Sana Quadri

I have been an independent writer, researcher and analyst on the political economy and international relations of the Middle East and South Asia for almost a decade. I've published my in-depth geopolitical analysis in leading Washington, D.C.- based think tanks, including the Stimson Centre, The Washington Institute, and the Arab Gulf States Institute of Washington, and in leading Middle East news portals, including the Middle East Eye. In 2020, I graduated with an MA in Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Exeter (U.K.) with a specialisation in Gulf studies, and my dissertation was on the evolution of Indian migrant entrepreneurs in the political economy of the UAE, which was then published in the 2023 issue of the Journal of Arabian Studies. Am a second-generation immigrant, and I have lived in Dubai for over four decades.

On a side note, the individual who first invited me to join this group later declined to provide an academic/professional reference for me. I mention this only to underscore the importance of ensuring that the primary purpose of such forums should always be to foster and sustain healthy collegiality. Academic circles, particularly within the Humanities and Social Sciences, should uphold this principle, especially in an age marked by incessant assaults on the value and integrity of these disciplines.