Hasina Jalal
I am an exiled scholar from Afghanistan and a PhD candidate in Public and International Affairs at the University of Pittsburgh, specializing in comparative politics and security studies. My work bridges scholarship, policy, and grassroots activism, bringing a practitioner’s perspective to questions of authoritarian governance, women’s political agency, and transnational feminist networks in Afghanistan, Iran, and Syria. Beyond academia, I have held senior policy roles within the Afghan government and have long been engaged in civil society and regional feminist advocacy across South Asia.
Education
Before starting my doctoral studies, I pursued graduate studies at the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University; hold an MBA from the American University of Afghanistan as a USAID merit-based scholar; and an MA in Women's Studies from the University of Northern Iowa as a Fulbright scholar. I got my undergraduate degree in Economics with a minor in Political Science from Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi, India, where I studied as an ICCR scholar. This training across economics, political science, gender studies, and public policy informs both my research agenda and my approach to advocacy.
Career
Academia: My doctoral research examines women’s political agency under authoritarian regimes, with a focus on non-democratic institutions, security governance, and gendered resistance in Afghanistan, Iran, and Syria. Using qualitative and mixed-methods approaches, I conduct elite and grassroots interviews, archival and policy analysis, and survey experiments.
I am also a member of the New University in Exile Consortium and a Fellow of the Pittsburgh Network for Threatened Scholars. Throughout my academic career, I have been awarded a fellowship at the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, the Elinor Ostrom Fellowship, and the Agora Fellowship at the Center for Governance and Markets, University of Pittsburgh. In addition to my academic and policy work, I have taught economics, political science, and human rights courses at universities in both Afghanistan and the United States, working with students from diverse academic, cultural, and professional backgrounds.
Public Sector/Policy Service: My academic work is enriched by extensive experience in governance and public policy, including senior roles within the Afghan government. I served as Research Team Lead and Policy Expert at the Presidential Palace of Afghanistan, as well as Policy Advisor and Director of Program Design and Donor Coordination at the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, and Election Coordinator at the Independent Election Committee of Afghanistan. These experiences in governance, institutional reform, and policy implementation directly inform my scholarly inquiry into authoritarian governance, institutional reform, and political transformation in conflict-affected societies.
Non-profit Transnational Advocacy: My scholarship is also grounded in long-standing engagement with civil society and transnational advocacy. I previously co-founded the National Association of Afghanistan Civil Society and played a foundational role in establishing the South Asian Feminist Alliance (SAFA), the first regional alliance of its kind dedicated to advancing women’s economic, social, and cultural rights across South Asia. Furthermore, I have worked as an intern, member, volunteer, board member, and advisory board member with numerous non-profit and civil society organizations in Afghanistan and across South Asia.
In recognition of my transnational advocacy work, I was elected by public vote to receive the N-Peace Award from the UN Secretary General's Special Advisor on the University for Peace and UNDP Asia Pacific Regional Office in 2014. I have also been recognized with the Iconic Women Creating a Better World for All Award by the Women's Economic Forum, Global Women Leadership Award by the World CSR Congress, and was named among the 45 Most Influential Afghan Women by Public Vote in 2021.
Fluent in Persian, Pashto, English, Turkish, and Hindi/Urdu, with additional proficiency in Punjabi, Arabic, and Uzbek, my multilingual and cross-regional engagement informs both my scholarship and public-facing work across academic, policy, and advocacy spaces.
