Peace Projects
For four years, Aya served as Programs Director for Africa and Middle East regions and later Director of Strategic Planning and Partnership of World Peace Initiative Foundation, a global organization that runs 48 projects in 150 countries. Aya has founded and led four dynamic peace building projects with vigor and passion in Senegal, Kenya, Morocco, and Thailand among other countries. The projects she designed in several editions are Amani Fellowship, Amandla Fellowship, MENA Salam Fellowship and Heya Fellowship for Women. She has organized and directed 15 retreats that trained over 300 young people from over 46 countries to become peace agents and introduced a culture of peace to over 5000 young people through non-violent communication and mindfulness practice workshops with holistic focus on empowerment and well-being in 10 countries; Jordan, Dubai, Morocco, Nigeria, the Gambia, Cameroon, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and South Africa.
Besides, Aya volunteered as Peace Educator and Mentor for children at the refugee camps on the Tunisian- Libyan border when the refugees coming from Libya reached a million in June 2011.
Advisor
Aya sits on the International Steering Committee of United Network of Young Peacebuilders where she influences conversations on youth, peace and security and advocates for the implementation of UNSC 2250 resolution.
Research
As 2015/16 Mo Ibrahim Scholar at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, Aya conducted her Masters thesis on youth radicalization, a comparative study of Daesh recruitment in Tunisia and Al-Shabaab recruitment in Kenya. She has presented her research worldwide to influence de-radicalization policies affecting youth. In Tunisia, she co-founded, following Bardo Attack, a youth led platform fighting violence and violent extremism called Coexistence with Alternative Language and Action Movement (CALAM).
