Dr. Farkhondeh Akbari

Dr. Farkhondeh Akbari is a Research Fellow at Monash University’s Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for the Elimination of Violence Against Women (CEVAW). She holds a doctorate in Diplomatic Studies from the Australian National University. Her research focuses on diplomacy, peacemaking, and feminist foreign policy as well as conflict-related sexual and gender-based violence, with particular attention on the Women, Peace and Security agenda in Afghanistan. She is the author of “Non-State Actors in Diplomacy” (Routledge, 2026), co-author of “Women, Peace and Security in Afghanistan” (De Gruyter/Brill, 2025), and co-editor of “Mapping Futures for Afghanistan” (Routledge, 2025). Together with Professor Jacqui True, she received the 2025 Queen Soraya Innovation Statuette for research advancing women’s rights in Afghanistan. Her scholarship is informed by local perspectives and grounded in the experiences of communities often overlooked in policy and research. She co-founded a grassroots nonprofit supporting education and employment for women and girls in Afghanistan.