Shadi Rouhshahbaz

Shadi Rouhshahbaz (she/her) is an Associate Research Fellow at The Alfred Deakin Institute for Citizenship and Globalisation (ADI) and a PhD candidate at the University of Melbourne. She holds a Double-Joint master’s degree in international development – Migration and Mediation in the EuroMed from the Ca Foscari University of Venice and Paul Valery University, Montpellier 3. She has over 5 years of experience in the Third Sector with an emphasis on youth, gender, peace and security and multilateral institutions and previously worked with UN Women HQ, UNICEF, UNIC in Iran, and the United Network of Young Peacebuilders.

Shadi is fascinated by the experiences of young women and creating sustainability for future generations. This longstanding interest has led her to conduct field research in Tunisia with young peacebuilders, as well as youth leaders in Iran and leading a team of 9 young researchers across the borderlands of Burundi, Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. In addition to her research, she has many experiences as a trainer, facilitator, strategy developer, consultant, rapporteur, teacher and public speaker. She has founded the first young-women-led peacebuilding initiative, PeaceMentors, in Iran. She also served as the leading editor of the Journal on Youth, Peace and Security in 2022. Currently, Shadi is researching intergenerational feminist leadership in peacebuilding organisations using foresight as a methodology and tool in international development.