Observatory for Palestine Studies
OPal
The Observatory for Palestine Studies (OPal) was established and is coordinated by the Centre for International Studies (CEI-Iscte) and the Network Centre for Research in Anthropology (CRIA-Iscte). It is the first observatory of its kind in Portugal and the third in Europe, alongside the European Centre for Palestine Studies (University of Exeter) and the Centre for Palestine Studies (SOAS University of London).
The primary objective of this observatory is to create a dynamic platform for interdisciplinary research, promoting collaboration among academics, institutions, and research centres worldwide, bringing together various disciplines, theoretical frameworks, and methodologies around Palestine Studies. It functions as a hub for intellectual exchange, critical debate, and knowledge production.
“Its establishment in 2025 represented a necessary response to the urgent need to build knowledge about Palestine, addressing all its dimensions within the context of the SWANA region (Southwest Asia and North Africa) and its diaspora.”
Research Focus
Team: Scientific Committee
The OPal Scientific Committee is an interdisciplinary group of professors, researchers, and PhD students. We support the quality, ethical standards, and scientific integrity of research initiatives, events, and projects at OPal. OPal’s Scientific Committee consists of researchers from both CEI & CRIA.
Director
Dr. Giulia Daniele
Assistant Professor (CEI-Iscte)
Research Interests: Middle East Politics with a focus on Palestine and Israel, Social Movements, Gender and Feminist Studies, Conflict Resolution, Settler Colonialism, Ethno-National Narratives.
Deputy Director
Dr. Miguel Vale de Almeida
Full Professor (CRIA-Iscte)
Research Interests: Gender and Sexuality, Colonialism and Post-Colonialism, Same-Sex Marriage, Creolisation, Ethnic and Racial Identities and Discriminations, Israel/Palestine.
Dr. Annelien Groten
Everyday Resistance, Empowerment, Humanitarianism, Gaza Strip.
Dr. Antónia Pedroso de Lima
Family Kinship, Gender, Grassroots Economies, Power and Hegemony.
Ashley Dell’Orso
Decolonial Feminisms, Whiteness and Race, Settler Colonialism.
João Pedro Borralho
Settler-colonialism, Political Prisoners, Hunger Strikes, Necropolitics.
Dr. Ruy Llera Blanes
Political Violence, Social Movements, Environment and Landscape, Memory.
Sophia Kelsch
Cybercolonialism, Hashtag Activism, Digital Resistance, Cyberculture.