Karen Hughes is a senior strategist helping business leaders strengthen their corporate reputations, achieve business goals through effective communications, and shape positive public and stakeholder perceptions.

Since joining Burson-Marsteller in 2008, she has brought to the business world her unique expertise honed over more than 30 years of public policy, communications and political experience, from helping lead winning presidential campaigns to serving at the highest levels of government. At Burson, she has provided strategic counsel to clients as diverse as Ford, Growth Energy, Shell, Intel, Texas Speaker of the House Joe Straus and the George W. Bush Presidential Center. She also does pro bono work for Austin Partners in Education.

Previously, Hughes reached out on behalf of the United States to audiences across the world as Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs from 2005-2007. Hughes dramatically reshaped the State Department’s communications efforts, rebuilt an agency demoralized by years of budget cuts, launched a new focus on America’s “diplomacy of deeds” and made public diplomacy central in the development of foreign policy.

From 2001 to 2002, Hughes served as Counselor to the President, a title reflective of her role as strategic advisor to President George W. Bush. Told by the President that he wanted her “in the room whenever a major decision was made,” Hughes worked on a range of domestic and foreign policy issues, and led the White House Offices of Communications, Press Secretary, Media Affairs and Speechwriting. When she left the White House, the New York Times said: “The rule of thumb in any White House is that nobody is indispensable except the president. But Karen Hughes has come as close to that description as any recent presidential aide.” The Associated Press called her “perhaps the most influential woman ever to serve an American president.”

Hughes was Executive Director of the Texas Republican Party from 1992 until 1994, and served as a consultant and frequent spokesman for the Party throughout the late
1980s and early 1990s. She was the Director of Media Relations for Halcyon Associates, a Dallas-based public relations firm, from 1987 until 1990. She has

worked on numerous political, issue and bond campaigns in Dallas and was Texas press coordinator for the Reagan-Bush '84 campaign. 

Hughes began her career as a journalist, working as a television reporter for KXAS-TV (NBC affiliate) in Dallas-Fort Worth from 1977 until 1984. She is the author of

“Ten Minutes from Normal,” a book about working for President Bush and her decision to leave the White House to return with her family to Texas in 2002. Hughes is a Phi Beta Kappa and received a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Journalism from Southern Methodist University in 1977. She is an elder in the Presbyterian Church and a long-time Sunday School teacher. She is married to attorney Jerry Hughes and has two children, Leigh and Robert.

Dr. Tarik M. Yousef is the founding Dean of the Dubai School of Government. He joined the School from Georgetown University, where he held the positions of Associate Professor of Economics in the School of Foreign Service, and Sheikh Sabah Al Salem Al Sabah Professor of Arab Studies at the Center for Contemporary Arab Studies.

A leading authority on the economies of the Arab world, he received his Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University with specialization in development economics and economic history. His current research interests include the dynamics of labor markets, the political economy of policy reform, and development policies in oil-exporting countries.

Ms Najla Al-Awadhi is a member of the Federal National Council (the United Arab Emirates-UAE parliament). She is one of the first women in the history of the UAE to become a member of the UAE’s Parliament, and also its youngest parliamentarian.

She began her two year parliament term in February 2007.  She serves on  the Education, Youth, Media and Culture Committee,  and also the FNC steering committee which was set up to develop a scheme to modernize the parliament’s  practices, and overall effectiveness.  She previously served on the Foreign Affairs, Planning, Petroleum, Mineral Wealth, Agriculture and Fishery Committee

She is also the first woman from a Gulf Cooperation Country to hold a senior executive post in a state run media organization in addition to being the first female from the UAE to launch and head a free to air satellite television channel.

She serves as the Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Dubai Media Incorporated (DMI), a media group which operates four free-to-air satellite channels that are owned by the Government of Dubai.  DMI channels include Dubai TV, Dubai One, Sama Dubai, Dubai Sports.  She is also the General Manger of Dubai One.

Her rise to corporate leadership positions in the media landscape of the UAE, specifically that of television, has contributed to the encouragement of UAE women to join the burgeoning field of media, once viewed as a strictly male dominated industry.

She is also a board member of the Young Arab Leaders and heads the UAE chapter’s education initiative; an initiative which seeks to provide higher education opportunities for talented UAE nationals.  She also sits on the boards of the UAE Genetic Diseases Association, and Dubai Women’s Establishment.

Other projects she is currently working on include, The Mohammad Bin Rashid School of Communication (MBRSC) launched in August 2008 in collaboration with the University of Southern California.

Since May 2007 she has been a monthly columnist for the leading English news paper in the UAE ‘Gulf News.’

She graduated from the University of New Hampshire magna cum laude with a degree in History, where she was president of the Muslim Student Association, the Human Rights Committee and also a judicial advisor.

Before joining Al Arabiya as General Manager, Al-Rashed was the editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab daily Asharq Al-Awsat, and the leading Arabic weekly magazine, Al Majalla. He is also a senior Columnist in the daily newspapers of Al Madina and Al Bilad. He is a US post-graduate degree in mass communications. He has been a guest on many TV current affairs programs. He is currently based in Dubai. He has worked for a long time in Arab broadcasting. He lived for a time in London.

He was in the 2009 Time 100 Finalists of the World’s Most Influential People in 2009. He has positioned his far-reaching Middle East cable network as the anti- Al-Jazeera, advocating against radical Islam. It's one of the reasons President Obama chose al-Arabiya for his first official presidential interview.

He is a Board Member of Foundation For the Future, an independent, multilateral, non-profit organization, committed to promoting and strengthening Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) in their efforts to foster democracy and human rights in the Broader Middle East and North Africa (BMENA) region. 

Mr. Mustafa Abdel-Wadood has over 15 years of significant hands-on experience in mergers & acquisitions, turnarounds and successful development of new business ventures. Prior to joining Abraaj, Mustafa was with EFG-Hermes, the leading investment bank in the Arab World, most recently as CEO of EFG-Hermes (UAE) based out of Dubai where he held overall responsibility for the firm's successful regional expansion into the lower-GCC and earlier as Managing Director and Head of Investment Banking. Prior to joining EFG-Hermes, Mustafa was Co-founder and Managing Director of Sigma Capital where he held overall responsibility for Investment Banking activities and led a number of successful corporate finance transactions including Egypt's first leveraged MBO. He held this position up to the successful acquisition of Sigma Capital by the Geneva-based firm Swicorp. Prior to Sigma Capital, Mr. Abdel-Wadood spent 8 years at the Orascom Group where he last held the position of Director of Development and Investments at Orascom and Board Member of Orascom Telecom. At Orascom he was responsible for corporate investments and acquisitions in a number of fields including technology, telecommunications, industry, leisure and media.

In addition to being a board member of Abraaj Capital, Mr. Abdel-Wadood is currently on the Board of Directors of Egyptian Fertilizers Company, EFG-Hermes, Jordan National Bank, Air Arabia, BMA Capital, Jordan Aircraft Maintenance Company (amongst others) and has also previously served on numerous other boards. He is a frequent lecturer and guest speaker at events and is also an active member of a number of professional organizations. Mustafa was selected by the World Economic Forum as one of the 100 Global Leaders for Tomorrow for the Year 2002 and as a Young Global Leader (YGL) for 2007. He is also a co-founder and member of the Dubai-based 'Young Arab Leaders' organization. Mr. Abdel-Wadood is 38 years old and holds a Bachelors degree in Business Administration from the American University in Cairo and an MBA from Georgetown University.

Sultan Sooud Al-Qassemi is the Chairman, Young Arab Leaders, UAE Chapter and the Founder and Chairman of Barjeel Securities, a financial products company, as well as the Managing Director of Al-Saud Co., Ltd., which specializes in equity markets, real estate and construction. Mr. Al-Qassemi received a master’s degree in Global Banking and Finance from the European Business School, where he graduated with distinction in 2004. He received his B.Sc. in International Business Administration from the American University of Paris.

In addition to teaching Middle Eastern history and entrepreneurship as a Lecturer at Dubai Men’s College, Mr. Al-Qassemi co-hosts Business Tonight, a weekly show on Dubai Eye radio providing analysis and debate of business headlines from the region and around the world. He is a frequent commentator on political, social and economic issues whose columns appear regularly in The National and MoneyWorks. His columns have also appeared in such international publications such as The Financial Times (UK), The Independent (UK), The Daily Star (Lebanon), The Huffington Post (US) and others.

Lubna recently was heading the Legal and Regulatory Affairs department and former executive director at the Dubai Economic Council. She has worked on comprehensive legislative reforms and advised both the local and federal UAE government on legislations such as the Foreign Investment Law, Companies Law, Labor Law, Competition Law has been advocation on legal policies and legislations on entrepreneurship. Earlier, she worked for the world's most prestigious law firm, Clifford Chance, corporate and commercial department of both their Dubai and London offices. She at present sits on the Global Economic Symposium Fellows Committee of the Kiel University of the World Economy. She was most recently elected for the US Presidential Summit for her leadership and pioneering work and invited by White House to participate at the Presidential Summit.

Lubna, a UAE national, graduated from Brunel University, England with an Honours Degree in Law and gained a Distinction Postgraduate in Law from Leeds University, England. Lubna is a pioneer in her field and the first UAE national to have read law in England and to have completed the English solicitor's exams, on both of which she received honours. She has written many publications and is a member of the Law Society of England and Wales. 

Her areas of interest include: economic legislations, legal and regulatory development, implementation of rule of law. A multi-linguist, Lubna speaks five languages fluently and is at present learning Mandarin.

With his mother from the UK and his father from the UAE, Ali (28) grew up in Dubai. Film has always been a central part of his life and since childhood Ali has experimented making his own short films and mock TV ads.

Upon completion of his higher education Ali established a division from an existing company focusing on set and interior design. He then pursued his goal in 2003 when he enrolled at the London Film School to obtain an M.A. of practical training in film technique.

For two years Ali has worked on short films and TV commercials in all areas of production, but his sights remains focused on directing. To date Ali's short graduation film 'Under the Sun' has been officially selected and nominated for best Foreign in various international festivals across the world. It also won 'Best Emirates Film 2006' In the Annual Emirates Film Competition held in the countries Capital, Abu Dhabi.

Ali was in the spotlight when his film ‘City of Life,’ the first ever to be produced and made in Dubai using an international cast and crew, premiered at DIFF 2009.

Sunil John has been at the heart of the public relations business in the Middle East for nearly two decades. During this time he has shaped ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller to be the benchmark of public relations consultancy, advising regional governments, international brands and global and local companies.

Sunil manages regional operations across 11 ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller offices and 8 affiliates in the Middle East and North Africa and oversees the agency’s operations across 17 countries in the region.

The success of the company has been widely acknowledged, notably in 2006 when it was named “PR Agency of the Year” by Campaign Middle East.  Also in 2007, ASDA’A Burson-Marsteller dominated the Gulf Marketing Review Effectiveness in Marketing Awards for Public Relations, winning two of three awards for its work on the BBC World Service and Emaar Properties. ASDA’A was named the Middle East and Africa PR Agency of the Year at the 2009 International Business Awards.

Sunil has been listed Number 25 in the “Arabian Business Expat 50” of the Most Influential Expats in the Middle East. Sunil is the only PR industry figure to be on the list which was released in May, 2009.

Sunil serves on the National Advisory Council for the College of Communication and Media Sciences at Zayed University and is the UAE National Chair of the International Public Relations Association (IPRA).  He is also Vice President of the IPRA Gulf Chapter.