The Alumni Interview: 10 Questions for Faris Nasrallah

At irregular intervals we publish interviews with alumni of the Max Planck Institute for Social Anthropology. We find out where they are living and working now, what they are conducting research on, and how their time at the MPI shaped their subsequent careers. In closing they share their advice for young anthropologists and name a book that has impressed them recently.

Since 1978, the Max Planck Society has awarded the Otto Hahn Medal each year to up to 30 young scholars for outstanding academic achievements related to their doctoral dissertations. The medal is awarded during the Max Planck Society’s annual meeting the following year. At the 2026 MPG Annual Meeting in Frankfurt, Faris Nasrallah was awarded the Otto Hahn Medal. We congratulate him most warmly on this outstanding recognition of his research.

1. When were you at the MPI and what did you work on while you were here?
I was at the MPI between 2018 and 2021. My work was on the relationship between theory and practice in international arbitration, with particular focus on two cases studies (1) the growth and transformation of arbitration in Dubai; and (2) the mechanisms of international arbitration, including how norms are applied and how costs are covered.
 
2. Where do you work now?
I am currently the Head of Arbitration at Crescent Petroleum, in Sharjah in the UAE. I serve as an independent arbitrator in ad hoc arbitrations and am empaneled by various international arbitral institutions. I also provided expert opinions on UAE law before international courts and tribunals. 
 
3. How did the time you spent at the MPI shape your current career?
The time spent at the MPI gave me a broader perspective of legal practice, the stakeholders involved, and the social and cultural elements inherent in professional legal practice and decision- making, particularly in transnational contexts. My colleagues at the MPI, through their dedication to inter-disciplinary research, provided a rich source of reflection, comparative analysis and scientific conscience in socially grounded inquiry. 
 
4. When you think back on your time at the MPI, what stands out most strongly?
The intellectual and professional support of Professor Foblets has been and will remain a cornerstone of my time at the MPI. Professor Foblets encouraged imaginative and open-minded approaches to inter-disciplinary methodologies and research frameworks and , was unwavering in her willingness to ask hard questions and critique preliminary findings, while ultimately remaining devoted to the overarching research aims. Professor Foblets has a unique approach to leadership, which combines compassion, trust, and expectation. 
 
5. Do you still have connections with the MPI, and if so, what kind of contact and with whom?
Yes, I remain in contact with former colleagues at the MPI in Halle, many of whom are now friends. 
 
6. What is your current research topic?
My ongoing research continues to relate to the practice of international arbitration, and the utility and purpose of international dispute resolution mechanisms, with particular focus on the United Arab Emirates and arbitration in the Arab world. 
 
7. What are your plans for the future?
To continue to study and practice law in parallel, with a view to better understanding how we construct and narrate systems of international dispute resolution, particularly in Global South contexts. 
 
8. What are the strengths of anthropology in comparison with other social sciences?
The rich and diverse libraries of anthropology can provide social scientists of all stripes with incredibly useful findings, methodologies, and theoretical tools, for the advancement and improved understanding of established structures and practices. Anthropology focuses on social institutions, and normative practices, which can offer new perspectives on what are often siloed bodies of knowledge and professional practice, most notably, the law and legal profession. 
 
9. What advice would you give to students studying social anthropology today?
While travel and cultural exchange are of the utmost importance, social anthropology students should pay close attention to the research laboratories on their doorstep, and more poignantly, within cultural frameworks that the students are steeped. The classic direction of travel has been for Global North researchers to focus on post-colonial contexts, and for Global South researchers to study themselves when travelling in the other direction. Important and fruitful work can and should be achieved off that very well-trodden path. 
 
10. What text – whether a book or article – have you read recently that particularly impressed you?
Rabea Eghbariah, ‘Toward Nakba as a Legal Concept’, Columbia Law Review, Volume 124, May 2024, No. 4, 887 – 992.