Schifa

Important Date: Schifa Begins! October 6, 2021

Science, Faith and Innovation for Human Dignity is a unique program hosted at the College of Islamic Studies (CIS), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU).

It is a collaboration with Qatar Scientific Club, Doha Debates, Voicing Voices, and SciCommX.

It offers an opportunity for young scholars, professionals, entrepreneurs, and innovators who aspire to plan, engage, reflect, and act upon the nexus of science, faith, and innovation to respond to global challenges that undermine social cohesion and human dignity.

October 6, 2021 - May 1, 2022……...A seven-month journey composed of Deep Dive Sessions, Inspirational Talks, an Ideathon, and engaging in a digital Makerspace called Islam-Lab with top-notch scholars, educational specialists, and mentors.

Are you interested in the Science, Faith and Innovation Nexus?

Are you ready to produce innovative content collaboratively and be the master of digital educational content production to advance humanity?

Then, this program is for you…

Apply now by sending an email to makermajlis@hbku.edu.qa

About

Program Description

Science, Faith and Innovation for Human Dignity is a unique program hosted at the College of Islamic Studies (CIS), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU). It offers an opportunity for young scholars, professionals, entrepreneurs, and innovators who aspire to plan, engage, reflect, and act upon the nexus of science, faith, and innovation to respond to global challenges that undermine social cohesion and human dignity.

The main objectives of the program are as follows:

  • Learn faith-driven practices in building a more sustainable and resilient world for human dignity.
  • Make faith integral in developing social, economic, environmental innovations to enhance the lives and the well-being of Muslims.
  • Shift the current mindset of science communication to a more human-centered science conversation.
  • Design innovative and impactful solutions serving humanity and utilize from nexus to enhance different aspects of Muslim lives.
  • Design business plans and Theory of Changes (TOCs) to translate ideas into viable, feasible and desirable products, services, and processes.
  • Cultivate digital safe spaces where ethical behavior and moral reasoning are promoted.
  • Build a roadmap for humanity – participants will work collaboratively and produce a roadmap for post-Covid humanity.

What is Innovative About the Program?

  • The study of the Science-Faith-Innovation Nexus to uphold human dignity.
  • The co-production and co-creation of an academic and educational curriculum.
  • The integration of educational modules produced by Doha Debates.
  • The promotion of Maker Culture in science communication and innovative design in collaboration with Qatar Scientific Club.
  • The promotion of high interconnection between components.
  • The entire program process will culminate in the collaborative production of a mega MOOC (massive open online course).
  • The transmission of vast swaths of personalized knowledge between the providers and beneficiaries (i.e. the prosumer).

Our Program is ultimately aligned with QF and HBKU strategic objectives and supports the building of a greater, stronger Multiversity in line with the goals of Her Excellency Sheikha Hind bint Hamad Al Thani, Vice Chairperson and CEO of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development.

Program Components

  • Deep Dives: To kick off the program, Deep Dive sessions led by respectable academics will involve participating graduate students in discussions grounded in mutual respect for everyone’s ideas and the pursuit of open-minded intellectual advancement. The Deep Dives, curated by Jennifer Geist of Doha Debates, are designed to engage participants and event facilitators alike in conversations that require critical thinking, self-awareness, empathy, tolerance, a sense of civic responsibility, a willingness to learn from others, and a firm belief that individual action matters. The carefully curated set of materials for the Deep Dives sessions help foster the mindsets needed to unite and inspire a generation to solve the world’s challenges and build a better future for generations to come. These sessions will support participants through a systems thinking process as they work to understand and gradually resolve complex global issues through a four-step PERA process: Prepare, Engage, Reflect, and Act.
  • Halaqa Talks: A halaqa, or circle of learning, is where students learn in a small group setting with their teacher, sometimes through the Socratic method or a lecture format. Short, TED-style talks are given about global problems and local solutions. Halaqa talks represent local tradition imbued with a global twist, which fosters inspirational and innovative thinking among youth. Accomplished faith-novators and faith-preneurs with international recognition will be sharing their experiences with the participants.
  • Ideathon: Participants (high school, undergraduate, and above) will then take the inspiration they’ve garnered from the 12 incredible visiting faith-novators and faith-preneurs to develop their own social, economic, and environmental innovations to solve the problems they found were most critical during the Deep Dive sessions. Throughout the Ideathon stage, participants will now act as mentors, taking their ideas from the Halaqa Deep Dives and rigorously developing them into feasible, fundable projects. Participants’ main goal is to turn their ideas into game-changing, innovative projects that have the potential to transform human lives and uplift human dignity, developing practical solutions to the issues facing Muslim communities around the world. For more information on the Ideathon stage, please refer to Annex 1.
  • Islam Lab: Then lastly, as with every successful innovation-driven initiative, the most feasible and creative project ideas from the participants will have the chance to become a reality through the Islam Lab phase, the final and longest-lasting portion of the program. Islam Lab will be a maker space shaped by the co-designing and co-producing of educational curriculum and content with the supervision of the lead mentors (Jennifer Geist, Marium Hussein, and Layla El Zein) and other mentors. In addition, participants will design research initiatives under College of Islamic Studies Cluster funding schemes and match with scholars in CIS to conduct thematic research projects supporting the Nexus.

Apply now by sending an email with your CV to makermajlis@hbku.edu.qa

Timeline

Speakers

Deep Dive
  • Dr. Ziauddin Sardar

    Futurist & Director, Centre for Postnormal Policy and Futures Studies

  • Dr. Marium Hussein

    Hematology/Oncology Fellow, Vice President, IMANA, Founder, Science Jummah

  • Dr. Shoaib Malik

    Professor, Zayed University

  • Dr. Rana Dajani

    Professor, Hashemite University of Jordan

  • Dr. Nahyan Fancy

    Professor, DePauw University

  • Dr. Odeh Jayyousi

    Professor, Arabian Gulf University Bahrain

  • Dr. Moneef Zoubi

    Science Advisor, InterAction Council

  • Mr. Imran Sayeed

    Lecturer, MIT Sloan School of Management

  • Dr. Iyad Abu Moghli

    Director, UNEP Faith for Earth Initiative

  • Dr. Hisham Muharrem

    Founder & CEO, Good Tree Farm of Egypt

  • Dr. Huseyin Sen

    Faculty Member, Utrecht University

  • Dr. Eugenie Samier

    Professor, University of Strathclyde

  • Dr. Layla Al Zein

    Coach, Counsellor, & Educator, Holistic Islamic Personal Education Initiative

  • Dr. Tasneem Amatullah

    Professor, Emirates College

Halaqa Talks
  • Ms. Sara Minkara

    Founder and CEO, Empowerment Through Integration (ETI)

  • Mr. Abdulrahman Al Khamis

    Inventor, Qatar Scientific Club

  • Mr. Sulaiman Bah

    Community Engagement & Outreach Coordinator, Qatar Foundation

  • Mr. Nic Di Palma

    CEO and Founder, SpacetimeLabs, Faith for Earth Champions

  • Mr. Jason Twill

    Director, World Cup Program

  • Dr. Haithem Kader

    Economist, University of Oxford

  • Dr. Yasmeen Hussein

    Supervisor, Cambridge University, CEO, Yeme

  • Dr. Mariam Aboukar

    Physician Fellow at Harvard Medical School System

  • Mr. Abdul Samad Khan

    Founder & CEO, Youth Impact

Mentors
  • Dr. Jennifer Geist

    Global Education Believer

  • Dr. Marium Hussein

    Hematology/Oncology Fellow, Vice President, IMANA, Founder, Science Jummah

  • Ms. Layla Al Zein

    Coach, Counsellor, & Educator, Holistic Islamic Personal Education Initiative

  • Ms. Salma Sameh

    leadership and storytelling trainer and coach, Co-founder, Leadership Hub

  • Dr. Tasneem Amatullah

    Professor, Emirates College

  • Dr. Huseyin Sen

    Faculty Member, Utrecht University

  • Dr. Joseph Lumbard

    Associate Professor, Hamad Bin Khalifa University

  • Mr. Nic Di Palma

    CEO and Founder, SpacetimeLabs

  • Dr. Nihat Gumus

    Professor, Ibn Khaldoun University

  • Dr. Rana Dajani

    Professor, Hashemite University of Jordan

Partners