Our Board of Directors
Meet our current Board Members
Mariam Veiszadeh
FOUNDER & CHAIR
Mariam Veiszadeh is the founder of the Islamophobia Register Australia. She is an award-winning human rights champion, lawyer, diversity & inclusion practitioner, contributing author and social commentator.
In 2021, Mariam was appointed CEO of Media Diversity Australia. Mariam has worked as radio commentator for ABC radio and as a columnist for Fairfax media.
Dr Susan Carland
Dr Susan Carland is an academic, author, and social commentator. She has a PhD from Monash University’s School of Social Sciences, and is a Discovery Early Career Research Award (DECRA) Fellow and a Churchill fellow, researching the intersection between gender and Islamophobia. She has been named on the ’20 Most Influential Australian Female Voices’ list by The Age, been listed on the 500 Most Influential Muslims in the World list, and named as a “Muslim Leader of Tomorrow” by the UN Alliance of Civilizations. In 2022, she was a national finalist in the Australian Financial Review’s “Emerging Leader” in Higher Education award, and she has spoken about her research on Muslim women at the UN in Geneva.
- Susan recently authored ‘A War on Words: preliminary media analysis of the 2023 Israel-Gaza war’, a report commissioned by the Register highlighting the impact media reporting has on Islamophobia within Australia.
Hilal Yassine
Hilal Yassine is an experienced Entrepreneur & Business executive with an extensive background in business, management and law.
Hilal is the Group Managing Director of First Quay Capital and serves as a non-executive director of (ASX listed) DomaCom, Crescent Group, and several private family companies.
Hilal holds Bachelor’s degrees in both Business and Law (UNSW, Sydney), a Master of Laws (UNSW, Sydney) and a Master of Business Administration,
Mobinah Ahmad
Mobinah Ahmad is a digital strategist, an academic, writer, mentor, public speaker, media personality and educator in social media. She is known for her development of a socio-cultural Friendship Theory in 2015. Mobinah has served the multicultural interfaith community for fifteen years with her engagement in community work. She has been featured in world-class media outlets representing her ideas, community work, faith and identity.
Mobinah is a successful business operations and management professional with over 15 years of progressive leadership experience in diverse settings, including media, corporate, community, and social justice and implementing strategies.
Nesreen Bottriell
Nesreen Bottriell is an advocate, researcher, and experienced business professional with expertise in strategic leadership within the community and international development sector. Currently the Chief Executive Officer at the Australian Muslim Women’s Centre for Human Rights, she has provided strategic direction to the organisation in various roles for the past 5 years. Nesreen is dedicated to advocating for social justice, equity and the rights of marginalised women, children and their communities.
Nesreen holds a Master of Community and International Development, a Master of Business Administration and is a qualified CPA. She has contributed to multiple research publications, on topics including Islamophobia, racism, and family violence. She is also a Board director at Respect Victoria.
Dr Nora Amath
Dr Nora Amath is an expert community developer whose research focuses on multiculturalism, social inclusion, diversity, leadership and community development. She is a published author and an adjunct Research Fellow at Griffith University. She works at the Islamic Women’s Association of Australia and is also a co-founder of Sakina Refuge. Nora also chairs Islamic Relief Australia, the first woman to lead this humanitarian aid organisation.
Nora was a member of the Minister’s Queensland Multicultural Advisory Council and the Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence Prevention Roundtable. Most recently she has been appointed to the Australian Multicultural Advisory Council.
In recognition of her contribution to Australian society, in 2017, she was a finalist for Australian of the Year.
Basim Alansari
Basim has extensive experience in executive management in Australia and internationally. While his undergraduate and postgraduate studies have taken him from management to medicine, science, bioethics and public health; his career has been the sum of it all. His multidisciplinary expertise and modern leadership style have enabled him to lead healthcare and disability executive teams in various roles. Basim is the CEO of psychCentral, a leading multidisciplinary mental health and health care organisation in Western Sydney. He sits on a number of community boards, University advisory boards and Governmental committees.
Silma Ihram
Silma Ihram has been an educator since establishing Al Noori Muslim Primary School in 1983, working continuously in education for almost 40 years. She was the founder of two Muslim Schools and a Vocational College. She has held the position of Principal in 4 schools during that time.
A Muslim convert since 1976, she has been an active member of Muslim Women’s Associations since
the 70s and has been a community activist and frequent media spokesperson. She was also a founding member of the Australian Council for Islamic Education in Schools. Silma has conducted research on Muslim youth in Sydney, Muslim women converts and the barriers that exist for Muslim women’s employment and most recently Islamic pedagogy. She was awarded the Centenary Medal
for her work in the community. Silma is currently studying permaculture and working as an education consultant.
Safiah Rind
Safiah Rind is a Yamatji Badimaya woman based in Boorloo (Perth) on Wadjuk Country has connections in Jambinu (Geraldton) and Mount Magnet region.
Safiah has experience working in community initiatives and research. She has a Bachelor of Arts in Mass Communications with a focus on journalism and photography. Safiah also has experience in organisational development and strategic writing. Safiah has been working with organisations for the last five years in multi-media and content creation. She has experience and a passion in documentary filmmaking, photography and script writing.
Naima Ibrahim
Naima Ibrahim is a writer, community worker and early childhood professional. Her work has appeared in various publications and she has been shortlisted for Kat Muscat Fellowship and Monash Prize in Creative Writing. She is currently working on her debut novel.
