Abiol Lual Deng is a South Sudanese-American political scientist and international relations expert, whose work focuses primarily on human rights, geopolitics, and the African continent. She is a graduate of both the University of Virginia and the Université de Paris-Sorbonne (Paris IV). Throughout her career, Deng has been deeply involved in humanitarian and development efforts on a global scale, working with prominent organizations such as Médecins Sans Frontières, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and the United Nations.
The South Sudanese civil conflict of 2013 was a turning point in Deng's career, leading her to investigate the links between social media hate speech and conflict in South Sudan and other countries in the global south. In response, she was instrumental in developing a significant media literacy and anti-hate speech initiative aimed at mitigating these issues.
She is a regular commentator for media outlets like DW, Gulf News, and CGTN, providing her expert analysis on topics including elections, conflict, and migration. More recently, she has transitioned her field experiences into academia. From 2021 to 2023, she served as a Global Mentor at the University of Virginia and she was also a Visiting Lecturer at Deakin University’s Centre for Humanitarian Leadership from 2021-2022. In February 2024, she presented her paper "Africa Avant Garde" at a special conference at St. Antony’s College, Oxford University. This paper underscores the impactful role of diaspora communities in bringing about significant changes in conflict-prone countries. Deng continues her work at KHM, where she provides analysis on geopolitics, human rights, and the role of media in these domains.
