British Omani Society

Description will be: This weeks podcast is in partnership with PDO. Dr Sultan Shidhani joined PDO in 1989 after graduating from the University of Arizona (USA) with a BSc. in Electrical Engineering. Sultan also holds a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree from the Open University (UK) and a Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) from the University of Liverpool (UK). After working as a wellsite petroleum engineer for some time, Sultan then became a reservoir engineer first in Marmul and then moved to Yibal. In 1996, Sultan went on a cross-posting assignment in Brunei Shell and worked as a reservoir engineer for the major and very mature Seria and Land fields. Sultan returned to PDO in early 2000 and assumed the role of reservoir engineering section head for the Qarn Alam area and the Gas Asset. In 2003, Sultan assumed the Gas Petroleum Engineering Manager role and contributed to the major gas developments that enabled the significant growth in supply needed to meet the ever-increasing gas demands. In 2010, Sultan was appointed as the Study Centre Manager where he led reshaping and advancing the field development and hydrocarbon maturation works and approaches. Five years later, Sultan assumed the Oil South Petroleum Engineering Manager role, in which he managed the largest subsurface development portfolio in PDO and supported realizing significant potentials. In 2019, Sultan was appointed as PDO’s Petroleum Engineering Function Director. In his current role, Sultan is responsible for the Company’s capabilities in all petroleum engineering disciplines, including reservoir engineering, petrophysics, production geosciences, production technology and production chemistry, including setting standards, processes and tools to support. Sultan is active in supporting community and professional works. He served in the Board of Al Mudhaibi Sport and Cultural Club in the 1990s, was President of the Oman Society of Engineers-OSE (1998-2011), and a member of a number of community committees and initiatives in Al Mudhaibi and Muscat. With such an extensive career we are honoured that we can share Dr Sultan's story as well as enlighten and encourage future engineers.
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Manal is a corporate lawyer turned life coach. She's passionate about helping people shift from surviving to thriving through regulating their emotions and clarifying their purpose. She's a self-professed life-long learner, with a Masters in Law and currently pursuing an MSc in Psychology & Neuroscience of Mental Health.

Today we discuss her journey to becoming a coach, what it takes to have a breakthrough, the future of Oman in the realm and why you may need to start focusing on controlling your emotions.

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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Dr Abdullah Al Bahrani is an Associate Professor of Economics and the director of the Center for Economics Education at Northern Kentucky University. On top of this, he is also an online educator and content producer on a variety of platforms. He is the recipient of numerous awards and his expertise has seen him work with businesses, universities, and policy think tanks in Ireland, Oman, UAE, the United Kingdom, and across the United States. In this episode we discuss Dr Al Bahrani’s journey in academia, his YouTube educational series Coffee With Dr. A, and Oman’s economic changes past, present and future.

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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Fatma al-Arimi is an Omani journalist, Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Media Centre (TMC). In this episode, she discusses why the media scene in Oman is not delivering on what the country needs, remaining independent of government and business, and how to be reliable and trustworthy when prevailing forces are against you. Before establishing The Media Centre llc (TMC) and WAF News (as a news service by TMC), Fatma was Reuters’ correspondent in Oman. She is one of the most followed journalists on social media in Oman and is considered a reliable source of news and information. In 2017, Fatma was recognised as one of the top influencers by Oman’s National Youth Committee.

In January 2018, al-Arimi started The Media Centre as an Oman-based information & news hub, with focus on local news, reports and analysis of current economic and social matters. 

Fatma is also the Editor in Charge of the news service WAF News, the only bilingual independent news website in Oman.

Follow Fatma at:
WAF website: https://wafoman.com/ (Arabic); https://wafoman.com/?lang=en (English)
Twitter: @WAF_om ; @FatmaArimi
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Malik Al Hinai has been Museum Director of Bait Al Baranda since 2006. He previously was Grand Hyatt Muscat's Marketing Manager (1997-2006), Oman International Bank Marketing Manager (1988-1996) and Royal Guard Brigade Sergeant Major (1980-1985). In this episode, which commemorates Oman's 50th National Day, Malik talks about the sectors in Oman that he has impacted, the most significant moments of the past 50 years and what he envisions for Oman's road ahead.
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Today, the AOS is catching up with Saleh and Ahmed, the CEO and CTO of a fintech start-up we’ve been following closely over the last year, Ma’mun. If you’re interested in the story of two homegrown entrepreneurs with a bright future ahead, you’re in the right place.
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

In light of Omani Women's Day (17th October) and to highlight the integral role Omani women play in various fields, we are excited to host three exceptional Omani women in different stages of their careers.
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Award-winning translator Sawad Hussain talks about bringing Arabic books to life in English, the transgender narrative in Oman’s “The Shadow of Hermaphroditus”, and which Western misconceptions she’s seeking to challenge around the Arabic-speaking world - from the ill-informed negative connotations of “Allah Akbar” to the presence of queer characters. 

Sawad Hussain is the winner of two English PEN Translates Awards. She co-teaches a workshop on translating Arabic comics at UK secondary schools via the collective 'Shadow Heroes'. Her most recent translation is the Palestinian resistance novella Passage to the Plaza by Sahar Khalifeh (shortlisted for the 2020 Palestine Book Awards), and she is currently translating two Omani books: The Shadow of Hermaphroditus by Badriyya al-Badri and Badria al-Shihi‘s Circling the Embers (working title). She has spoken in numerous webinars, and if you are interested in hearing more about the art of being a literary translator you can search “Sawad Hussain” on YouTube and find her on Twitter @SawadHussain.
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Dr Abdullah Al Abri is the Director of EJAAD. EJAAD is a membership-based virtual collaborative platform where industry, academia and government can interact and engage in energy related research and innovation activities to help solve Oman’s most pressing sustainability challenges.
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society

Kamilya’s background in education spans over 20 years. Her parents moved from Oman to Canada and later to the US as practising physicians. She describes her parents are her heroes. “They are the ideal human beings, kind, brilliant souls that dedicated their lives to helping people get better. Not only did they practise medicine and cure diseases but they wanted their practice to continue and they accomplished this through teaching young doctors how to be great ones.”

She went on to complete her bachelor’s degree in Sociology and Biology. At her time of studying she was unsure of her future and all she knew is that she did not want to be a doctor. It was her now husband who encouraged her to change paths and become a teacher, he expressed how he felt education was most noble of professions and suggested she consider teaching.  After her graduation Kamilya went on to obtain her teaching degree. She was a science and math teacher in Austin Independent School District (AISD). She was then handpicked to be a part of a leadership programme which meant attending a two-year programme at the University of Texas in Austin to obtain her Master’s degree in Educational Administration. During her two years at UT she got the opportunity to work as an assistant superintendent of Middle Schools. She went on to become the Vice Principal of a middle school of 2000 students and then as a Principal of an elementary (primary) school in Austin, Texas. 

She returned to Oman in 2008 and continued her career as Principal at Knowledge Gate International School, Al Hail, Oman & as an Educational Consultant & Director of Operations at Teclution Int’l Seeb Systems. As of 2020 Kamilya has now become the head teacher for New World International School that has opened in Muscat.
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Anglo Omani Society accounts:
Instagram: angloomanisociety
Linkedin: The Anglo-Omani Society
Twitter: @AngloOmaniSOC
Facebook: The Anglo-Omani Society