American University of Beirut

Dr. Nikolas Kosmatopoulos

Dr. Nikolas Kosmatopoulos is the Founding Director of CELME and an Associate Professor at the Department of Political Studies and Public Administration, as well as the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Media Studies. He is a scholar of political anthropology and global affairs whose research bridges ecological critique and decolonial praxis, focusing on maritime insurgencies, peacemaking in Western Asia, and grassroots resistance to hegemonic systems. He co-founded FLOATS (Floating Laboratory of Action and Theory at Sea) , which explores oceanic political economies, and Decolonize Hellas , a collective reclaiming sovereignty over land and ecology. His book, Master Peace: Lebanon’s Violence and the Politics of Expertise (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2024), critiques Eurocentric peacebuilding in Lebanon, aligning with CELME’s mission to challenge extractive knowledge systems and uplift community-driven solutions. His upcoming research explores the lives and struggles of fishing communities in wartime Southern Lebanon, examining their resilience, resistance, and relationship to territorial waters.

Dr. Ali Abboud

An Assistant Professor of Economics at the American University of Beirut, his research in labour economics and demography examines how systemic inequalities—shaped by environmental precarity, conflict, and displacement—affect livelihoods and labour markets in the Mediterranean East. His work traces the interplay of demographic shifts, migration, and economic policy in contexts of ecological strain, advancing data-driven frameworks to address equitable workforce development and resilience in crisis-affected communities. His work advocates for participatory, equity-driven strategies to address intersecting crises, bridging policy analysis with grassroots initiatives to foster resilient, inclusive economies rooted in social and ecological justice.

Dr. Rana Sukarieh

An Assistant Professor of Sociology at the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Media Studies at the American University of Beirut. Her research focuses on solidarity relations at multiscalar and multidimensional levels. She is currently working on two projects. Her book project, tentatively titled Palestine Solidarity in Canada: Temporality, Generations, and Transnationalism , explores the interplay between endogenous and exogenous dynamics that shape the trajectory of building sustained solidarity with the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions movement in Toronto. Her new research project, Solidarity Economy Initiatives and Social Imaginaries at Times of Severe Crisis: An Arab Regional Perspective , is a comparative project analysing the various facets of solidarity economy initiatives in Lebanon and Tunisia during times of ongoing crisis. She has published in the Journal of Social Movement Studies, British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, The Conversation, and The Public Source, among others.

Dr. Nisreen Salti

An Associate Professor of Economics at the American University of Beirut, her research examines health inequities, resource distribution, and structural exclusion in crisis contexts, with a focus on refugee communities in the Mediterranean East. Through policy-oriented analyses, she critiques how political-economic systems deepen vulnerability amid environmental degradation and displacement. Published in The Lancet and Social Science & Medicine, her work advances equity-driven frameworks for redistributive justice, sustainable livelihoods, and decolonial development in contested ecologies.

Professor Mazen Al-Ghoul

Mazen Al-Ghoul is a Professor of Chemistry and a scientific researcher at the American University of Beirut. While his fundamental research focuses on complex chemical systems and self-organisation, the Reaction-Diffusion Framework, and materials science, he maintains a parallel dedication to interdisciplinary socio-economic and geopolitical analysis. His writing currently explores the material costs of emerging digital infrastructures, investigating how the data economy intersects with ecological rifts, technofeudalism, and the geographies of environmental justice.

Dr. Hanan Toukan

An Associate Professor at the American University of Beirut–Mediterraneo in the Philosophy, Politics and Economics program, her interdisciplinary scholarship bridges art, politics, and postcolonial critique to interrogate dissent and power in the Mediterranean East. Author of The Politics of Art: Dissent and Cultural Diplomacy in Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan (Stanford University Press, 2021), she explores how cultural production in the region becomes a site of resistance against colonial violence, state repression, and ecological erasure. Her work traces grassroots artistic practices, migration, and transnational solidarity networks in the region and its diasporic communities in Europe that reimagine sovereignty, memory, and collective futures in contested landscapes. Awarded the Middle East Studies Association’s Malcolm H. Kerr Prize and Alexander von Humboldt Foundation fellowships, her research advances decolonial frameworks for understanding art’s role in wider socio-ecological struggles, aligning with CELME’s commitment to emancipatory knowledge, South-South alliances, cultural resilience, and environmental justice.

Hussein El Mouallem

An anthropologist specialising in the study of Global South affairs, with a particular focus on Southwest Asia. He earned his master's degree from the American University of Beirut in 2022, where he was awarded the Professor Fuad Khuri Award in Anthropology for his thesis, Porous Barriers: Hydro-politics and the Role of Expertise in the Struggle Against Dam Projects in Lebanon . In his work, El Mouallem explores the intricate relationship between human societies and ecology, critically examining environmental governance and the socio-political forces shaping resource management in Lebanon. His research and activism are intersectional, aiming not only to understand but also to contribute to solutions for the structural challenges faced by communities affected by ecological governance in the Global South.

Roua Chakaroun

A Coordinator at CELME and a graduate student in Public Policy and International Affairs at AUB. At CELME, she supports interdisciplinary projects centring anticolonial critiques of collective resistance. She worked on the Mapping Palestine Solidarity Project and insurgenSEAs, which analyse transnational solidarities and maritime anticolonial movements. She also contributes to CELME’s podcast, fostering dialogues on dismantling systemic exclusion through grassroots and academic praxis.

Christopher Kabakian

An undergraduate Economics student at the American University of Beirut, Christopher volunteered with Palestine Solidarity at Sea, a project mapping maritime resistance across ports, seas, and humanitarian ships. He focused on port blockades, analysing their effects on military logistics and regional trade routes.

Dina Al Amood

An undergraduate Economics student at the American University of Beirut, Dina volunteered with Palestine Solidarity at Sea, a project mapping maritime resistance across ports, seas, and humanitarian ships. She documented Yemeni-led insurgent tactics in the Red Sea, visualising how local communities challenge established patterns of maritime governance. Her work bridges economic analysis and grassroots activism, exposing the intersections of ecological strain, geopolitical power, and transnational solidarity in contested waters.