The Arab Council for the Social Sciences (ACSS) is pleased to announce the election of six members to its 12-member Board of Trustees (BoT). Three of those members were newly elected, and three have been re-elected for a second term. According to ACSS’s internal bylaws, elections are held every two years to replace 6 members whose terms have ended.
The electronic voting on March 13 and 14, 2025, resulted in the election of the following members (listed alphabetically):
Akeel Almarai – University of Siena [Università degli Studi di Siena]
Amina El Mekaoui – National Council for Science and Technology [Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología] (CONACYT)
Saker El Nour – The Climate Justice Network for the Middle East and North Africa
Mona Fawaz – American University of Beirut (AUB)
Afrah Jasim – University of Baghdad
Elizabeth Suzanne Kassab – Doha Institute for Graduate Studies
Three new members were elected (listed alphabetically): Akeel Almarai, Saker El Nour, and Afrah Jasim. In addition, three members were re-elected for a second term (listed alphabetically): Amina El Mekaoui, Mona Fawaz, and Elizabeth Suzanne Kassab. These new and re-elected members replaced the following three members, whose terms have ended (listed alphabetically): Mabrouk Boutagouga, Hussam Hussein, and Mary Kawar (who had previously resigned due to a conflict of interest after taking up a new position).
Based on the election results, the BoT of the ACSS (2025-2027) is composed of the following members (listed alphabetically): Fadma Ait Mous, Akeel Almarai, Amina El Mekaoui, Saker El Nour, Abaher Elsakka, Mona Fawaz, Afrah Jasim, Suad Joseph, Elizabeth Suzanne Kassab, Dina Rizk Khoury, Rima Majed, and Mounir Saidani.
ACSS extends a warm welcome to the new members, wishing them success in their roles. The organization also expresses its sincere gratitude to the departing members for their invaluable contributions to advancing knowledge production in the social sciences and humanities throughout the Arab region.
The BoT is vital to ACSS, providing leadership in setting its institutional strategy, driving its mission forward, and ensuring organizational continuity, especially during times of crisis. It has demonstrated active involvement in, and ongoing responsiveness to the radical transformations and tragic events witnessed across the Arab region. The guiding and forward-looking policies established by the BoT have been critical to ensuring the steady continuation of ACSS’s work in the face of diverse challenges and difficulties.
