CFD Team Spotlight: Maryam Khalil, Research Associate
The Newsletter Team sat down with one of our post-baccalaureate research fellows, Maryam Khalil, for an interview about her work, passions, hobbies, and special CFD projects. The transcript of our interview is below.
CFD Team: Tell us a bit about yourself. Where are you from? What are you studying or researching?
A lot of places feel like home to me, alhamdulillah, but I would say I’m from Libya and Missouri. I studied Human Biology with a concentration in Systems Neuroscience, a minor in Anthropology, and Honors in an interdisciplinary program in International Security Studies at Stanford.
My broad research interests lie at the intersection of health and displacement. More specifically, I’m interested in incarceration along the migratory journey, the Mediterranean as a locus of border externalization, medical practices in search and rescue, detention and health access in Libya, and the experiences of unaccompanied children.
CFD Team: What is your role within the Center, and how did you come to work at CFD?
I’m a post-baccalaureate research fellow here at CFD. My brother is a senior here studying Biomedical Engineering (shoutout Bashir), and he took one of Professor Zaman’s classes on engineering applications in refugee health contexts. At the time, I was in Greece and Italy doing my Fulbright research on refugee health access and stories.
When he told me about the class, I was so excited—especially when I learned that there was a whole center dedicated to research on forced displacement. I had never heard of anything like it in the U.S. I ended up meeting with Professor Zaman and realizing that much of the Center’s work aligned with my interests in health access, migration pathways, search and rescue, and incarceration—and now here I am!
CFD Team: Where does CFD fit into your story?
CFD’s interdisciplinary approach reflects how I believe all pressing issues of this century should be tackled. As someone who hopes to merge medicine with anthropological approaches to understanding both medical ailments and systemic failures, this is a place where I get to grow as both a thinker and a human.
CFD Team: What excites you about working here?
It’s so special to work in a setting where everyone is deeply committed to supporting people experiencing displacement—and even more so alongside people transforming political discourse around borders and refugee regimes. Our team spans the world and works across nearly every continent. The support and flexibility in this environment make it a truly meaningful space to be part of.
CFD Team: What inspires you about your work?
The privilege of working on projects that can make a palpable difference in people’s lives and migratory journeys. I’ve always been drawn to the intersections of medicine, science, and the humanities—and this work lives right there.
CFD Team: Tell us about some of your passions and hobbies outside of academia. What makes you, you?
One of my favorite things to do is visit the Old City in Tripoli. I especially love stopping by Fatihi Al Khoja’s silver shop, where he patiently explains the intricate history behind each piece of jewelry—enveloped in the diverse tapestry that makes me so proud to be Libyan. I always leave with something small: a pendant, a word, or a story that reminds me of home and of how art and memory intertwine. Most recently, I got an antique Libyan shariya necklace.
Outside of that, I love teaching. I’ve taught in many contexts, from Title I schools to my current English classes for Arabic-speaking refugees (if you’re interested in this, visit https://elnor.education/). I also write and read a lot of poetry and literature, love to travel (a recent favorite is to Blagaj Tekija, a sufi monastery in Bosnia and Herzegovina), learn languages (currently working on Italian), practice yoga, and thrift for and style my friends.
CFD Team: Where do you hope to be five years from now?
In five years, I hope I’m still learning and contributing to the communities I come from. I aspire to be an MD/PhD candidate in Medical Anthropology, continuing to transform and advocate through participatory research methods.
CFD Team: What are you proud of?
I’m really proud of the network of people around me—those deeply rooted in their communities and motivated by advancing the world beyond personal or monetary gain.