Dr. Nataly Naser Al Deen was most recently selected as one of the Forbes "Middle East 30 Under 30" for the Class of 2020, highlighting young change-makers in eight categories. Dr. Naser Al Deen was selected as a social entrepreneurship innovative change-maker. Thanks to the generous support of a Fulbright Alumni Community Action Grant, funded by the U.S. Department of State and administered by Amideast, Dr. Naser Al Deen founded Pink Steps in 2015. Pink Steps is a wellness support group for breast cancer survivors in Lebanon that aims to promote physical fitness and a healthy lifestyle. She has collaborated with Nobel Laureates such as Prof. Michael Rosbash and Prof. Harold E. Varmus. Her research projects have resulted in the publication of a book chapter, a mini-review, several peer-reviewed manuscripts, and several published abstracts at international conferences. Dr. Naser Al Deen is a 2014 Fulbright alumna from Lebanon who graduated from Georgetown University Medical Center in Washington, D.C., with her master’s in Tumor Biology. Dr. Naser Al Deen received her Ph.D. in Cell and Molecular Biology from the American University of Beirut (AUB). She is currently a Postdoctoral Research Associate at the Washington University School of Medicine in Saint Louis as part of the Ding Lab, creating new tools to fight cancer.

World-renowned archaeologist Dr. Zahi Hawass is the former Egyptian Minister of Antiquities and Director of Excavations at Giza, Saqqara, Bahariya Oasis, and the Valley of the Kings. He is currently working as a lecturer in Egypt. In cooperation with the Ministry of Tourism, he helps promote Egypt’s tourism globally. Dr. Hawass recently led a team to the discovery of The Lost Golden City in Luxor, Egypt. He has published numerous scholarly articles and books and is a highly respected Egyptologist. For more than 30 years, he has been raising awareness of archaeology and the preservation of Egypt’s precious heritage. Dr. Hawass has made a number of major discoveries over the course of his career, including the Tombs of the Pyramid Builders at Giza and the Valley of the Golden Mummies at Bahariya Oasis. Dr. Hawass has discovered two previously unknown Old Kingdom pyramids, one near the Great Pyramid of Khufu at Giza, and one belonging to Queen Neit, wife of King Teti at Saqqara. One of the most significant research efforts that Dr. Hawass has managed and led was the Egyptian Mummy Project (EMP), which used modern forensic techniques such as CT and DNA analysis to answer questions about the royal mummies. Dr. Hawass is a 1987 Fulbright alumnus who graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with his Ph.D. in Egyptology and Syro-Palestinian Archaeology.

Basima Abdulrahman has over 10 years of cutting-edge civil engineering experience in Iraq, focused on innovative sustainable development. Her core expertise is in green building assessment tools and amplified strategies that lead to enhanced building performance. She is the founder and CFO of the first local initiative established to introduce the concept of green design and construction to Iraq, called KESK. KESK works to transform cities into more sustainable ones that are inclusive and economically productive. Abdulrahman wants to see cities in Iraq develop buildings and infrastructures that are healthy, environmentally responsible, and resource-efficient. Abdulrahman is a World Economic Forum Foundation Board Member and Cultural Leader and TEDx speaker. She was appointed as the Erbil Chapter Chairperson for the Iraq Britain Business Council Young Executives Network. She was selected to co-chair the 2019 WEF Annual Meeting in Davos and has been featured in TIME, Inhabitant, Forbes, WEF Agenda, Real Leaders magazine, and other platforms for leading the green building movement in Iraq. Abdulrahman is an Accredited Professional by the U.S. Green Building Council. Abdulrahman is a 2012 Fulbright alumna from Iraq who graduated from Auburn University with her master’s in Structural Engineering.

Lucien Bourjeily is a Lebanese writer and director of both theater and film. He was behind the first professional improvisational theatre show in the Middle East where he peacefully challenged social and cultural barriers using theatre to create dialogue, encourage free speech, and become a true force of positive change. His work in both theatre and film has enabled him to travel the worldwide festival circuit and won him many awards, one of which was the 2017 Dubai International Film Festival Jury Prize. He brought his progressive approach to the theatre to London's LIFT Festival in 2012 with his hard-hitting immersive play 66 Minutes in Damascus, which was chosen as one of 10 plays in the world that "rethink the stage" by the Huffington Post. In 2012, he was chosen by CNN as one of eight leading cultural lights from Lebanon's contemporary art scene that are making an impact in Lebanon and internationally. For his activism against censorship on the arts in Lebanon, he was nominated for the 2014 "Freedom of Expression" award, held annually at the Barbican Center in London by Index on Censorship. He wrote and directed Vanishing State at the Battersea Arts Center in London as part of the 2014 LIFT festival. Bourjeily received an MFA in Film from Loyola Marymount University, where he was a Fulbright student from 2010 to 2012. He received an Alumni Development Grant, funded by the U.S. Department of State and administered by Amideast, in October 2018 to participate in the Arabian Sights Film Festival in Washington D.C., where he screened his first feature-length film Heaven Without People.