Our Team

Rasha Jarhum (@RashaJarhum) is a South Yemeni-Canadian citizen. Jarhum is Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Peace Track Initiative, hosted at the Human Rights Research and Education Centre, at University of Ottawa.

Through the Peace Track Initiative work, Jarhum has been supporting inclusion of women in the peace process, including by sending women’s independent delegations to UN led and GCC led peace processes, leading Track II diplomacy consultations with women groups, as well as, working to protect women human rights defenders in Yemen. She has led efforts to draft the Yemeni National Agenda for Women, Peace, and Security and led civil society consultations for supporting the development of the National Action Plan for Implementing UNSC 1325 resolution in Yemen. She is a Gender, Peace, and Security Expert. She has more than 15 years’ experience working to advocate women’s, children’s and refugees’ rights with many organisations including Oxfam, UNICEF, ESCWA, UNDP, and JICA, in Yemen and the Middle East and North Africa region.

Jarhum was appointed as a member of the National Consultation and Reconciliation Commission in 2022, and headed the Rights and Freedoms Per

Rasha Jarhum (@RashaJarhum) is a South Yemeni-Canadian citizen. Jarhum is Co-Founder and Co-Director of the Peace Track Initiative, hosted at the Human Rights Research and Education Centre, at University of Ottawa.

Through the Peace Track Initiative work, Jarhum has been supporting inclusion of women in the peace process, including by sending women’s independent delegations to UN led and GCC led peace processes, leading Track II diplomacy consultations with women groups, as well as, working to protect women human rights defenders in Yemen. She has led efforts to draft the Yemeni National Agenda for Women, Peace, and Security and led civil society consultations for supporting the development of the National Action Plan for Implementing UNSC 1325 resolution in Yemen. She is a Gender, Peace, and Security Expert. She has more than 15 years’ experience working to advocate women’s, children’s and refugees’ rights with many organisations including Oxfam, UNICEF, ESCWA, UNDP, and JICA, in Yemen and the Middle East and North Africa region.

Jarhum was appointed as a member of the National Consultation and Reconciliation Commission in 2022, and headed the Rights and Freedoms Permanent Committee in Yemen in 2024. She was selected among Apolitical list of 100 most influential people on gender policy for 2021.

Jarhum was invited among seven women by the UN Special Envoy to support the peace talks held in Kuwait in 2016 and has briefed the UN Security Council on Yemen and Women’s Rights to push for peace. Jarhum holds a master’s degree from the University of Nottingham, in International Business Management. Jarhum is an award winner of the Women Have Wings Award (2016) and Women Rebels Against War: Anita Augspurg Prize (2019). She is a member of the Women Alliance for Security Leadership (WASL) and member of the Human Rights Research and Education Centre, at University of Ottawa. She is also a 2016 New Voices Aspen fellow at Aspen Institute, USA, and alumni member of the Geneva Center for Security Policy (2018) . She is also a founding member of the Women Solidarity Network in Yemen, and a member of the MENA regional Coalition of Women Human Rights Defenders and member of the Women, Peace and Security Network- Canada. 

Jarhum holds a Master’s degree from the University of Nottingham, in International Business Management and Bachelor of Business Management from Bangalore University, India. 

manent Committee in Yemen in 2024. She was selected among Apolitical list of 100 most influential people on gender policy for 2021.

Jarhum was invited among seven women by the UN Special Envoy to support the peace talks held in Kuwait in 2016 and has briefed the UN Security Council on Yemen and Women’s Rights to push for peace. Jarhum holds a master’s degree from the University of Nottingham, in International Business Management. Jarhum is an award winner of the Women Have Wings Award (2016) and Women Rebels Against War: Anita Augspurg Prize (2019). She is a member of the Women Alliance for Security Leadership (WASL) and member of the Human Rights Research and Education Centre, at University of Ottawa. She is also a 2016 New Voices Aspen fellow at Aspen Institute, USA, and alumni member of the Geneva Center for Security Policy (2018) . She is also a founding member of the Women Solidarity Network in Yemen, and a member of the MENA regional Coalition of Women Human Rights Defenders and member of the Women, Peace and Security Network- Canada. 

Jarhum holds a Master’s degree from the University of Nottingham, in International Business Management and Bachelor of Business Management from Bangalore University, India.