Rana Dajani

Rana Dajani is currently a Robert Bosch Fellow in Germany, as well as a Professor of molecular biology at the Hashemite University in Jordan. Her area of expertise is epigenetics and biomarkers of trauma among refugees. Through her work she has introduced national and regional stem cell laws and presided over numerous scientific boards and United Nations councils, most recently as the President of the Society for the Advancement of Science and Technology in the Arab World. She has also previously been a visiting professor at Harvard, Yale, MIT and Cambridge. Prof Dajani is a supporter of the construction of indigenous research capabilities in the developing world and created a mentoring program to support women scholars in STEM that was recognized by the National Academy of Sciences.

Prof Dajani is the founder of We Love Reading, a grassroots initiative to create changemakers in underserved communities by fostering a lifelong love of reading. A recipient of the UNESCO International Literacy Prize, We Love Reading has established more than 8,000 locally run libraries in over 60 countries. Rana has also received many other accolades and awards, and has been recognized as a Fulbright, Eisenhower, Ashoka and Yale Morse Fellow. Her book Five Scarves: Doing the Impossible — If We Can Reverse Cell Fate, Why Can’t We Redefine Success? challenged global policymakers to address ongoing inequities in education and employment, while also putting forward a new paradigm for measuring success in an evolving world.