Emirati Women's Day

Khulood Alawadi (Lecturer of Engineering Design) served as a mentor in the inaugural House of Artisans Design Competition, organized by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) in collaboration with Mubadala. The competition invited emerging designers to reinterpret Emirati heritage through contemporary practice. Alawadi emphasized the reciprocal value of mentorship in supporting creative talent while deepening personal engagement with design practice. She is also a participant in the National Experts Program, developed under the direction of His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, which cultivates Emirati leaders to drive the nation’s future-growth sectors through academic rigor, immersive experience, and mentorship by top government and industry figures. The exhibition of the competition’s design outcomes is on until October 25.

Manal AlBlooshi (Research Associate, Public Health Research Center) is advancing public health in the UAE through her work on the UAE Healthy Future Study, a long-term project examining how genetics, lifestyle, and environmental factors influence health among Emiratis. Currently pursuing a part-time PhD with Imperial College London, she is helping generate data that will inform tailored prevention and intervention programs and strengthen national health policies and outcomes.

Safiya Khalil Alhashmi (Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering) leads groundbreaking research in sustainable materials science, advancing solutions for carbon emissions, water security, and quantum technologies through a data-driven pipeline that integrates AI, high-throughput synthesis, and lab automation. An active investigator at CQTS and CSEM, she holds a U.S. patent-pending technology for PFAS removal licensed to a U.S. startup, developed COF foams enabling CO₂ conversion published in Advanced Functional Materials, and pioneered scalable flow synthesis methods for 2D COFs detailed in ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces and Small. Her work underpins the circular carbon economy and next-generation water treatment while accelerating material discovery with machine learning. She is the principal investigator on a project for the "Accelerated Discovery of Covalent Organic Frameworks Using Machine Learning" and contributes to the Open Quantum Institute’s water desalination project. She has also been invited to speak at major conferences, including AIMS 2025, MEMS 2026, EUMOF 2025, and the I2DM summit, establishing her as a leading voice in sustainable materials with worldwide impact.

Nouf Al Jefri (Institutional Research Analyst) has been accepted into the 2025 cohort of the prestigious Emirati Women Chapter (EWC). The EWC is dedicated to nurturing the personal and professional growth of Emirati women across various industries by providing a supportive, collaborative community rich in resources, mentorship, and opportunity. Al Jefri’s participation in this highly regarded program reflects her commitment to continuous development and excellence. Upon completion, she will have the opportunity to remain actively engaged with the Chapter as a mentor, contributing to the success of future cohorts and helping to empower the next generation of Emirati women leaders.

Lolowa Al Marzooqi (Assistant Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education) is a participant in the UAE Government Leaders Program, an initiative by the Prime Minister’s Office that equips Emirati leaders with future-focused skills and global perspectives. The program fosters transformational leadership through immersive learning, strategic insight, and international benchmarking—aligning with the UAE’s vision to empower national talent and drive innovation across government sectors.

Nouf Khan (NYUAD Class of 2021, Biology; Research Assistant, Sadler Edepli Lab) is preparing to begin her PhD in Australia, building on research into how environmental pollutants affect liver development and stress response using zebrafish. Her work focuses on the molecular mechanisms of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, one of the most prevalent conditions worldwide, and has already led to co-authored publications, including a 2024 collaboration with the University of Melbourne and Peter Mac Cancer Research Institute. Guided by the mentorship of Fatma Abdulla (Senior Associate Vice Chancellor and Senior Vice Provost for Strategy and Planning) and Kirsten Edepli (Professor of Biology), Khan has learned to approach science with persistence and resilience. Looking ahead, she aims to advance developmental biology while inspiring the next generation of Emirati women in STEM.