Dr Ash Parton is a paleoenvironmental scientist with interests in the dynamics and periodicity of long-term climate change in drylands, and the potential effects of such changes on human populations. In particular, his research focuses on the Arabian Peninsula and has helped to develop our understanding of early human population movements out of Africa and through the Saharan-Arabian Desert belt. Ash joined Mansfield College, University of Oxford in September 2015, where he became a lecturer in ...
Mar 08, 2022•51 min•Season 6Ep. 5
Dr Rumaitha Al Hosni is an Extraordinary Junior Research Fellow in Physiology at Queen's College Oxford. Rumaitha spent the first 15 years of her life in the coastal city of Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, followed by a few years in Oman, before moving to the UK in 2011 to pursue higher education. In this podcast, we ask her about her experiences of London, Oxford, Dar Es Salaam, and Muscat, while also finding out more about her incredible work in ion channel physiology and pharmacology. _________ An...
Feb 28, 2022•26 min•Season 6Ep. 4
In this episode of the Anglo-Omani Society podcast we are pleased to welcome Muamir Al-Hasny. Muamir is managing director at Muamir Design & Engineering Consultancy. After graduating from Sultan School Muamir earned degrees in Mechanical and Construction Engineering before working in his current role. His company has been behind the development of amazing projects that span private, commercial, and civil construction. In this podcast, we speak about his career, the incredible projects his co...
Feb 22, 2022•35 min•Season 6Ep. 3
In this episode, we speak with Maha Al-Habsi. Maha graduated from Sultan Qaboos University in 2016 from the Economics and Political Science College. Unsure and not confident as to what her next step was Maha enrolled in a course headed up by Outward Bound Oman. She was then discovered by Mark Evans, the incredible force behind everything that goes on there, and ended up joining the team in January 2018. She began as a business manager and is now head of business development and is now an all-aro...
Feb 15, 2022•38 min•Season 6Ep. 2
Elizabeth Davis is an Indian artist in Oman who recently came to the forefront of the Omani art scene. She is the recipient of the National Talent Search Scheme Award, a university topper for her Bachelors & Masters, a Marine Biologist and former banker, she seems to have forayed into various fields before settling down to her one true passion – Painting! From having a fantastic art department in school, she has furthered her artistic career by doing various courses with famous international...
Jan 27, 2022•29 min•Season 6Ep. 1
Dr Zahid Al Mandhari is head of Radiation Oncology at Sultan Qaboos Comprehensive Cancer Centre. After graduating the top of his class from Sultan Qaboos University, Dr Al Mandhari decided to focus on Radiation Oncology and started studying at the University of Alberta where he finished his fellowship. Later he joined the Royal Hospital in Oman as a radiation oncologist before his current role at the soon-to-open Comprehensive Cancer Centre. In this podcast, we explore the development of the Sul...
Dec 07, 2021•43 min
Colonel (Retired) David Bennett played an instrumental role as the UK's In-Country Project Officer for the UK's Defence Hub at Duqm. He has worked in various countries across the Middle East and is highly skilled in project and operations management, particularly, in the international setting. In 2020, David swapped Duqm for Roland's Castle and began managing the beautiful Stansted Park Estate. A few weeks ago the AOS team had the pleasure of travelling down to his estate and recording the follo...
Nov 29, 2021•20 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Dr Smiti Nathan is an archaeologist who researches ancient communities and people in the Al Dhahirah Governorate in Northern Oman and has been working with the Archaeological Water Histories of Oman Project. She is particularly interested in the choices ancient people made regarding food, water, and other resources. Her recent work also focuses on making archaeological research and findings more accessible to broader audiences. In this podcast, we sat down to discuss the project, archaeology in ...
Nov 15, 2021•49 min
Hanan Sultan is currently a master's student at the Royal College of Art studying Jewellery and Metal. She is also a recent graduate of Central Saint Martins with a Bachelor in Jewellery Design. Living between Muscat, Dubai, and London, Hanan is passionate about fine art and fashion and finds that jewellery is the perfect middle ground between the two. Her art and design practices are predominantly centred around cultural identity and the human experience of society in relation to this. She also...
Nov 09, 2021•22 min•Season 5Ep. 6
In this podcast, we discuss the unique history of the Gulf, Oman’s place within that history, and the upcoming conference at Georgia State University on HM Sultan Qaboos and Oman’s fifty-year renaissance. Professor Allen James Fromherz is a historian specializing in the Middle East and the Mediterranean. From 2007 to 2008 he was a Professor at Qatar University and later joined the faculty of Georgia State University where he currently works. Along with research on the Almohad Empire in twelfth-c...
Nov 01, 2021•40 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Mohab Ali Al Hinai is a technology enthusiast with over 17 years of experience in the fields of R&D and technology assessment. He co-founded Sustainable Investments LLC, an Omani firm that focuses on introducing cutting-edge technological innovations in the MENA region with a special focus on food security, energy and health. Mohab started his career by earning a bachelor's degree in Biotechnology from Sultan Qaboos University (SQU). After joining on as a faculty member at SQU, he went on to...
Oct 25, 2021•40 min•Season 5Ep. 4
In this podcast, AOS speaks with Daniel Newman Professor and Chair of Arabic Studies at the University of Durham (UK). His research and publications have centred on Arabic geographical and travel literature (with a special focus on Arab travellers to Europe in the 19th century) as well as the 19th-century Arab reform movements in Tunisia and Egypt. In 2009, he was the co-recipient of the World Award of the President of the Republic of Tunisia for Islamic Studies for the book entitled Muslim Wome...
Oct 18, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 5Ep. 3
In this podcast we speak with Richard Muir, a former British Ambassador to Oman (1994-99), about his career and diplomatic experience in Oman. In his career as a diplomat he served in Washington DC and in a number of other Middle East posts including as Ambassador to Kuwait. In London before taking up his post in Oman he was a member of the Foreign Office Board of Management and Chief Inspector of the Diplomatic Service. Richard was Chairman of the Society from 2004 to 2012 since when he has bee...
Oct 11, 2021•30 min•Season 5Ep. 2
In this podcast, we speak with Sulaiman Ruqaishi, Head of In-Country Value Business Development at Petroleum Development Oman. We talk about in-country value in Oman, PDO’s in-country value projects, and the future prospects and challenges the Sultanate and the wider region face. Sulaiman Ruqaishi graduated from Sultan Qaboos University in 2005 with a bachelor's in Science and completed a Master’s in Business Administration from the University of Strathclyde. With ten years working at Royal Dutc...
Oct 04, 2021•28 min•Season 5Ep. 1
In this podcast, we speak with Janet M. Purdy, the Daniel F. & Ada L. Rice Postdoctoral Curatorial Fellow in Arts of Africa at the Art Institute of Chicago. She received her PhD in Art History in August 2020 from the Pennsylvania State University, with a focus on traditional art and architecture of Africa. Her research examines regional vocabularies and visual exchange systems of social and cultural trade networks throughout Eastern and Northern Africa, the Gulf Region, and the Indian Ocean ...
Jul 19, 2021•42 min•Season 4Ep. 10
In this podcast, we speak with Mays Al Moosawi, a 26-year old visual artist from Muscat. Mays completed her BA in Illustration at Coventry University which kickstarted her career in becoming a full-time artist. She focuses on representing the female figure in her artwork, as well as the challenges women from her community experience. In this podcast, we discuss Mays's journey in becoming an artist, the obstacles women face in her society and how she challenges them in her artwork, and some excit...
Jul 12, 2021•21 min•Season 4Ep. 9
In this podcast, we speak with Dr Harriet Nash, a consultant at the Aflaj Research Unit at Nizwa University and a consultant hydrogeologist. Her work within the field of hydrogeology has seen her work across the Middle East and Northern Africa for many years including Oman. Her recent research has focused on the falaj system of irrigation and specifically how stars were used for timing the systems across Oman. In this podcast we explore her career and research in Oman, focusing on the fascinatin...
Jul 06, 2021•29 min•Season 4Ep. 8
In this podcast, Ollie Blake interviews HE Salim al Aufi, Undersecretary at the Ministry of Energy and Minerals. This episode explores Oman’s hydrocarbon use in a low oil price world, the creation of Energy Development Oman, the country’s alternative energy vision and the Sultanate’s significant hydrogen ambitions. We also touch on regulation around energy privatisation, including overseas ownership of assets, and potential energy support to Yemen in anticipation of peace. _________ Anglo Omani ...
Jun 29, 2021•39 min•Season 4Ep. 7
Marwa Al Wadhahi is an all-around athlete and the first female weightlifter in the Omani National Weightlifting Team. In 2016 she joined Crossfit, a sport that kick-started her weightlifting career. Marwa is passionate about sport and an adventure enthusiast: the harder the challenge the better. In this episode we talk about Marwa's main achievements in the sporting industry, and what it is like being a young Omani female athlete, her opinions on the national PE curriculum and her future aspirat...
Jun 21, 2021•31 min•Season 4Ep. 6
This podcast explores Oman’s transformational journey into the alternative energy sector. Dr Salim takes us through some of the challenges and opportunities behind Oman's renewables sector and the country's development of wind, solar and hydrogen capacity. Financing, technological partnership, national strategy, off-take agreements and market creation are all topics touched on in this hugely informative interview. _________ Anglo Omani Society accounts: Instagram: angloomanisociety Linkedin: The...
Jun 15, 2021•24 min•Season 4Ep. 5
Abdullah Al Alawi is currently the Learning Programme Designer at YouThinkers and is the writer of two plays: Hot Potato and Omaniyya Enthroned. Hot Potato is a play focusing on a single street in Victorian England filled with characters from the periphery of society. Their humour helps them brave their position in society until the Mayor visits and the narrator switches the roles of the characters for the play’s conclusion. Omaniyaa Enthroned tells the story of an intelligent woman whose years ...
Jun 07, 2021•35 min•Season 4Ep. 4
Saleh Al Shaibani is the Director of Career Guidance and Industry Liaison at Modern College of Business and Science, based in Muscat. He started his career at Muscat International Airport in 1982 as an Aviation Engineer and went on to manage the operations of Air Navigational Systems. He is also a freelance journalist for local, regional and international media. His journalism work, has over the years made him well connected with both government and business leaders through these connections he ...
May 31, 2021•20 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Jody Pritt is the Director of International Student & Scholar Services at Georgia State University. Currently, she is studying towards her doctorate in Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Her fascination with Oman flourished when she connected with a group of Omani Scholarship students during her time at the University of South Carolina. This introduction inspired her to develop a comprehensive collaboration between Oman and the University of So...
May 24, 2021•33 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Abdullah Zahran Al Hinai is CEO of the National Bank of Oman (NBO), a bank that over the last year has donated over RO 1 Million to the Covid relief fund. Their recent efforts include providing fully equipped ambulances and medical equipment. In this exclusive interview, we discuss the support NBO has given to its customers and the wider country during the pandemic, along with its longstanding charitable and community efforts for Omanis. _________ Anglo Omani Society accounts: Instagram: angloom...
May 17, 2021•20 min•Season 4Ep. 1
Major General Robin Searby served in the Dhofar Campaign from 1973-175 in the newly formed Armoured Car Squadron. He returned to Oman as the Senior British Loan Service Officer from 2000-2004. In this podcast, he reflects on an extraordinary career in an extraordinary country. _________ Anglo Omani Society accounts: Instagram: angloomanisociety Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society...
Mar 25, 2021•32 min
Ali Mohammadi is the founder of OmanTripper, a travel & tour service organization based out of Muscat, Oman. Ali is a chemical engineer by training with degrees from the University of Canterbury and the University of Cambridge and works full-time in Muscat. Besides his demanding job, Ali also runs OmanTripper platform with the objective of offering the most rewarding and authentic travel experiences for visitors to Oman, combining ventures to Oman's hidden gems with a taste of its rich herit...
Mar 15, 2021•41 min•Season 3Ep. 8
Arabella Dorman is an award winning, internationally renowned artist and one of Britain’s leading portrait painters. Arabella’s work explores the realities of conflict today, its immediate impacts and long-term consequences. She worked as an officially accredited war artist in Iraq and Afghanistan for over a decade, and in more recent years in Palestine, Gaza, Lebanon and Syria. Arabella enjoys a prominent reputation as a public speaker, fundraiser, and has recently been awarded winner of the Om...
Mar 08, 2021•48 min•Season 3Ep. 7
Masoud Al-Rawahi is a founder and Executive Director at PhzaeRo, a software development and digital consulting company that aims at developing Oman’s digital talent and tech environment. Masoud is also a co-founder and managing partner of Phaze Ventures, an Omani venture capital firm and innovation platform. Masoud has worked and studied internationally and his current position involves partnering with private and public entities across Oman to promote digital innovation. In this podcast we will...
Mar 01, 2021•26 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Aisha Said Al Shukaili is a Senior Continuous Improvement (CI) coach at Petroleum Development of Oman (PDO). Aisha began her CI career in 2015, and since she has become the first accredited CI coach in PDO and the first female in PDO to be awarded the Six Sigma Black Belt certification. Prior to her career in the petroleum industry, Aisha worked as a Medical Physicist in the radiotherapy department at The Royal Hospital (Oman) for one and half years, after graduating from Sultan Qaboos Universit...
Feb 22, 2021•31 min•Season 3Ep. 5
Franziska Fay is a postdoctoral researcher at the Research Centre Normative Orders at the University of Frankfurt and from October to December 2020 she was a visiting research fellow at Leibniz-Zentrum Moderner Orient (ZMO) on the Oman Grant sponsored by the Sultan Qaboos Higher Centre for Culture and Science. Her research focuses on children and young people, politics, and belonging in Swahili-speaking contexts. Her first book “Disputing Discipline: Child Protection, Punishment and Piety in Zan...
Feb 15, 2021•37 min•Season 3Ep. 4
