Fall 2021 Fellows
Sonia Caballero Pradas
Arabic Diaspora & Migration Fellow - Sevilla, Spain – Beirut, Lebanon
Sonia is Spanish and lives currently in Beirut. She holds a BA in Modern Languages, Culture and Communication with a focus on Arabic linguistics and literature from the Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and a Language Training certificate that has allowed her to work in Jordan, Palestine, and Lebanon. In her spare time, Sonia enjoys dancing salsa and writing her solo backpacking stories.
Articles: Caramel (Sukkar Banat) | Civilizations in Review: Tulunid Dynasty | Costa Brava, Lebanon | "Costa Brava" and the River of Garbage | Fairuz, the Soul of Lebanon | Lebanon: Where the Tourists Include the Lebanese Diaspora | Media Coverage in the Palestinian Struggle | Shaden: Comedy For Resilience in Lebanon | “The Identity” of Migrant Amin Maalouf | Tulunid 101 | Umm Kulthum, “Egypt’s Fourth Pyramid," | Woman at Point Zero
Robert English
Security Fellow - USA - Washington DC
Robert’s passion for the SWANA region started with his first study abroad program in Port Said, Egypt in 2010. Since then, he’s pursued opportunities to return to the region, first with a Critical Language Scholarship to Morocco in the Summer of 2014, and then through a Boren Scholarship for the academic year 2016-2017 in Amman, Jordan. He graduated from George Mason University in 2017, double majoring in Global Affairs and Arabic. After graduating, he has pursued opportunities to work on security and law enforcement and is an incoming graduate student at George Washington University’s Elliot School of International Affairs for Security Policy Studies. Robert’s work with Al-Fusaic has focused on governance and conflict zones, and as a Fellow, he continues to develop more in-depth content on these matters.
Articles: Ahlan wa Sahlan Podcast Interview | Blue Homeland: Turkey’s Zero-Sum Game in the Eastern Mediterranean | Jordan 101 | Jordanian Clan System | Lawrence of Arabia | Libya's Civil War 2014-2021 | Men in the Sun | Waltz with Bashir
Sabrina Pecorelli
Counterterrorism Fellow - Florence, Italy - Miami, Florida
Sabrina just graduated from Florida International University with two B.A. degrees in International Relations and Political Science, as well as a certificate in Middle Eastern Studies. She has participated in a State Department internship and one with Congresswoman Donna Shalala, as well as completed the Millennium Fellowship on gender equality. Sabrina was also the President of UN Women at FIU, where she hosted numerous events to increase female political participation and representation. Sabrina hopes to become a Foreign Service Officer with the U.S. Department of State and work closely with Middle Eastern foreign policy.
Articles: Afghanistan’s Potential Spillover to the MENA Region | Black Flags: the Rise of ISIS | Civilizations in Review: Qajar Dynasty | Daesh Foreign Fighters: Returnees, Repatriation, and Reintegration | Ghost Wars | I am Malala | Iran: What Everyone Needs to Know | ISIS History and Timeline | Political Polarization in the Middle East | Qajar 101 | Terrorism and Refugees: A Perpetual Cycle of Instability | Terrorists’ Procurement of Weapons in the Middle East | The Fall of Heaven | The Terror Years
Jonathan Selling
Geopolitical Fellow - USA - Arlington, VA
Jonathan graduated from Boston University with a MA in international affairs, where he focused on the rise of China, India, and the implications of their rise on the wider world. His research interests include how international systems are formed and maintained, and the role that nationalism and ideology play in foreign policy decision making. His fellowship will focus on the role that Asia-Pacific nations play in the SWANA region.
Articles: China’s Growing Economic Interest in the Middle East | China’s Military Presence in the Middle East | Mongol 101 | Rational Security | The President's Inbox | The World Next Week | To Start a War | Turkey 101 | Worldy
Tania Valdés
Culture Fellow - Mexico - Mexico City, Mexico
Tania Valdés is a recent International Relations graduate of Iberoamericana University based in Mexico City. She interned at the Turkish Heritage Organization in 2020 as a participant of The Washington Center’s Internship Program. She worked in Amnesty International and focused her research in Human Rights and migration issues. She is currently managing Al Fusaic’s Instagram account. She hopes to gain a deeper understanding of culture in the SWANA region by analyzing its soft power during the 2021 fellowship program.
Articles: Casa Damasco | Civilizations in Review: Macedonia Empire | Culture: Adapting and Innovating in the Face of Covid-19 | Fashion Cities of the Middle East | Fashion in Iran | Hajj During Covid-19 | Macedonia 101 | MENA Architectural Influence in Mexico | Middle Eastern Artists and their Contributions to the Global Cultural Scene | Pensar Medio Oriente | Pope Frances Visits Iraq | The Physician | Wadjda | We Crossed a Bridge and it Trembled
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