Zahra’ Langhi

Zahra’ Langhi (@zlanghi) is a strategist, peace activist, academic and researcher. Her work focuses on the intersection of women, peace and security with extremism prevention.

Zahra’ is the co-founder and CEO of the Libyan Women’s Platform for Peace (LWPP), a socio-political movement focused on peacebuilding, inclusivity and gender equality. Through the LWPP, Zahra’ led an advocacy campaign for electoral system reform in Libya and coordinated the first meetings between civil activists, senior revolutionaries, security and intelligence officers, and parliamentarians. From 2016 to 2018, Zahra’ launched two strategic partnerships with the two oldest Islamic religious institutions, Es-Zitouna University and Al-Azhar, in an effort to bring together civil society and religious leaders from North Africa and the Sahel to address extremism and human rights.

Zahra’ has contributed significantly to the body of research and literature on Lybia. In partnership with United States Institute of Peace, she led a research project that mapped Libya’s religious actors and their potential roles in peacebuilding and countering violent extremism.

Zahra’ holds an MA in Islamic History from the American University in Cairo and is a PhD candidate specializing in religion, violence and reconciliation at Friedrich Schiller University at Jena.  She has served as an advisory board member of the Arab Human Development (UNDP) Report on Youth, and as an advisor to the Preparatory Committee of the National Dialogue in Libya. In 2018, The Rockefeller Foundation named Zahra’ one of five women leaders introducing transformative change around the world.