Meet The Fellows

Emad Shahnoushi, born in Isfahan, Iran and raised in Grand Junction, Colorado, Emad’s interests in diversity stem from his drastically different environments growing up. Emad is an Economics and Middle Eastern Studies double major, and hopes to intertwine the two in his travels to Istanbul. Emad is especially excited to get to know the Alevi community in Istanbul, given his upbringing as a Shia Muslim. As an ethnic Persian, Emad is interested in the ethnic minorities in Turkey ranging from the Greeks to the Kurds. Emad is invested in bridging his upbringing with the new knowledge he will develop through this fellowship and experiences. A particularly significant interaction for him will be with the Greek and Armenian Orthodox Patriarchy. Emad hopes to see history come alive in Istanbul through the people and their memories.

Danielle Murad Waiss is pursuing her Masters in International Affairs with a focus on International Security Policy at Columbia University´s School of International and Public Affairs. She is a dual national of both Mexico and Canada with a family history spanning multiple continents that has sparked her interest in International Affairs. She has studied and worked in international government and non-governmental organizations in 11 countries such as the UK Parliament, the NATO Defense College in Rome, the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism in Israel and the United Nations Headquarters in New York. She has conducted research on disaster recovery in Japan, terrorism in Israel as well as the future of global governance at the United Nations in Geneva.

Hifza Shaukat is a junior in Columbia College studying Middle Eastern, South Asian and African Studies with a concentration in Sociology. On campus she invests a lot of her time into Columbia Muslim Student Association, in hopes to create an inclusive, comfortable, safe space for Muslims on campus. She is particularly interested in understanding how socio-political history, urban spaces, and religion intersect at the subaltern and affects the relationship individuals have to themselves and their surrounding communities. She is also interested in the politicization and weaponization of religion by international actors and how religion ( spirituality) can be used to to combat injustice. Hifza has interned for the Council on American Relations- NYC and has invested time into the Muslim Student House. She hopes to use her interest in religion, sociology, and history within the Middle East and South Asia to advocate for marginalized communities and identities within both regions.

Ezra Felder is a senior in Columbia University’s School of General Studies where he is studying psychology. He is very active on Columbia’s campus, both in Jewish life and in various groups outside the Jewish community. Most notably, Ezra is a member of Columbia University's pluralistic, coed, Jewish acapella group with whom he travels all around the world. It is through his academic, volunteer, and work experiences that Ezra has developed a passion for both formal and informal education, international development, volunteering, interfaith and multicultural work, and Jewish community. 

Rupal Gupta is a junior studying Economics and Computer Science in Columbia College. She has a penchant for problem solving, which she enjoys doing in her major-related classes. Outside of her major, she has a desire to globalize her education, and enjoys exposing herself to new disciplines, ideas and places. For example, last summer she interned in Israel, which made her inquisitive about the Middle East. On campus, Rupal facilitated dialogues in ROOTED, holds summer program through Symposium, and leads consulting projects in TAMID.

Madeleine Nephew is a junior in the Dual BA Program Between Columbia University and Sciences Po, where she studies American and Ottoman history, political humanities, and Turkish.