Research About research

Funded projects

Our research grants support a global network of scholars, researchers, practitioners, and community leaders working across a range of fields and research methods.

Active projects

Our research grants are currently supporting 27 research projects across three grant tracks. Each project responds in unique ways to the 2026-2028 research theme surrounding the 'Islamic Social vision’, and brings together an international community of scholars working in collaborative and multidisciplinary capacities.

Research fellows

Moral Formation and the Common Good in Ibn ʿĀshūr’s Social Thought Persons, Relations, Institutions, and Human Interests

Senior Non-Resident Fellow
Benaouda Bensaid Professor, Istanbul Sabahattin Zaim University

This project examines how the human person, moral responsibility, social relations, institutions, and public interests form a coherent reform project, and how personal formation and social order are mutually dependent, with each shaping and sustaining the other. The central question is: How does Ibn ʿĀshūr connect moral formation, ordered relations and institutions, the realization of human interests, and the enduring soundness of the Ummah’s social order? 

The Architecture of Wellbeing: Protecting the Vulnerable Self within the Nested Community in Egyptian Sharia Court Records, 1550–1925

Non-Resident Fellow
Wafya Hamouda Associate Professor, Tanta University

This project investigates how Egyptian Sharia Courts translated the ethical vision of Islamic law into enforceable protections for the wellbeing of individuals within the family’s nested structures, endowment, and community. Using a digitized corpus of 1523 sharia court cases, it examines the role of waqf as a bridge between individual welfare and nested communities’ wellbeing, and continuity and rupture between Ottoman-era court practice and the codified Egyptian national sharia court system. 

Reimagining Relationships in Interconnected Societies: From the Discourse of Entitlement to the System of Care and Responsibility

Resident Fellow
Khadija Ali Muhammad Al-Sallabi Linguist and Lexicographer

This project examines how relationships are reimagined in interconnected societies—from the discourse of entitlement to the system of care and responsibility. It does so by studying the transformations that have taken place in the discourse governing relationships within interconnected societies, and by uncovering the impact of concepts such as entitlement, autonomy, self-actualization, and personal boundaries in reshaping the understanding of relationships, rights, and obligations.

Imam al-Shatibi's Theory of Taklif (Moral-Legal Obligation) as a Model for a Jurisprudence of Restoring Human Wellbeing: From Foundational Usuli Grounding to Contemporary Retrieval

Non-Resident Fellow
Shaima Foukhri Researcher in Islamic Studies
Shaima Foukhri, Al-Mujadilah Grant Recipient

This project examines Imam al-Shatibi’s theory of Taklif (moral-legal obligation) as a model for a jurisprudence of restoring human wellbeing. It offers a rereading of the theory of Taklif as a theoretical framework through which Imam al-Shatibireformulated the relationship between the Lawgiver (al-Shari’) and the morally obligated subject (al-mukallaf), determined the limits of capacity and responsibility, as well as the relationship between welfare/benefit (maslaha) and desire/whim (hawa).

Soulcraft: Tazkiya for the Greater Good in 19th Century Muslim West Africa

Non-Resident Fellow
Farah al-Sharif Researcher

This project examines how the struggle against the lower self becomes “the foundation for ethical action in the world” and asks what kind of social vision emerges when “the formation of the human being through Tazkiya becomes the foundation of social life.” It studies tariqas as relational institutions of ethical formation through teachers and disciples, scholarly networks, families, communities, and political institutions.

Post-Islamist Forms of Populism: An Analysis of the Discourse of New Nationalist Currents on Virtual Public Platforms

Senior Non-Resident Fellow
Dr. Heba Rauf Assistant Professor, Ibn Haldun University

This study seeks to examine the female figures who have recently emerged as part of growing voices on social media that embrace exclusionary nationalist visions. It seeks to understand this phenomenon and its impact on public political discourse, as well as the emergence of a form of populist feminism that has received little attention in academic studies of the Arab region, with particular emphasis on the Egyptian case. 

A Contemporary Reading of al-Balkhi's ‘Masalih al-Abdan wa al-Anfus'

Senior Non-Resident Fellow
Prof. Mahmoud Masry Chairman, Board of Trustees, Al Rawad University

This project aims to revive the book “Masalih al-Abdan wa al-Anfus” and to produce contemporary works on preventive health and the practical applications of Prophetic medicine. The outputs rely on a close textual reading of passages from the book, along with analytical commentary, and comparisons of insights from the book with modern findings in the fields of psychological and physical health and related social and environmental sciences. 

Research groups

Building a Digital Roadmap for Women's Economic Wellbeing Through Maqasid-Aligned Entrepreneurship in 'Aisyiyah

This project explores how maqasid al-shariah-aligned digital entrepreneurship can enhance the economic wellbeing of Muslim women through the extensive network of 'Aisyiyah, Indonesia's largest Muslim women's organization. The project focuses on designing and piloting a digital literacy and e-commerce training program for women entrepreneurs in Indonesia and Malaysia, ultimately producing an adaptable roadmap for Muslim women's organizations globally.
Principal Investigator
  • Aisah Salsabila Postdoctoral Researcher, International Islamic University Malaysia
Project Team
  • Prof. Dr. Betania Kartika Associate Professor, International Islamic University Malaysia
  • Dr. Dini Oktarina Dwi Handayani Assistant Professor, International Islamic University Malaysia

Between Household and Umma: Muslim Women’s Narratives and Islamic Social Vision in the Balkans

This project examines oral histories collected by Nahla, a Muslim women’s educational and civil society organization in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It focuses on narratives of Bosniak Muslim women whose lives spanned major social, political, and religious transformations, including socialism, war, migration, displacement, and post-war recovery. By analyzing these accounts, the study explores how Muslim women experienced and interpreted faith, family, community, and social responsibility within changing historical contexts.
Principal Investigator
  • Dr. Sanja Bilic Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Galway
Project Team
  • Dr. Sumeja Ljevaković Subašić Researcher, Institute for Islamic Tradition of Bosniaks
  • Dr. Hana Younis PhD Scientific Advisor, University of Sarajevo
  • Prof. Georgeta Nazarska Professor, University of Library Studies and Information Technologies

Nourishing ʿĀfiya: Developing an Islamic Framework for Nutrition-Related Human Well-being

This project that explores how the Islamic concept of ʿāfiya can inform contemporary understandings of nutrition and human flourishing. It argues that nutrition should be understood not only through physical health outcomes but also as a behavioral, relational, ethical, and spiritual practice. By bringing Islamic intellectual traditions into dialogue with contemporary nutrition science, the project seeks to develop a comprehensive framework for nutrition-related wellbeing among Muslim communities.
Principal Investigator
  • Dr. Anam Layla Lecturer, MNS-University of Agriculture, Multan
Project Team
  • Dr. Jamil Ahmad Assistant Professor, Bahauddin Zakariya University, Multan
  • Dr. Raima Asif Assistant Professor, National University of Medical Sciences

Women’s Metabolic Health Equity Across Muslim Communities: Developing an Islamic Social Framework for Sustainable Community-Based Support in Qatar and Algeria

This project examines how Islamic social principles, particularly waqf (endowment), can contribute to addressing obesity and type 2 diabetes among women. It integrates biomedical science, public health, and Islamic studies to explore sustainable community-based approaches that promote prevention, awareness, and long-term support for women’s health. Using Qatar and Algeria as complementary contexts, the project incorporates women’s experiences and perspectives and generates insights transferable to other Muslim communities.
Principal Investigator
  • Dr. Ghalia Missous Biomedical Researcher, Qatar Biomedical Research Institute
Project Team
  • Muna Al-Hashmi Research Specialist, Sidra Medical and Research Center
  • Dr. Leena Mohamedain IRB Research Coordinator, Hamad Medical Corporation

The Philosophy of Social Jurisprudence: From Social Metaphysics to the Engineering of Relationships, Toward a Theory of Social Cohesion

This project aims to develop a new theoretical framework within Islamic sociology that explains how social cohesion emerges from the interaction between Islamic doctrine and the jurisprudence governing human relationships. It proceeds from the premise that Muslim society is not shaped by jurisprudential rulings or theological beliefs in isolation, but rather by their integration within a unified system that generates values, institutions, and patterns of social relationships.
Principal Investigator
  • Dr. Bilal Safieddin Researcher in Islamic Jurisprudence
Project Team
  • Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Mahmoud Researcher in Islamic Studies
  • Dr. Mohamed Adel Shurayh Researcher in Culturology

The Role of Education in Promoting Individual and Societal Well-Being: A Field Study of Qatari Society’s Attitudes toward Private Schools in Light of Islamic Identity and Values

This project examines the relationship between private education and individual and societal well-being in the State of Qatar. It focuses on understanding Qatari society’s attitudes toward private schools, and the role of these schools in reconciling academic excellence and openness to global educational experiences, on the one hand, with the preservation of national identity and Islamic values, on the other.
Principal Investigator
  • Asmaa Alfadala Assistant Professor, Hamad Bin Khalifa University
Project Team
  • Dr. Dana Ahmed Mohammed Al-Lakhn Al-Marri Researcher
  • Rabah Khalil Researcher

Protecting Voices, Restoring Wellbeing: An Islamic Social Vision for Countering Gender-Based Digital Harassment in Indonesia

This project examines the impact of gender-based digital harassment on Muslim women in Indonesia and explores how Islamic ethical principles can be used to address this growing challenge. Drawing on concepts such as adab (ethical conduct), hifz al-'ird (protection of dignity), and amar ma'ruf nahi munkar (collective moral responsibility), it aims to create a faith-based framework for protecting women’s voices and wellbeing.
Principal Investigator
  • Lufti Basit Permanent Lecturer, Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Utara
Project Team
  • Dr. Hasan Sazali Professor, Universitas Islam Negeri Sumatera Utara Medan
  • Dr. Puji Santoso Permanent Lecturer, Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Utara
  • Dr. Firahmi Rizky Researcher, Universitas Muhammadiyah Sumatera Utara

Applied research fellows

The Sanctity of the Womb: Recovering Islamic Traditions of Care for Individual and Community Wellbeing

This workshop offers a five-hour educational program focused on individual transformation, exploring the sanctity of the rahim (womb) as a foundation for individual wellbeing, family life, and community flourishing within the Islamic tradition. It seeks to recover a grounded understanding of women’s holistic health and reconnect Muslim women with an embodied experience of womanhood rooted in Qur’anic teachings, Prophetic traditions, and women’s inherited practices of care.
Fellows
  • Shakirah Sabira Rahman Founding Board Member, Al Barakah Foundation

Creating Safer Communities

This workshop focuses on safeguarding and addressing spiritual abuse within UK Muslim communities. Drawing on the Hurma Project Handbook, it explores the Islamic concept of hurma (the sacred inviolability of each person) and examines how dignity, trust, authority, boundaries, and accountability operate within Muslim institutions. The workshop aims to strengthen understanding of spiritual abuse and support organizations in translating this learning into practical approaches to safety and accountability.
Fellows
  • Maariyah Adam PhD Researcher,University of Glasgow
  • Dr. Rahmanara Chowdhury Senior Lecturer, Nottingham Trent University

Well-Being of Women in Academia and Research

This workshop responds to the reality of women academics and researchers who experience burnout and isolation, while navigating the demands of academic and research culture. It seeks to equip participants with practical tools to diagnose and address these pressures, reframe well-being through the Islamic frameworks of ʿāfiya, kamāl, and saʿāda, and teach them to guard, honor, and cultivate the intellect (hifz al-‘aql) as a sacred trust.
Fellows
  • Kholoud K. Saleh Lecturer, Hamad Bin Khalifa University
  • Mariam Bahameish Lecturer, Hamad Bin Khalifa University
  • Maisa Alkailani Lecturer, Hamad Bin Khalifa University

Urbanization Island: An Interactive Educational Game

This project aims to “simulate heritage to build economic well-being for our children” through an immersive experience based on gamification. It helps young adolescents rediscover themselves as “stewards and trustees of the Earth” and develop a “compass of social responsibility and community well-being.” The project employs simulation-based learning and integrative learning, combining mathematics and economics with principles of Islamic jurisprudence, environmental protection, and interactive dialogue.
Fellows
  • Zainab Fathy Mohamed Researcher

Fiqh of Artificial Intelligence

This training program “introduces participants to the classical Islamic legal categories most relevant to artificial intelligence and equips them to apply these categories analytically to concrete, contemporary AI case studies.” It aims to build “a working competency, not merely a familiarity, with the fiqhī toolkit needed to reason through questions of agency, delegation, and liability raised by AI,” using medical AI as the primary illustrative domain.
Fellows
  • Dr. Esra Ukallo Researcher, Ibn Haldun University

Rooted & Rising: Wellness & Leadership Coaching for Muslim Women

This program focuses on intensive wellness and leadership development for Muslim women serving as community educators, leaders, and service providers. Grounded in Qur’anic principles, and Prophetic models of holistic wellbeing and leadership, it integrates contemporary research in lifestyle medicine, leadership development, and coaching principles. Through structured coaching and practical skill-building, participants enhance their wellbeing, deepen their faith, and elevate their leadership capacity to better serve their families and communities.
Fellows
  • Muna Ali President & Co-Founder, Rumi Center

Aman wa Sakinah (Safety and Tranquility): Rebuilding Relational Safety and Restoring Karamah in Syrian Families Affected by Chronic Unsafety

This program addresses how forced displacement, political oppression, and post-migration precarity create a compounding structural injury on displaced populations. The program synthesizes advanced social science, psychodynamic recognition theory, neurobiology, and classical Islamic epistemologies and re-centers Karamah as an unalienable, divinely endowed ontological dignity, Sakinah as psycho-somatic tranquility, Aman as relational safety, and Mawaddah wa Rahmah as relational mercy.
Fellows
  • Hadi Althib Research Affiliate, University of Oxford

The Hikma Diagnostic: Training Francophone Muslim Care Practitioners in a Model of ʿĀfiya, Kamāl, and Saʿāda

This program equips participants with a diagnostic method for governance inversion (nafs / ʿaql / qalb), grounds it in the classical tradition including maqāṣid al-sharīʿa, al-Ghazālī, Ibn al-Qayyim, Ibn Miskawayh, and the ʿāfiya–kamāl–saʿāda account of flourishing, and situates it against burnout research and Islamic psychology. It also aims to produce the first French-language curriculum for this competency, plus a documented pilot.
Fellows
  • Hannane Ramdani Founder, Thamarah

ʿĀfiya at the Margins: Muslim Women, Wellbeing, and the Relational Life of Communities in Finland

This program takes ʿāfiya as a starting point and brings it into conversation with kamāl, saʿāda, and maqāṣid al-sharīʿa. It introduces these concepts as resources for thinking about individual, relational, and communal wellbeing, examines gendered dimensions of flourishing, and develops skills in narrative interviewing, focus-group facilitation, and reading-circle methods.
Fellows
  • Sumeera Hassan Doctoral Researcher, University of Helsinki