In Memoriam: Dr. Hind A. Al-Abadleh — Chemist and Equity Advocate
February 11th is the International Day for Women and Girls in Science, and today we celebrate the life and accomplishments of an incredible woman in science. Dr. Al-Abadleh was a professor in the department of chemistry at Wilfrid Laurier University from 2005 to 2024, during which time she was Associate Director of WinS from 2012–2015. Dr. Al-Abadleh passed away in January 2025. What follows are insights from Dr. Al-Abadleh’s 2014 TEDxLaurier talk ‘To Dream and To Act’, and an excerpt published in Nature of an award lecture she delivered in 2022 upon winning the first ever Canadian Society of Chemistry (CSC) Gilead Award for Excellence in Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion.
What motivates a career in scientific research despite systemic barriers? For Dr. Hind Al-Abadleh, it was the threat of climate change. She became interested in chemistry when studying pollution as a high school student in the United Arab Emirates in the 1990’s. Despite her exceptionally high grades, all her university applications were denied due to her citizenship status — her eventual acceptance was into a general science degree, not her desired chemical engineering program. This discrimination angered her, but she persevered with her undergraduate degree, going on to complete a PhD at the University of Iowa. She achieved this milestone in the face of the widespread overtly hostile anti-Arab racism and anti-Muslim discrimination post-9/11. Canada was ‘a breath of fresh air’, where she accepted a position at Wilfrid Laurier University in 2005.
As her career developed, Dr. Al-Abadleh was moved to address inequities in her field, as noted in her Gilead Award acceptance lecture, “…some of us who started in chemistry with a genuine spark of curiosity come face-to-face with a culture in the scientific chemistry community that is not as open and welcoming to diverse voices and backgrounds as we need as a society given the scale of the challenges on the ground…My desire to engage in EDI work as an academic scientist was motivated by personal encounters throughout my education and career.”
Dr. Al-Abadleh cites two main motivations for her equity work — the history of the environmental movement and scientists like Dr. David Suzuki, and her lived experiences as a visibly Muslim woman. These influences inspired her to enact change in both scientific culture and the public perception of what a scientist should look like; “My guiding EDI action principles are fueled by my own lived experiences, aim to go beyond being performative, and are informed by the social science and psychology research needed to transform culture.”
Dr. Al-Abadleh’s legacy persists through her scientific discoveries in environmental chemistry, and the community she fostered through mentorship. This legacy is tangible in the words of Yara Khalaf, a Laurier PhD candidate in Chemistry, “Dr. Al-Abadleh changed my life in ways I never expected. Her passion for science was contagious. Because of her, I found my purpose. She taught me to think critically and to care deeply about the work we do and the people we impact. I am heartbroken that I can no longer hear her voice, her guidance or her laughter.”
In Dr. Al-Abadleh’s TEDxLaurier talk, she recalls, “I moved to Canada dreaming and hoping for a better tomorrow, and recognizing, while I have limitations, whether intrinsic or imposed by the social and the political systems, no one can prevent me from dreaming, sharing these dreams, and working towards making them become a reality.” On this International Day for Women and Girls in Science, we celebrate her memory and continue her efforts to embody tenacity in the face of injustice, and kindness in the face of cruelty.
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References:
“About Dr. Hind Al-Abadleh.” EPIC Lab. https://www.halabadlehlab.us/about-dr-hind-al-abadleh.html. Accessed February 7, 2025
Gilead Award acceptance lecture excerpt publication: Al-Abadleh, H.A. A personal account of contributions to equity, diversity and inclusion within the Canadian chemistry community. Commun Chem 6, 20 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s42004-023-00820-w
“Laurier mourns the passing of Professor Hind Al-Abadleh.” Wilfrid Laurier University, January 16, 2025. https://wlu.ca/news/spotlights/2025/jan/laurier-mourns-the-passing-of-hind-al-abadleh.html. Accessed February 7, 2025
TEDx Talks. (2014, February 3). To Dream and to Act: Hind Al-Abadleh at TEDxLaurierUniversity. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LhCGoSoTMig
Written by: Margie Christ
Graphic by: Anissa Francis
Edited by: Eden Hennessey
