Maha Yahya is a Senior Associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace working on citizenship, pluralism and social justice. In particular, her work focuses on the intersection between socio-economic challenges and political transitions. Prior to joining Carnegie, she was the Chief of the Participatory Development and Social Justice Section at UN-ESCWA and spearheaded strategic initiatives at the Office of the Executive Secretary.

Prior to joining ESCWA, Yahya was the director and principle author of the National Human Development Report at UNDP. She also worked as an independent consultant with public and private sector entities on a rich variety of development issues, such as post-conflict reconstruction, social policies and the revitalization of cultural heritage in Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Oman.

Yahya holds two PhDs in the social sciences and humanities from MIT and the Architectural Association in London. She serves on the advisory board of several organizations, including the UN-Habitat flagship publication, the Ana Aqra Association for underprivileged children, and MIT-Enterprise Forum for the Arab region. Yahya is the founder and editor of the MIT Electronic Journal of Middle East Studies, the principle author of Toward a Citizen’s State in Lebanon; Education and Citizenship; One Hundred and One Stories to tell; and co-author of The Promises of Spring: Citizenship, Civic Engagement and Democratic Transitions, among other publications.

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