Mobinah Ahmad
| Mobinah Ahmad | |
|---|---|
| Born | 05 November 1988 (age 32) Sydney, NSW, Australia |
| 🏳️ Nationality | Australian |
| 🏫 Education | IB, BSc, BA, MA-DCC, MA-IS |
| 🎓 Alma mater | University of Sydney |
| 💼 Occupation | Executive Officer, Managing Editor, Media Personality, Academic, Mentor, Educator |
| Known for | AMUST News |
| 🌐 Website | mobinah.com.au |
Mobinah Ahmad, IB, BSc, BA, MADCC, MAIS (born 5 November 1988) is an Australian academic, writer, mentor, public speaker and media personality who has a career as an executive in business and educator in social media.[1] She is the founder of FriendshipTheory and the Managing Editor of AMUST News. Ahmad is best known for developing a socio-cultural Friendship Theory (2015) and has served the multicultural Muslim community by engaging in community work for fifteen years.[2]
She has been featured in ABC Compass, SBS, ABC God Forbid, ABC 7:30 Report, ABC Radio National, SMH, Channel 10’s The Project, Daily Mail, AMUST, Mamamia, Medianet, News.com.au, ABC Religion & Ethics, The Point Magazine.[3]
Early life
Family
Ahmad was born into an Indian-Australian practising Muslim family in South Western Sydney, Australia. Her father, Zia Ahmad, retired after dedicating 42 years as a Biochemist at the University of Sydney. He is now the Editor in Chief for AMUST News.[2] Her mother, Mehar Ahmad is a primary school teacher for over 40 years and is the President of Seena Inc. Ahmad's paternal grandfather is Qazi Ashfaq Ahmad, a Muslim community elder. He migrated with his wife Jamal Ara Ahmad and their six children from India in 1971.[2] She has three sisters: Sakinah, Saminah and Rubinah. She is the aunty to Eesa and Halimah. Ahmad had a brother, Anees, now deceased.
Education
- International Baccalaureate: Ahmad graduated with an International Baccalaureate (Subjects: Chemistry, Mathematics, English, French, Ancient History, Theory of Knowledge) from Methodist Ladies College (UAI 85.0) in 2006. She was awarded a Grade A on her thesis on Peace and Conflict studies: the Israel-Palestine Conflict. She was a school prefect and achieved a Bronze Medallion for Duke of Edinburgh award.
- Bachelor of Science & Bachelor of Arts: Ahmad completed a double degree in a Bachelor of Science (majoring in Psychology) and a Bachelor of Arts (majoring in Digital Media) at the University of Sydney, graduating in 2012. With a credit average, Science coursework included Mathematics, Physiology, Molecular Biology and Genetics, Chemistry, Developmental Psychology and Behavioural & Cognitive Neuroscience, and Arts coursework included French, Arabic, Philosophy, Web Production, Cyberworlds, Technocultures, Digital Art, Computer Games and Simulation.
- Masters in Digital Communication & Culture: The following year, Ahmad acquired a graduation certificate in Digital Communication & Culture; coursework included animation for interactive media and video, design thinking, exploring digital cultures, digital arts, internet cultures and governance. This led her to a Masters in Digital Communication and Culture, and she wrote a thesis on Online Privacy, User Vulnerability and Australian Law in 2013 from the University of Sydney. She also got a distinction average; coursework included linguistics: cross-cultural communication, network society, media law & ethics.
- Masters in Islamic Studies: Ahmad then completed a second Master's in Islamic Studies with a thesis on Islam and Social Media at the Islamic Science and Research Academy, graduating from Charles Sturt University. Coursework included Islamic worldview and theology, essentials of Islamic spirituality, Islamic Jurisprudence (Fiqh), Philosophy of the Prophet Muhammad's Life (Seerah), Methodology of Quranic Exegesis (Usul al-Tafsir), Islam in the Modern world, Methodology of Islamic Law (Usul al-Fiqh), Interpreting Sacred Islamic texts, Islamic Theology, Beginner Arabic. Ahmad plans to enrol on a PhD: Islam in the Australian Digital Context. Ahmad attended the Reviving the Islamic Spirit Conference & Knowledge Retreat in Malaysia & Canada.
Community Work
Ahmad grew up in the multicultural Muslim community and took part in many volunteer initiatives. Her early contributions included cooking for 400 people and feeding the homeless in Hyde Park. She volunteered at the Australian Multicultural Eid Festival and Fair. She was invited into the executive committee, where she ran the On Stage Cultural program and took a more active role in managing the event.[4]
Ahmad was involved with St. John Ambulance as a Cadet Leader and Officer in Charge for five years at Bankstown Cadet Division. She ensured organisational and structural policies remained in place and made a few big decisions that determined the future longevity of the division. Ahmad completed the St John Ambulance Cadet Management and Development Program, holds a Certificate in Frontline Management and has completed a Child Protection Course. She has also acquired certifications in Senior First Aid, Advanced First Aid and Advanced Life Support.
Programs
Ahmad was selected to participate in the Australia-Indonesia Muslim Exchange Program (AIMEP), where she spent two weeks in Indonesia. AIMEP has brought together emerging Muslim leaders across Australia and Indonesia for almost two decades, igniting cultural, social, interreligious, and intellectual exchanges between hundreds of participants.[3] She wrote reflective articles on her experience and created a short video reflection. It was a program run by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Ahmad took part in a number of leadership programs by the National Student Leadership Forum, Australian Multicultural Foundation, and the Western Sydney Community Forum.
Media Representation
Ahmad spoke to SBS about the Christchurch Terror Attack (2019) and shared her views regarding the incident. She discussed the impact these events have across the Australian multicultural community.[5]
Ahmad is passionate about dismantling misconceptions about Islam and advocating against Islamophobia. She also is involved in interfaith projects and initiatives by speaking on panels and at events. She took part in Holy Switch (2013), where she swapped lives with a Jewish girl and lived with a Rabbi and his family in Melbourne for 10 days.[6] She was featured in ABC's Hear Me Out (2017),[7] discussing Fear, Ignorance, and Islam in Australia. Ahmad also spoke on SBS about her views on Christianity: Part 1 and Part 2 (2019).
Ahmad has participated in being the focus of several television documentaries on ABC Compass showcasing her Australian Muslim identity. Breakfast at Ahmad's explored her experience of being an Australian Muslim during the month of Ramadan.[3] She shared her Ramadan experience during the pandemic My Ramadan in Lockdown.[8] Ahmad was the Muslim panellist on ABC's God Forbid COVID lockdown, where she gave her take on Sydney's COVID breakout with the highly infectious Delta variant and how the Australian government has dealt with Western Sydney residents.[9]
Career
Ahmad is the Managing Editor of a national community news platform, AMUST News, highlighting positive news and issues within multicultural communities.[10] She directs all activities and functions associated with news management, including media planning and monitoring and media strategy.[10]
Ahmad became the finalist as Young Journalist of the Year on the Premier's Multicultural Media Award for her involvement in multicultural interfaith communities across Australia.[11] She appeared on SBS News discussing the significance of representation in Muslim media. She was featured in the Women Acknowledging Women award for her contribution. As an AMUST Multimedia Journalist, she is responsible for the Lifestyle, Social and Community News sections of the news platform and her work was extensively recognised at the ceremony. She achieved and was selected finalist for Photo of the Year as Best Image for Ahmad's People of Persia series at the Premier's Multicultural Media Awards for her work as a Photographer.[12]
Executive Career Ahmad started working at the Multicultural Eid Festival & Fair as a Project Manager and eventually led to an Event Manager.[1] She worked in the telecommunication company, the Australian Communication Consumer Action Network as a project officer.[1] She then worked briefly in a few industries until she entered the corporate world.[1] She is the Executive Officer at the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry.[1]
Ahmad was selected as one of the Business Women Champions of the Heart, representing the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry, the nation's first network of senior Business Women dedicated to raising awareness about heart disease in women launched by the Heart Foundation and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry ACCI.[13] Ahmad was also on the executive committee for Dress For Success Sydney, a charity that helps underprivileged women dress for interviews and work.
Advocacy
Ahmad is passionate about dismantling misconceptions about Islam and advocating against Islamophobia. Ahmad led a national project in countering Islamophobia by creating awareness of the experiences of Australian Muslims while she was Project Manager at the Australian Human Rights Commission in the Race Discrimination Team.[10]
Friendship Theory
Ahmad is the founder of Friendship Theory, where she is a friendship consultant and mentors people on their friendship issues.[14] Ahmad has developed her own socio-cultural theory, which has different levels of social relationships and highlights the importance of effort and connection in friendships. Ahmad has developed her podcast Friendship Theory, where she talks about all topics related to friendship and social relationships.
Friendship Theory first went viral on an International American podcast by Judge John Hodgeman Amicus Grief (2014). Also, it was featured on Australian Television on ABC 7:30 Report (2015) and Channel 10, which went viral again on a national and international scale.[14] Many news outlets picked up on it, including News.com.au, Mamamia, Daily Mail UK. She has also appeared in podcasts such as the Kickback Republic. She discussed relationships breakdown and its impact in today's world where politics and media take over society on ABC God Forbid's Friendship episode. Ahmad also gave an interview on SBS Urdu discussing Likes and Friendship - Risks of Social Media in partial English and the Urdu language.
Ahmad is currently writing two books: Friendship Theory, which explores her theory and its impact on social relationships and Have You Met My Friend Muhammad?, which looks at how Muhammad behaved amongst his companions and looked at friendship from an Islamic perspective. Ahmad is also the founder of Duties of Brotherhood, which looks at friendship from a faith-based perspective using the works of Imam Al Ghazali, a prominent and influential philosopher, theologian, and scholar of Islam.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 "Chapters". AACCI. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 amustadmin. "Team". AMUST. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 "Sartorial Stories – Mobinah Ahmad". Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ "All Excited About Eid Festival". 89.3 FM 2GLF. 2013-07-24. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ "Sydney Muslims send messages of hope after Christchurch shooting". Topics. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ "Holy Switch: What Happens When a Jew and a Muslim Swap Lives for Two Weeks". Haaretz. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ Burin, Margaret; Liddy, Matt (2017-10-24). "'Should Muslim immigration be banned?' A frank conversation about Islam in Australia". ABC News. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ My Ramadan In Lockdown, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 2020-11-30, retrieved 2021-09-07
- ↑ "Lockdowns, vaccines and COVID-19 ad campaigns". ABC Radio National. 2021-07-16. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 "Journalist Spotlight Mobinah Ahmad - Australasian Muslim Times (AMUST)". Medianet. 2020-05-28. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ Ahmad, Zia (2018-11-09). "AMUST wins Premier's Multicultural Communications Award 2018". AMUST. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ "Sada-e-Watan Sydney ™ - Leading Australian Pakistani Newspaper". www.sadaewatansydney.com. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ "Australian Chamber of Commerce and IndustryBusiness Women Champions of the Heart launches in Sydney today". Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 "The mate test: Friendship theory developed by Sydneysider goes viral". www.abc.net.au. 2015-10-29. Retrieved 2021-09-07.
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