Nur Arafeh

Nur Arafeh is a fellow at the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center, where her work focuses on the political economy of the MENA region, business-state relations, peacebuilding strategies, the development-security nexus and the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Prior to her doctoral studies, Arafeh served as the policy fellow of Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network, where she conducted research on the political economy of the occupied Palestinian territories. She also previously worked as an associate researcher at the Palestine Economic Policy Research Institute (MAS), where her research focused on issues related to private sector development, economic governance, the reconstruction process in Gaza, and food security. Nur has consulted for several Palestinian and international organizations on issues related to development policies, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and socioeconomic policy analysis. Her commentaries have appeared in English, Arabic and French in the Guardian, Le Monde Diplomatique, Al-Jazeera, and Al-Akhbar, among other outlets.

Arafeh also worked as a tutor with the University of Stanford, teaching a course on the political economy of the developing world. In 2014-2015, she was as a visiting lecturer of economics at Al-Quds Bard College, and in 2013, she worked as a teaching assistant of econometrics at Columbia University.

She has served on advisory boards including This Week in Palestine and the Palestinian Art Court-Al Hoash, and has been an editorial committee member with Al-Shabaka: The Palestinian Policy Network, since 2021.

Arafeh holds a doctorate in international development as a Rhodes Scholar from the University of Oxford, a master’s in development studies from the University of Cambridge, and a dual-BA degree in political science and economics from Sciences Po Paris and Columbia University.