International Exchange Program Directors

Josh Martin, Director of The Lebanon Project 

Josh Martin is a Research Specialist for the Empirical Study of Conflict (ESOC) project at Princeton University, working to clarify the links between international development and insurgency in diverse contexts of intrastate conflict. Prior to joining ESOC, Josh was Program Manager at Cordoba Initiative, where he helped manage civil society initiatives aimed at building cooperation between the Muslim World and the West through policy changes, youth empowerment and communications in Malaysia, Qatar, Palestine and the United States. Josh’s diverse experience includes founding an American-Lebanese student partnership venture, facilitating sessions at the “ROI Summit for Young Jewish Innovators” and interning at the United Nations. His first academic publication, a chapter in an “Encyclopedia of Religious Violence” (ed. Jeffrey Ross), will be published in the spring of 2010. A graduate of New York University, Josh speaks Arabic, Hebrew, Persian and French.

Soofia Ahmed, Director of Humari Dunya

Soofia Ahmed is a native of Chicago and is a Senior at Elmhurst College in Illinois. Her love of the written word and her belief in its ability to break barriers inspired her to pursue majors in English Literature and Secondary Education. Her passion for social justice issues led her to become involved with World Faith. Some of her accomplishments include being featured on the Oprah Winfrey Show, as well as speaking at Amnesty International, National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty and Islamic Society of North America conferences. She is a recipient of the Gandhi Internship for International Justice through the Niebuhr Center at Elmhurst College and an active volunteer for Indian Muslim Relief and Charities, a nonprofit, nongovernmental organization. The summer of 2007 was her fourth year participating in IMRC's Summer Volunteer Program in India, and her second year as the program coordinator. She founded World Faith's Humari Dunya Project to India, which launched in January of 2008.