Dr. Basma El Zein Wins the Global Excellence Assembly Women of Influence Award

Dr. Basma El Zein: A Woman of Many Facets

Dr. Basma El Zein is an outstanding professional, mentor, researcher, consultant, and professor. For many years she was among the most visible proponents in developing academic institution, colleges, and research in Saudi Arabia specifically in higher education and linking them to the industry.

She is currently Director General of the Governance and Sustainability Center.

With an experience of more than 22 years in academic and research institutions, she held different positions from academic, research and consultancy perspectives.  She was the founder and the Dean of Scientific Research at the University of Business and Technology (UBT).

She was previously a research scientist at King Abdullah University for Science and Technology (KAUST)- Jeddah Saudi Arabia for 4 years, and associate researcher at the Institute of Electronics, Microelectronics and Nanotechnology (IEMN) France for 7 years. In addition to this, she was also a faculty member at Dar Al Hekma University for 12 years and was in charge of many professional and management positions.

During her years of experience, she distinguished herself with a large and ongoing research, projects, and commitment to development. In addition to research, she founded and established the Governance and sustainability center and the research deanship, as well as the Research strategy and new academic programs.

She also developed many creative programs for entrepreneurship, technology transfer and economic development, in addition to international relations with many international universities and industries. Furthermore, she developed many curriculums and academic programs within international standards, thus aiming towards women empowerment.

In this capacity she dramatically developed the above-mentioned programs and projects focusing on the Kingdom Vision 2030 and the Transformation Plan 2020, taking into consideration the serving of the community and the contribution towards the economic development of the kingdom.

Additionally, she is currently playing a leadership role in contributing to the development of science in the field of renewable energy, especially in Nanotechnology application in Solar energy; by demonstrating her skills through working on new topics and developing new strategies in order to make a difference in the world.  

Her diversified knowledge in various scientific streams, coupled with 22 years of experience has empowered her with leadership skills, where she is excelling in teaching, management, strategic planning and development, research, and community service.

Her research interest is currently in Energy Conversion and Energy Storage. The main objective of her research is to develop an eco-green Solar Cell with high efficiency and long durability. In addition, she is exploring new materials such as kieserite, perovskite, and protein to be used as a light absorber for Solid State Sensitized Solar Cells. She is also exploring Printed Metal Oxide Batteries.

She has written a textbook entitled “Nanostructured materials for Photovoltaic applications” and she has many publications in this field. Additionally, she published in many international journals and has one granted patent in the USA related to materials for Solar Cells.

She is a grand Judge at Intel ISEF- USA, examiner at KACST, and a renowned guest speaker at many international conferences on renewable energy and nanotechnology. During her previous positions, she supervised many Ph.D. students and around 250 projects (as final year projects at the bachelor and master level and as development and strategical projects).

She is a reviewer for many international, peer-reviewed journals, the chair or co-chair and on committees of different international conferences. She is also member of many international associations. Dr. El Zein is a senior member of IEEE, member of ACS, MRS, SPIE, ECS, IET, AUTM, AAAS, AASBC, ECS and Lebanese Engineering Syndicate.

Dr. El Zein graduated from the University of Lille, France with a Ph.D. in Nanotechnology Engineering with High Distinction for her research Zinc Oxide Nanostructures for Photovoltaic Applications.

Her Master’s degree was from the Lebanese University, Lebanon, in the field of Electrical and Electronics Engineering with Distinction from community service perspective, thus serving different entities.

She is a member of many international associations such as IEEE, ACS, MRS, IET, AAAS, AUTM, AASBC, and SPIE.

She is also the vice president of the Global Council for Tolerance and Peace for scientific and academic affairs.

She was acknowledged for her remarkable contribution to the fields of academia, research, community service, and industry.

Recently, she was featured in the Wall Street Journal, as well as in the Millennium magazine, and has been featured as Top Women Professionals, Top Scientist and Top Educator.

She was a winner of The Albert Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019, Solar Pioneer by MESIA in UAE in 2015, and a distinguished Achievement Award winner in Solar Energy and Nanotechnology by:

• The Lebanese Embassy in UAE
• The Lebanese Business Council in UAE
• LU-EDST AZM Biotechnology Center in Lebanon
• The Lebanese University
• The Lebanese Cultural Council
• Dr. Basma El Zein added the Women of Influence Award by the Global Excellence Assembly in her list of international recognitions and achievements.

As a celebration of women’s Achievements and accomplishments, the Global Excellence Assembly Women of Influence Award recognizes women who lead the way in business, industry, and enterprise.

Dr. Basma El Zein is officially the first Arab scientist to receive this award from Global Excellence Assembly, as a result of her outstanding achievements and contributions to science, especially in the field of Nanotechnology.

Dr. Basma El Zein’s application for the Women of Influence Award met the required criteria, thus making her eligible and a solid candidate to be shortlisted for the Award.

The Criteria were met on the following set of interrelated Core Values and Concepts as follows:

• Visionary Leadership
• Customer-driven Excellence
• Organizational And Personal Learning
• Agility
• Focus On the Future
• Managing For Innovation
• Management By Fact
• Social Responsibility
• Focus On Results and Creating Value
• Systems Perspective

These values and concepts are embedded beliefs and behaviors found in high-performing organizations and professionals.

Dr. Basma El Zein is the foundation for integrating key performance and operational requirements within a results-oriented framework that creates a basis for action and feedback.

Her passion and commitment to Nanotechnology promotes the vision for a better future focused on sustainability and environmental responsibility.

She is one of the first 5 winners of the Global Excellence Assembly Women of Influence Award, and the first Arab scientist to ever receive it.