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Nadine Abdalla

Brief Biography

Nadine Abdalla is an assistant professor of sociology at the Department of Sociology, Egyptology and Anthropology (SEA) at The American University in Cairo (AUC). During 2015-2016, she was a EUME post-doctoral fellow at the Center for Middle Eastern and North African Politics at the Freie Universität of Berlin. In 2014, she got her PhD in political science from Sciences-Po Grenoble with highest honors; and in 2006, her MA in international relations from Sciences-Po Paris in France. Her notable achievements have earned her several prestigious awards and fellowships, providing her with opportunities to interact with distinguished academic institutions worldwide.

Abdalla has actively contributed to esteemed Arab Research Centers, notably the Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies (ACPSS) in Cairo, as well as the Arab Forum for Alternative Studies (AFA) in Beirut. Moreover, she has engaged in fellowships at renowned European Think Tanks, research Centers and universities, including The German Institute for International and Security Affairs (Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik - SWP) in Berlin, The Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF) in Frankfurt, The Center for Middle Eastern and North African Politics, Freie Universität in Berlin, The Lausanne Institute of Political and International Studies (IEPI), University of Lausanne (Unil) in Lausanne, The Study and Research Center for the Arab and Mediterranean World (Centre pour les Etudes et les Recherches du Monde Arabe et de la Méditerranée - CERMAM) in Geneva, and the Center for Economics, Juridical and Social Studies (Centre d’Etudes et de Documentation Economiques, Juridiques et Sociales – Cedej) in Cairo. Abdalla has also actively participated in the research initiatives of The Euro-Mediterranean Study Commission (EuroMeSCo), headquartered in Barcelona, and is an esteemed Alumni of The Arab German Young Academy for Sciences and Humanities (AGYA), situated in Berlin.

Her research papers and articles have been featured in prestigious academic journals, including Mediterranean Politics and The Journal of North African Studies, and have been published by well-known publishers such as Palgrave and Routledge. Moreover, her insights have reached influential policy platforms, such as The Middle East Institute (MEI) in Washington and Singapore, The German Institute for International and Security Affairs (SWP) in Berlin, The Arab Reform Initiative (ARI) in Paris, The European Institute of the Mediterranean (IEMed) and The Euro-Mediterranean Study Commission (EuroMeSCo), headquartered in Barcelona. Abdalla's influence extends beyond academia as she is an accomplished writer who regularly pens a weekly column for the Egyptian daily Al-Masry Al-Youm. Her expertise has also been featured in several articles published in other prominent Egyptian newspapers.

Research Interest

  • Contentious politics and social movements, specifically labor and youth movements

  • State-society relations

  • Local politics, and the dynamics of bottom-up approaches to democracy within the MENA region, with a particular emphasis on Egypt

  • Euro-Mediterranean relations, particularly with regard to EU democracy assistance policies

Education

  • 2008 – 2014: PhD Degree in Political Science. Sciences-Po, Grenoble Alpes University, France. Grade: Highest Honors (Très Honorable avec Félicitations du Jury). 

  • 2005 – 2006: Master Degree in International Relations. Sciences-Po, Paris, France. 

  • 2001 – 2005: University Degree in Political Science. Faculty of Economics and Political Sciences (F.E.P.S) Cairo University, Egypt, French Section. 

Forthcoming Monograph 

  • ABDALLA, N. (2025). Labor Against the Regime: Workers Mobilizations in Egypt (2004-2011). Syracuse: Syracuse University Press. 

Journal Articles 

Book Chapters

  • ABDALLA, N. (2020). Les Mouvements de Protestations Ouvrières. In H. Bayoumi & K. Bennafla (Eds). Atlas de l’Egypte Contemporaine. Paris: CNRS Editions. 

  • ABDALLA, N. (2020). From the Dream of Change to the Nightmare of Structural Weakness: The Trajectory of Egypt’s Independent Trade Union Movement after 2011. In I. Weipert-Fenner and J. Wolff (Eds). Socioeconomic Protests in MENA and Latin America. Egypt and Tunisia in Interregional Comparison. London: Palgrave Macmillan. 

  • ABDALLA, N. (2015). The Neoliberal Policies and The Egyptian Trade Union Movement: Politics of Containment and Limits of Resistance. In E. Akcali (Ed.). The Limits of Neoliberal Governmentality in the Middle East and North Africa. London: Palgrave Macmillan. 

  • ABDALLA, N. (2015). L’Egypte: Les Dynamiques d’une Transition en Difficulté. In H. Abidi (Ed.). Monde Arabe, entre Autoritarisme et Transition : Les Dynamiques Internes et les Influences Externes. Paris : Erick Bonnier.

  • ABDALLA, N. (2015). The Labor Mouvement in the Face of Transition. In S. La Croix & B. Rougier (Eds). Egypt’s Revolutions. London : Palgrave Macmillan. 

Policy Articles