SWANA Forum for Social Justice was founded by three PhD students at the Institute of Education, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society.

Nidal Al Haj Sleiman
Nidal is a sociologist of education, leadership, policy and internationalisation, and currently works as a Research Officer at LSE Middle East Centre. Her research generally draws on critical social and educational theory, including the notions of social and cultural justice, critical pedagogy and education development, particularly in the context of West Asia and the Gulf, including Lebanon, Iraq, Qatar and Kuwait. In addition, her work tackles issues related to school improvement, leadership development, teaching and learning and equity in education. Her publications broadly address the questions of international education in the Gulf, the sociology of class and identity, the political economy of education and the impact of conflict on social and educational development in the region. Nidal is also a co-founder of the SWANA Forum for Social Justice, a UCL alumni- and student-led community, and a member of SAIL initiative for public education policy advocacy in Lebanon. Prior to her research, Nidal worked as a teacher and school leader in Lebanon and Qatar, in public and international education settings. Nidal has a PhD from UCL’s Institute of Education in the sociology of international education and leadership, a Masters of Education from Walden University, and a Bachelor of Political Science and Public Administration from the American University of Beirut

Reem Ben Giaber
Reem Ben Giaber is a Libyan-German PhD candidate at IOE’s Department of Learning and Leadership at UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society. She is an Associate Fellow at the Higher Education Academy with over 20 years of experience at various levels in education sectors in Libya, Canada and the UK. She was Guest Lecturer at an IOE MA module, and she is an experienced Seminar Leader in the IOE’s Department of Education, Practice and Society. Interested in community creation and action for societal transformation, Reem is a co-founder of two academic and practitioner networks: SWANA Forum for Social Justice based at UCL, and EduLibya focused on Libya’s education journey, both on which she has published articles in peer-reviewed journals and presented at education conferences. She is the winner of the British Education Research Association 2024 Annual Conference SIG Best Presentation Award (Philosophy of Education). In July 2024, Reem joined LFJL as a Strategic Advisor in their project on the shrinking civic space in Libya.  Reem’s current postgraduate research interests include John Dewey’s pragmatist philosophy of education, teacher agency, teacher education and professional development, and the role teachers may play in the democratization process in Libya.

Jumana Al-Waeli
Jumana Al-Waeli is a postdoctoral research fellow at Ulster University and an associate fellow and PhD candidate at IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society in London, UK. Her work is focused on conflict affected countries including Iraq, Iraqi Kurdistan, Syria and Lebanon. Jumana’s work examines the political economy of education and peacebuilding in conflict affected contexts through a lens of social justice and she is currently researching the learning of girls and young women in Iraq during and post ISIS. Jumana’s doctoral research investigated the learning of Syrian refugee students in the UK in relation to social justice. She also holds an M.A. in Effective Learning and Teaching from UCL, and an MSc in Environment and Sustainability from Damascus University. Jumana has been a trainer, lecturer and teacher for more than 19 years, delivering workshops on Research and Education in relation to conflict and peacebuilding, as well as teaching in Higher Education and international schools in the UK, Syria, and Erbil.