paint that prohibits corrosion, and the green color was very defiant.
The main purpose behind this research is to promote the idea of valorization of waste.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
We could create more activities related to STEM such as summer research trips and internships, national societies for women and minorities in STEM, mentorships, career support, hands-on experiences and promote strong role models from women in engineering. My advice for every woman is: If you follow your passion, learn as much as you can, and do good work, people will have no choice but to respect and listen to you.
Heba Alzaben (Jordan)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
Ecosystem stress is a serious problem that affects the agricultural and ecological sectors. As an example, for the agriculture sector, many farmers use chemicals in high amounts, including nitrogen fertilizer for plants to overcome stress, which sequentially will result in high concentrations of the chemicals in the surrounding air, water, and soil beside the high cost of the used chemicals. Therefore, it is required to develop a new method to detect crop stress from early growth stages in order to minimize the use of chemicals on crop plants.
My research focuses on the use of thermal remote sensing through surface temperature and spectral emissivity measurement to detect ecosystem stress at early stages. The main objectives are to investigate the behavior of thermal signature for different ecosystems such as crops over time as compared to the current state of art for a single set of temperature measurements at a given time of the day and also to investigate the effect of spectral emissivity variation on ecosystem health.
This research will help farmers and ecologists to monitor and evaluate the health of an ecosystem using thermal remote sensing to improve the agriculture sector (on a small scale) and ecology (on a big scale), which will sequentially increase crop production, and reduce the contamination of the environment.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
Women are powerful and are able to do anything they want. They went to the moon, worked hard, and raised kids that became great scientists. They should always follow their dreams and believe in themselves. If someone would tell me 10 years back that I would win the L’Oreal-UNESCO fellowship, I wouldn’t have believed it, but I did it eventually. I worked hard while keeping a balance in my life where I specified time for myself, my family, and for hard productive work. Therefore, I encourage female scientists to always believe in themselves and work hard as the time will come when they shine and let their families, friends, and colleagues be very proud of them. Most people would suggest working hard for long hours, but let us not forget that boosting up energy for hard work is a very important key aspect that we all need to consider. Time management and finding the right balance in life is very important and vital to me. Therefore, in order to be productive in my work, I eat healthy food, exercise, and do my hobbies.
Hiba N. Rajha (Lebanon)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research is on waste valorization. Our work contributes to sustainable development through recycling and reducing organic industrial wastes. We transform agro-industrial byproducts, such as grape seeds and olive leaves, into valuable ingredients for the food and cosmetic fields. This research responds to the major environmental problem of waste disposal and have an industrialization potential which can contribute to the local circular economy. Science, technology and innovation represent together key factors in our research to respond to urging scientific, environmental and economic problems.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
I make sure it happens concretely as a university mentor by giving the opportunity for more women to pursue their PhD degrees. I would also make sure it happens ideologically by showing women with the help and support of international awards such as L’Oréal-UNESCO for Women in Science, the beautiful path they can have as scientists. My advice for women who are considering science is to push themselves over the edge of fear and jump, because they might discover that they can fly.
Nirmeen Elmadany (Palestine)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research targets the most aggressive and common primary brain tumor; glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), accounting for ~48% of all CNS tumors with a survival period of about 15 months. Despite the advances in immunotherapy and the promising data from cancer clinical trials, poor response has been demonstrated in glioblastoma. The dampened immunity in GBM hinders any significant response.
Currently, I’m targeting an immunosuppressive protein in GBM which contributes to the reprogramming of active immune cells into inactive phenotypes. Furthermore, the mentioned protein suppresses the accessibility of the active peripheral immune cells through the blood brain barrier. Hence, by silencing this protein, better GBM response to immunotherapy could be achieved. In my research I employee cutting-edge technologies like Cre-LoxP gene knockout, 10x genomics, special transcriptomics and human organoids to answer my scientific questions. My research hand by hand with many collaborators presents a hope for many families who are fearing the loss of their beloved ones by this malignant disease.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
Throughout my journey, I’ve faced many obstacles but also many successes. I was determined, focused and full of passion to feed my scientific curiosity about a specific disease which I believe needs the efforts of passionate scientists; regardless the gender, age, nationality or race. The findings of my doctorate work and my ongoing projects prove that we as scientists from the Middle East can make differences. Therefore, I really encourage other women in my home country Palestine and the Middle East to follow their passion and not stop. I’m totally aware that the idea might sound scary in such conservative societies, however, it is totally worth it. Each woman can be a voice of her whole society by breaking the chain and starting with herself. Seeing the outcomes of your research that affect the fate of hundreds of patients, participating in international conferences and very important events worldwide, discussing science with great minds including Nobel Laureates, etc… All of these are not dreams, but rather things that I could do and still do. It’s not impossible, it is a result of a decision I made 10 years ago to follow my passion. Now it’s your turn ladies from the Middle East! Take the decision, work hard for your dream to come true, make it a goal and achieve it!
Waad Saftly (Syria)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
I am working in the field of numerical astrophysics and galaxy simulations. My research focuses on the study of galaxy evolution through the history of the universe, which is one of the most outstanding and important topics in modern astronomy, and which will help us in solving a lot of other important astrophysical questions. The purpose of my research is to understand the physical processes that drive the formation and evolution of galaxies.
The best method to investigate galaxy evolution is to compare real observations of galaxies with the cosmological numerical simulations. The coming decade is a golden age for galaxy evolution studies, a wealth of relevant observational data are or will be provided, especially after the launch of the James Webb Space Telescope. I will compare these data to the most state-of-the-art cosmological simulations by utilizing advanced software. This project is very important to identify the successes and failures of different galaxy formation models in cosmological simulations. Hence, the aim of this research is to not only better understand the physical processes at play in galaxy evolution, but to also create new benchmarks to improve the next generation of the cosmological simulations.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
The need for more women in science goes beyond issues of fairness. We need our voices to be more represented and heard. Now is a critical time to have more women in science, we have witnessed that the Covid-19 pandemic has challenged everyone, regardless of their gender. Despite all the difficulties, family responsibilities, commitments and cultural restrictions that women in the Middle East face, women have to be determined to help build up their countries, maintain higher level of education and have their own independent and successful careers. Always remember that no matter how dark the present, we should always work for a brighter future.
PHD Students Category
Arij Yehya (Qatar)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research is in the field of psychology. I study individual and cultural differences in personality traits. My focus is on a phenomenon that is unintuitive. It turns out that the gap between men and women in personality traits are widening in cultures that rank higher on human development and gender equality indexes. The reasons for the widening of the gap is not yet understood despite the extensive research in the field. Through several studies I am running along with Professor Anu Realo from University of Warwick, we attempt to find the social, cultural and biological factors that might explain gender gap in the differences in personality traits across cultures.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it? Science has played a vital role in the development of many societies and hence, a career in science is an excellent way to make positive change that can affect the whole community long-term. In the Middle East, there are some great opportunities for women who are passionate about science. My advice to those considering careers in science is to follow their passion. More so, I am supported and mentored by many excellent scientists in the field, which granted me opportunities in research on mental health and psychology. Therefore, I believe pursuers should try to find the mentors who constantly push for better opportunities for young scientists in this region and abroad.
Ghada Dushaq (UAE)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research field is in photonics and optoelectronics (Electrical Engineering/Applied Physics).
In particular, I focus on new and innovative materials in both inorganic and organic materials, nano-material structures, silicon photonics and novel photonic devices for various applications in the next generation of high-speed optical communication, computing and sensing. My research includes nanofabrication, characterization, and multiscale simulations.
Technology has dramatically transformed every aspect of our daily life. These days, we need technology in every single matter of our life. For instance, reading information on a cell phone, tablet, or laptop, stream videos, online shopping, upload photos, and data searches are all processed in big data centers with enormous investment in fiber optics communication. For this reason, material scientists, physicists and semiconductor industry have been exploring several routes for integrating new materials in silicon technology. However, the process remains costly and complex. My research focuses on discovering new and innovative materials to improve the next generation of high-speed optical communication, computing and sensing.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
I think there is a promising sign of change in the number of women who join science in the Middle East; yet, there is still a way to go to achieve gender equity with low number of women scientists in leadership roles, especially compared to their ability, flexibility and openness to new ideas. Innovative and groundbreaking scientific ideas require the talents of both women and men. Achieving gender equality in science will create a balanced, holistic approach to leadership and better educated children in future generations.
My message to women who want to join science is: Believe in yourself, follow your passion, surround yourself with positive people and try to avoid downers. You work because you want to do the best you can do. If you work just to please people, there are reactions you cannot control, and that’s it, you’re already disappointed. Focus on what you can do and there is plenty of room for you to join us.
Halima Alnaqbi (UAE)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research intends to address the issues in current organ transplantation matching technologies, to minimize adverse, lower associated coasts and to enhance the quality of life by studying the genes that govern the adaptive immune system response in families from the UAE by creating a reference. A deeper understanding of the Arab genome will result in more accurate matching for transplant patients from Arabian descent, particularly those with leukemia. Furthermore, this reference facilitates research on disease susceptibility and/or protection to assist in early diagnosis, prevention, and personalized therapy in the underrepresented populations of Arabia. For example, we used the results obtained to identify risk genetic markers for type 1 diabetes and the novel COVID-19 in the population of the UAE.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it? I hope to one day become a professor and to continue working in biomedical research and lead a research team. I had the privilege of learning from some genuinely great instructors, and I am fully aware of their impact on my life and future decisions. Therefore, my motivation for working with young female talent stems from wanting to become like these role models and inspire my students and this award is unquestionably a significant step in accomplishing this goal.
Rachel Njeim (Lebanon)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
The focus of my research is understanding the underlying pathology of diabetic kidney disease in order to identify potential therapies that inhibit its progression. Diabetes continues to be a major public health problem, currently affecting over 425 million people worldwide. This number is expected to exceed 640 million by the year 2040. Diabetes is strongly associated with life-threatening complications that often go clinically unnoticed, such as diabetic kidney disease, the leading cause of renal failure. Increasing studies highlight that glucose alone is not accountable for the pathogenic manifestations seen in diabetes mellitus, paving the way for identifying adjunct therapy to halt the development and progression of diabetes-induced complications, or even to reverse their outcomes. Recent evidence underlines the role of the immune system in the pathogenesis of diabetes and diabetes-induced complications.
In my research work, I intend to define the role of NETosis, a novel neutrophil-specific cell death process, in the pathogenesis of diabetic kidney disease. I aim to identify the potential benefits of targeting NETosis with mesenchymal stem cells to reverse kidney injury. This work will help the scientific community develop new intervention modalities and assess them in large-scale clinical trials that will potentially ease the global burden of diabetes.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
“More than ever today, the world needs science and science needs women”, says the Director General of the UNESCO. Today, women across the globe are accomplishing wonders. Despite all inequities and hardships, women are leading transformational efforts, especially in the world of science. Women are breaking norms and gender inequality and are fighting traditional gender roles and stereotypes. Women in science are the true definition of persistence and determination. They compete to change the world and to be seen eye-to-eye at the level of their capabilities and the merit of their efforts. Encouraging women in science means giving them a chance to create, innovate, and succeed.
In the Middle East, there remains a strong need to solidify and strengthen the presence of women on the scientific stage, and to pave the way for them to walk on the footsteps of giants. It is crucial for us to harbor a safe cultural space for women to thrive in. We need to encourage women to believe in their potential, to pour themselves into their education, to set an example for younger women and to help them believe in their capacities and potential. Empowering the middle eastern woman is quintessential for the advancement of scientific research and for the promotion of equal opportunity and gender and social equality in the Arab world. In summary, to the Middle Eastern women considering pursuing a career in science, I say: Be strong, diligent, and resilient and believe in yourself because you can achieve great things!
Sama Hassan Ali Rahmatullah (Iraq)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My research focuses on developing a new technique for anti-pollution for the purpose of knowing the gradients of the transmission of petroleum oil and its various derivatives and residues in the environment, especially polycyclic hydrocarbons (PAHs). This is because the treatment of polluted sites has become a priority for the community due to the increase in quality-of-life standards and awareness of environmental issues.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
Women should not surrender to bias, pressure, or discrimination. They should follow their dreams and pursue their career in science. I encourage female scientists to believe in themselves and fight for the cause they have chosen as the time will come where they will shine. I never thought 10 years back that I will join the realm of the female scientists rewarded by L’Oreal-UNESCO, yet here I am today receiving this overwhelming recognition.
Sarah Abdelkader (Egypt)
What is the focus of your research and the purpose behind it?
My scientific focus, since the beginning of my graduate studies, is water and wastewater, especially the wastewater treatment field. My research in the master thesis was focusing on developing a sustainable method for heavy metals removal, namely chromium, from industrial wastewater which was chosen to be tannery’s wastewater. This scope has continued with me recently in the Ph.D. dissertation research; however, it will be focusing on agricultural wastewater treatment. The research is focusing on developing an on-site sustainable treatment system that guarantees a low-cost efficient process for agricultural wastewater treatment to be reused in irrigation. This system should be simple in use and evaluated environmentally and economically to be suitable for the Egyptian rural communities. This research is very important as it supports Egypt Vision 2030 that encourages the recycling and reuse of different types of wastewaters as part of the national plan to help the Egyptian community to convert to be sustainable. Also, it will be a step towards the adaptation to the effects of climate change on the agricultural sector and the water scarcity problem.
How would you encourage more women to pursue careers in science in the Middle East, and what advice would you give to those considering it?
This can be achieved through some changes that should be made in the STEM professional field to recruit more women and work to retain and promote women throughout their careers with strong advancement pipelines and continued professional development and leadership training. In addition, it is important to promote welcoming work environments, including providing pay equity; flexibility; strong family and medical leave policies; inclusion and anti-bias training; mentorship, networking, and ally-ship opportunities; and strong anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies to enhance women’s feeling of security in STEM professional fields. My advice to women considering joining the STEM field is to maintain working on developing their knowledge and improving their research work to be more practical and effective in facing the challenges facing the world nowadays.
