Centre Staff
Griffith University
Dr Mohamad Abdalla is the Director of the Griffith Islamic Research Unit. Although he specialises in the history of Islamic science, his other research interestes include Islam in Australia, Islamic ethics, history of Islamic civilisation and the contextualisation of Islamic thought. Currently, Dr Abdalla has eleven PhD students working with him, including the former deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, Dato Sari Anwar Ibrahim (staff profile - external link).
Halim Rane has a Bachelor's degree (Hons) in Sociology and Islamic Studies, which he obtained from the International Islamic University Malaysia. He also has a Master's degree in Mass Communication (Media Studies) from Bond University. Halim wrote his master's thesis on the Australian press portrayal of Islam and Muslims. Since 2001, Halim has lectured in Islamic studies at Bond University and also the University of Queensland. He recently completed his PhD thesis, Reconstructing Jihad amid Competing International Norms: Implications for a Resolution of the Israel-Palestine Conflict, in International relations at Griffith University. In addition to the Israel-Palastine conflict, Halim's research interests include the philosophy of Islamic law, media representations of Muslims, and Islam in the West (staff profile - external link).
University of Melbourne
| Name | Position | Email address |
|---|---|---|
| Abdullah Saeed | Director | a.saeed@unimelb.edu.au |
| Shahram Akbarzadeh | Deputy Director | shahrama@unimelb.edu.au |
| Lynne Wrout | Executive Manager | l.wrout@unimelb.edu.au |
| Eric Van Bemmel | Interactive Media Manager | emvb@unimelb.edu.au |
| Abdul-Samad Abdullah | Senior Lecturer | abdulsa@unimelb.edu.au |
| Muhammad Kamal | Senior Lecturer / Subject Coordinator | muhammad@unimelb.edu.au |
| Eeqbal Hassim | Lecturer / Subject Coordinator | ehassim@unimelb.edu.au |
| Faiza Muhammad Fauzi | Administration | fmu@unimelb.edu.au |
| Benjamin MacQueen | ARC Postdoctoral Fellow | bmac@unimelb.edu.au |
Dr Abdul-Samad Abdullah has an international academic research and teaching background in Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, and specialises in Arabic poetry of West Africa and in Quranic narratives. His research interests include modern and classical Arabic literature, Arabic rhetoric and stylistics; teaching Arabic for specific purposes, West African Arabic literature, Modern Islamic thought, Quranic exegesis and Islam in West Africa (staff profile - external link).
A/ Prof. Shahram Akbarzadeh has recently joined the Centre as deputy Director. He was previously the Director of the Centre for Muslim Minorities and Islam Policy Studies at Monash University, and is a highly regarded commentator on issues relating to political Islam and the Middle East, with a range of publications in these areas (staff profile - external link).
Muhammad Eeqbal Farouque Hassim is a lecturer and subject coordinator at the Centre and a research fellow at the Asian Law Centre, Melbourne Law School. Eeqbal is also completing his PhD on the history of Islamic educational thought on children's motivation. His research interests include Islamic education, Islamic law, and the interpretation of Qur'an and Hadith. Eeqbal’s key teaching areas are the Qur’an and Hadith, Islamic law, as well as their associated texts (staff profile - external link).
Dr Muhammad Kamal is a Kurd originally from Iraq, who brings international academic qualifications and teaching and research experience from Iraq, Pakistan, Germany and Australia to his role in the Centre. His research interests include the philosophies of Hegel, Western Existentialism, Heidegger, Mulla Sadra’s existential philosophy, and modern Islamic thought (staff profile - external link).
Dr Benjamin MacQueen is an ARC Postdoctural Fellow researching the impact of US foreign policy on political transformation in the Middle East and Central Asia. His research interests include politics, society and international relations in the Middle East and North Africa, US and Australian foreign policy, democracy promotion and conflict resolution (staff profile - external link).
Dr Richard Pennell holds international academic qualifications, as well as teaching and research experience in Britain, Singapore, Kenya, Libya, Turkey, Australia and Morocco. Dr Pennell has been published extensively on modern political history and the history of North Africa - particularly Morocco and Libya, and is currently researching both the history of criminal trials abroad and resultant questions of national identity, and the history of armed jihad (staff profile - external link).
Prof. Abdullah Saeed is the Director of the Centre, the Sultan of Oman Professor of Arab and Islamic Studies, and a sought-after international speaker with worldwide academic and professional networks. His research focuses on the negotiation of text and context, ijtihad and interpretation. Prof. Saeed is a strong advocate of reform of Islamic thought, and is involved in interfaith dialogue between Christians and Muslims, and between Jews and Muslims. He is published in a diverse range of areas including: Islamic finance, Muslim communities in Australia, Islamic thought in Indonesia, Qur’anic hermeneutics, Islam and human rights, and Islamic law reform (staff profile - external link).
University of Western Sydney
Dr Steven Drakeley is a Senior Lecturer in Asian History and Politics at the University of Western Sydney. His primary research focus is on the role of social and political forces based on Islam in the political history of Indonesia since independence, with particular emphasis on the 1950s-1970s (staff profile - external link).
Dr Samar Habib is based at the University of Western Sydney and specialises in Arab and Islamic popular culture, Middle East literature, history and politics, as well as studies of sexuality. She is widely published in both academic and creative works, and is chief editor of an international academic periodical (staff profile - external link).
Assoc. Prof. Adam Possamai is widely published and has served in a number of leading academic roles, including as International Sociological Association research committee secretary, research committee Programme Coordinator at the XVI World Congress of Sociology, co-editor of the Australian Religion Studies Review and President of the Australian Association for the Study of Religions (staff profile - external link).