Azar Sheibani
Azar Sheibani is a senior lecturer in Community Development, she has taught on several courses and across various disciplines. Azar has been at London Metropolitan University since 1995. For over 20 years, she has combined academic and research work with her practitioner role in the voluntary and community sector. She has 28 years’ experience in this field and has taken on various roles in the voluntary sector including setting up various community organisations and umbrella bodies and serving on a range of boards and advisory committees. She is currently an Advisory Committee member for Migration Work and Asylum Aid’s Women’s Project.
Azar heads up the Refugee Assessment and Guidance Unit (RAGU) based at London Metropolitan University which was set up in 1995. She has a successful track record in fundraising and has managed to secure funding for RAGU from various sources including government departments and European Union. She fundraised to set up a new MSc course in Community Development at London Met which enabled employees of refugee community organisations to attend the course free of charge.
Azar has been involved in the management of several national and transnational partnerships and research in the fields of refugee reception and integration, support and capacity building for the voluntary and community sector. She has served as an election observer for OECD observing elections in several countries including Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Azerbaijan. Her research interests include refugee reception and integration, gender and migration, and transnational communities.
Azar Sheibani
Senior Lecturer in Community Development
E: a.sheibani@londonmet.ac.uk