Dr Maha Aziz shares her insights on the global risks to watch for in 2023, in her recent article in Newsweek.
Here are five shock events that may impact global stability in 2023: a climate disaster or cyber attack devastates a global financial center; a far right extremist attack succeeds in a major Western European city; Iran develops nuclear weapons (with Russian support) after rejecting discussions to revive a nuclear deal; Turkey and Greece go to war in the Aegean Sea or Eastern Mediterranean; and Russia attacks NATO territory—intentionally or unintentionally—leading to World War III.
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Dr Maha Aziz, a former investment banker and Businessweek columnist, has been a professor, author and cartoonist in the MA International Relations Program at New York University’s Graduate School of Arts & Sciences since 2012, specialising in global risk and prediction. She is also a risk expert in the 2020-2022 Global Future Council at the World Economic Forum.
She has given speeches on global risk and future trends to varied audiences at venues worldwide, including the United Nations, Commonwealth Secretariat, European Parliament, Bosphorus Forum, Cyfy Africa, Asia Society, Convoco Forum, Betaworks Studios and the American Apparel & Footwear Association. Her recent virtual and in-person speaking engagements have focused on explaining the Covid-19 effect on geopolitics, politics, economy and society – and what may emerge in a post-pandemic world.
She is the author of the five-time award-winning book, Future World Order (2019/2020), on global risk which has been called a “must-read” (Dr Ian Bremmer, Kishore Mahbubani) written by a “global thinker to watch” (Dr Nouriel Roubini) and an “engaged scholar activist” (Dr Parag Khanna). Her second book A Global Spring (2021) considers a post- pandemic era; 50% of her profits will go to the WHO’s Covid-19 Solidarity Response Fund. Her ideas have been featured in outlets including Huffington Post, Forbes, Medium, CNN, Observer. And on occasion she still consults on political risk with governments via Wikistrat, the world’s first geopolitical crowdsourced consultancy, also leading the annual NYU- Wikistrat Top Ten Global Risks project.
She is the author of six-time award-winning debut political comic book for tweens, The Global Kid (2016), which she drew; and is launching the VR/AR comic sequel, The Global Kid: A VR/AR Political Book (2021), in partnership with award-winning edtech startup Musemio. The new comic has already received a nomination for the 2021 Digital Female Leader Awards in the category ‘Global Hero’.
Previously, she was a visiting fellow at the London School of Economic’s Institute of Global Affairs; a senior fellow at the World Policy Institute; chairwoman of the New Silk Road Generation, the first e-mentoring program for university students in Afghanistan; and a senior teaching fellow in the Politics and International Studies Department, SOAS University of London.
Dr Aziz is a Jordanian-born Pakistani who grew up in the Middle East (Jordan, Saudi Arabia), Southeast Asia (Singapore, Malaysia), Europe (UK, Greece) and the US. She is a social scientist trained at Brown (BA), Columbia (MA) and the LSE (MSc, PhD). She earned a Bachelor’s at Brown University, a Master’s at Columbia University, a Master’s and PhD at the LSE, and a research certification in Leveraging Crowds in the Public Sector at the NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering.
AWARDS
- 2021 Finalist in 6th Annual Digital Female Leader Awards for VR/AR Comic The Global Kid
- 2021 Finalist Award (Nonfiction Category) for My First Book Future World Order
- 2021 Finalist Award (Social/Political Change Category) for My Book Future World Order
- 2021 Distinguished Favorite Award (Current Events Category) for My Book Future World Order
- 2021 Distinguished Favorite Award (Education Category) for My Comic The Global Kid
- 2020 Women Icon for Peace Award for my Future-Focused Work in Education
- 2020 WEF Iconic Award for “creating a better world for all” through My Book Future World Order
- 2019 Winner of Education Award in Cohort of Next Generation Foresight Practitioners
- 2019 Winner of the Humanitarian Award for My Work in Education
- 2019 Winner of the International Business and Academic Excellence Award (“Outstanding Academic Leadership”) for the Ideas in My Book Future World Order
- 2018-2019 Winner for The Global Kid in the Educators’ Challenge in Sweden
- 2019 Finalist in Education Category of British Muslim Awards for The Global Kid in the UK
- 2017 INSPAD Peace Award in Pakistan for The Global Kid: A Political Comic Book
- 2017 WEF Excellence Award in Iceland for The Global Kid: A Political Comic Book
- 2017-2018 Senior Research Fellowship at World Policy Institute for My Book Project
- 2016 Wonder Woman Award in NY for The Global Kid: A Political Comic Book
Popular presentation topics of Dr Maha Aziz:
- Post-Covid World Order
- Global Risk Trends
- Global Legitimacy Crisis
- Global Identity Crisis (Xenophobia, Extremism)
- Future of Democracy and A New Social Contract
- Future of Geopolitics
- New Political Influencers: Citizen Protesters and Activist Tech Billionaires
Contact us if you would like to engage Dr Maha Aziz to speak at your next event.