About Us

About Us - SAWA Learn more about the first professional community for Arabs in sustainability.

SAWA is a growing network of Arab professionals who are passionate about building a more sustainable future: for our region and the world. From climate action to nature solutions, social impact to inclusive development, responsible corporate governance to ethical finance. However you define sustainability, SAWA offers a space to connect, learn and collaborate for like-minded professionals ultimately working towards the Sustainable Development Goals as set out by the UN. 

We bring together voices from across the Arab World and the diaspora, creating a dedicated forum for cultural connection and collective impact.


SAWA - Our Mission Connecting and empowering Arab sustainability professionals.
SAWA - Our Vision We envision a global community of Arab change-makers united in protecting the planet and driving sustainable solutions across the Arab world and beyond.

Our Mission

Connecting and empowering Arab sustainability professionals.

Our Vision

We envision a global community of Arab change-makers united in protecting the planet and driving sustainable solutions across the Arab world and beyond.

What We Offer

  • Events and Networking

    Opportunities to network with fellow Arab sustainability professionals in the region and beyond

  • Resources

    Curated job postings, and learning opportunities

  • Collaboration

    What should we know about the services you provide? Better descriptions result in more sales

  • Mentorship

    Career advancement through mentorship programs

Meet the Founders

  • A woman with curly hair wearing a plaid blazer outdoors in front of green foliage.

    Miriam Alyan

    A Palestinian-Lebanese Campaigns Coordinator at an environmental justice non-profit. She holds an MSc in Environmental Technology from Imperial College London, and a Ba in Public Policy from New York University.

  • Professional woman with dark hair wearing a black blazer and white shirt, smiling against a white background.

    Mariam Tzannatos

    A Lebanese-Greek Decarbonization Analyst at a shipping consultancy. She holds an MSc in Environmental Technology from Imperial College London, and a  BSc International Social and Public Policy and Politics from the London School of Economics and Political Science.

  • Portrait of a young woman with long wavy dark hair, wearing a black top, standing in front of green leafy plants.

    Laila Salti

    A Jordanian Operations and Communications Lead at Tabanni, a non-profit organization for animal welfare in Jordan. She holds an Honors Bachelor of Arts from the University in Toronto in Political Science and Environmental Studies.

  • Young woman with curly hair speaking into a microphone during a discussion or interview, sitting at a table with notebooks and a phone, in an indoor setting.

    Michelle Tawil

    A Lebanese Senior ESG Data Analyst at Bloomberg. She holds an MPA from London School of Economics in Public Administration and Economic Policy and a BA in Literature and History from Emory University.

Our Story

Growing up, sustainability wasn’t a priority for most people in the Arab world. It felt distant, even irrelevant; rarely discussed in schools, public discourse, or in policy debates. But something shifted with our generation. We grew up watching climate headlines, presenting school projects on melting glaciers, and slowly connecting the dots between global change and local realities: water scarcity, extreme heat, rising sea levels, urban stress, and climate-driven displacement.

We are the first generation to both, witness climate impacts firsthand and learn about them academically, often teaching ourselves why these issues matter. Over time, we realized sustainability isn’t just about the environment - it’s about livelihoods, health, justice, dignity, and the resilience of our communities.

Yet, many of us entered the sustainability field alone, without mentors, networks, or role models who understood what it means to pursue green careers as Arabs, while peers in finance found accessible networks to tap into and belong in. While other industries offered built-in support systems, we found ourselves navigating fragmented, siloed efforts across the region.

This inspired us to build SAWA (سوى) the Sustainability Alliance With Arabs.

SAWA is a growing network of Arab professionals, both in the region and the diaspora, passionate about climate, development, and sustainability. Our objective is simple, to connect, mentor, and empower a new wave of Arab change-makers. We believe leadership doesn’t belong to a few - it grows when we uplift each other, build shared knowledge, and act collectively to build a greener and more equitable future.

In a region often fragmented, sustainability offers a rare and urgent opportunity for unity. It is both, our greatest challenge and our shared hope, that transcends geography, discipline, and background. By fostering collaboration and cultivating leadership, we believe SAWA can help shape the next generation of voices who will make sustainability central to the Arab world’s identity and future.

Together, سوا, we can reimagine what is possible. We can move from isolation to community, from fragmented efforts to regional impact, and from passive concern to collective action.

SAWA is the network we wished we had. Now, we’re building it for all of us.

Why SAWA?

Because the Arab world deserves to be seen. SAWA uplifts Arab voices in sustainability, reimagining the future of our region through knowledge, connection, and care. We believe in cultivating leadership at every level - empowering Arab change-makers to step forward, guide conversations, and shape solutions for a more sustainable future.