New round of SOAS practice-based appointments add to SOAS mission
17 January 2022
SOAS University of London is proud to announce the third cohort of practice-based associates following previous announcements in 2020 and 2021. All of our new practice-based associates will bring their practical knowledge and professional expertise from across politics, law, development, diplomacy and leadership to contribute to the mission of SOAS.
The School of Law will host Steven Finizio , leading international arbitration lawyer as Professor of Practice. Steven focuses on international dispute resolution. He is a partner in the firm of Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP. He has been involved as counsel or as an arbitrator in cases governed by the laws of jurisdictions in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and the U.S., as well as under bilateral and regional treaties. He was part of a team that won a landmark decision in the first freedom of expression case in the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights as well as successfully representing clients in several cases in the European Court of Human Rights. His work has included assisting a Central European government to draft new arbitration legislation.
Sara Hossain will also be hosted as a Professor of Practice at the School of Law. Sara is a barrister and has been practicing for 30 years in the areas of constitutional, corporate and family law. She is a partner at the law firm of Dr. Kamal Hossain and Associates. Sara currently serves pro bono as the Honorary Executive Director of the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST). Sara’s casework has included strategic litigation on equality and non-discrimination, the right to liberty, forced marriage, child abduction, and freedom of expression among others. She has been involved in amicus/ third party briefs before other national courts and international human rights bodies and courts. Sara writes and speaks on public interest law, human rights and women’s rights and access to justice. She is currently a member of the Board of the United Nations Voluntary Fund for Victims of Torture.
The School of Law will also host David Renton as Professor of Practice. David is a historian and a barrister at Garden Court Chambers, where he has represented clients in some of the leading employment and housing cases of the past decade. David has represented blacklisted construction workers, teachers calling for Covid lockdowns, and supporters of the Occupy Movement in courts including the Court of Appeal and the European Court of Human Rights. His cases have been at the cutting edge of trade union law, anti-union discrimination, and the protection of free speech. His work addresses: the history of anti-racism and anti-fascism; the definitions of populism, authoritarianism and fascism; the impact of Covid on housing and employment law; whether and when it is appropriate to restrict freedom of expression; and how liberation movements can prevent discrimination from re-emerging within their own ranks.
Oliver Durose will also be hosted by the School of Law as a Policy Fellow. Oliver is a parliamentary researcher, activist and writer. He is the author of Suburban Socialism (Repeater Books: 2022), and also has written on a range of issues including UK Politics, US Politics and the relationship between colonialism and criminal justice. In 2019, Oly was the Labour Party Parliamentary Candidate for Brentwood & Ongar. In 2020, he was a Caucus Site Leader for the Bernie Sanders' Presidential campaign in Nevada. As a Policy Fellow at SOAS, Oly is leading on a new project entitled Carceral Policy, Policing at Race - an initiative that studies the relationship between colonialism and modern criminal justice systems, with a particular focus on the Global South. Alongside his role at SOAS, Oly is a senior policy officer for a Labour MP.
Contributing her expertise to work alongside our Research & Enterprise Directorate Aruna Rao will be hosted as a Professor of Practice in Transformative Leadership. Aruna is a globally recognized expert on gender equality, development and women’s rights. In her over 40 years of experience particularly in Asia and Africa, Dr. Rao has combined advocacy and cutting-edge research on gender equality and development with leadership and management to forge better development results for women and men. In 2001, she co-founded and for 17 years was the Executive Director of Gender at Work (www.genderatwork.org), an international, feminist network committed to ending discrimination against women and advancing cultures of equality. Early in her career, she pioneered new approaches to gender equality and institutional change working in BRAC in Bangladesh. She has chaired the Boards of the Association for Women’s Rights in Development and CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation, and currently chairs the Board of the Nobel Women’s Initiative. Most recently she has co-developed and taught courses on transformational leadership for gender equality for senior managers in multilateral, private and non-profit organizations for UN Women.
The Department of Development studies will host SOAS alum Arkebe Oqubay as Professor of Practice. Arkebe Oqubay has been at the centre of policy making in Ethiopia for over 30 years. He is the former mayor of Addis Ababa, during this time he won the Best African Mayor of 2005, and finalist in the World Mayor Award 2005, for transforming the city. He is a recipient of the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star presented by the Emperor of Japan. He currently serves as board chair of several leading public organisations and international advisory boards. He holds a PhD in development studies from SOAS.
Amitav Acharya will be hosted as Professor of Practice in Transnational Governance by the Centre for International Studies and Diplomacy. Amitav Acharya is the UNESCO Chair in Transnational Challenges and Governance and Distinguished Professor at the School of International Service, American University, Washington, DC. He is the first non-Western scholar to be elected (for 2014-15) as the President of the International Studies Association (ISA), the largest and most influential global network in international studies. Previously he was a Professor at York University, Toronto, and the Chair in Global Governance at the University of Bristol.
SOAS’ research and regional Centres and Institutes, which bring together a networked critical mass of people working on some of the most pressing global issues of our times, will act as hosts for many of our practice-based appointees.
For further information, contact:
practice@soas.ac.uk