MCJN TEAM
Philippa Nairn
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Philippa Nairn is an independent fundraising, communications and international development consultant, with extensive experience working with NGOs, media organisations and social enterprises in the MENA region. She has worked previously with the Institute for War & Peace Reporting, Welfare Association, AltCity, the United Nations Relief & Works Agency and Ma’an News.
Dima Hamdan
NETWORK MANAGER AND EDITOR
Dima Hamdan was a news producer and reporter for BBC Arabic Service, with postings in Baghdad, Beirut and Jerusalem. She also produced radio documentaries and is a director of short fiction. Dima has been an editorial coach and mentor with ARIJ (Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism) in Tunis and Palestine.
Emmal Baker
DIGITAL COMMUNITY COORDINATOR
Emmal Baker has over 18 years of experience in the media, NGO and charity sectors. She’s worked in Palestine, Jordan, Washington DC and London covering the Iraq war, the second Palestinian intifada as well as being involved in curricular development and educational projects. Since 2018, Emmal has also studied and worked as a special effects makeup artist for film and TV in London.
MCJN BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Lindsey Hilsum
FOUNDER AND TRUSTEE
Lindsey Hilsum is Channel 4 News, International Editor and the author of In Extremis; the Life of War Correspondent Marie Colvin. She has covered the major conflicts and refugee movements of the past three decades, including Ukraine, Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, Kosovo and Rwanda. She is a regular contributor to newspapers and literary journals. Her first book was Sandstorm; Libya in the Time of Revolution.
Lyse Doucet
FOUNDER AND TRUSTEE
Canadian-born Lyse Doucet is the BBC's award-winning Chief International Correspondent and BBC World TV presenter. She has covered the Middle East for more than 20 years, with postings in Amman, Jerusalem, Tehran, Islamabad, Kabul and Abidjan. In 1999, she joined the BBC's team of presenters. Lyse has been awarded eight honorary doctorates, and was awarded an OBE in 2014 for her services to broadcasting.
Jane Wellesley
FOUNDER AND TRUSTEE
Writer and producer Jane Wellesley is Marie Colvin’s sole executor. She had a long career in broadcasting, starting with The Radio Times in 1975, and subsequently working in publicity and arts co-production at the BBC, and as a researcher at Granada TV. After becoming an independent producer in 1984, she made documentaries and dramas. More recently, she has written two books. From 2014 to 2022, she was a trustee of The Circle.
Dr. Zahera Harb
TRUSTEE AND MENTOR
Dr. Zahera Harb leads the International Journalism Cluster at City, University of London. She has published widely on journalism and politics in the Arab region and is associate editor of the internationally renowned academic journal ‘Journalism Practice’. She is a board member of Dart Centre Europe for Journalism and Trauma, the UK Press Recognition Panel (PRP) and Arab Reporters for Investigative Journalism (ARIJ). Previously, Zahera worked for many years as a broadcast journalist in Lebanon.
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