Karim Wissa is a scholar of political and cultural economy whose interdisciplinary work examines the relationships among economic systems, geopolitical change, institutions and cultural life. Trained in the Global Culture and Theory Program at Duke University, his research draws on classical political economy, continental theory and philosophy, and 20th-century colonial history.

His scholarship has examined questions of value and commodity production, transformations in labor and industry, financialization, music and cultural production, and the relationship between economic change and institutional life. His broader research interests concern how large-scale economic and geopolitical transformations shape culture, knowledge, institutions and everyday experience.

Alongside his scholarship, Wissa brings more than 15 years of teaching experience in universities, prisons and high schools across the United States and Canada, including at Duke University, the University of North Carolina and the University of Waterloo, with work spanning curriculum, teaching and learning, research and educational innovation. Through accessible scholarship, editorial work and knowledge mobilization, he bridges theory and practice, making complex social analysis usable for educators, students and communities.

Prior to joining The American University in Cairo, he served as director of research, innovation and knowledge mobilization and as a faculty member at the University of Waterloo. He joins AUC as assistant provost for innovative learning experiences, where his current work also considers technological change, artificial intelligence and the changing institutional landscape of higher education.