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My Voyage on the Global Sumud Flotilla In this article, I recount my decision to join the 2025 Global Sumud Flotilla, a civilian-led mission aimed at drawing international attention to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. What began as an ordinary moment in my family and academic life quickly became a test of conscience, faith, and responsibility. I document the urgency of our mobilisation, the logistical and physical challenges of the journey, and the realities of sailing alongside hundreds of activists from more than 40 countries. From the dangers at sea to our interception in international waters, detention, and eventual deportation, this article offers a first-hand, journalistic account of a grassroots effort to confront injustice and bear witness to the human cost of silence. Read More

A values-based framework for navigating high-stakes decisions under pressure Periods of crisis demand that leaders make rapid, high-impact decisions with limited information and profound consequences for people, organizations, and society. While uncertainty and urgency can intensify pressure to act, they also heighten the ethical stakes of every choice. This article explores why ethical decision-making becomes even more critical in times of crisis and introduces a practical framework—the three P’s of Purpose, Principles, and Priorities—to help leaders make decisions that are principled, transparent, and aligned with what their organizations stand for, even under the most challenging circumstances. Read More

Why ethical culture is a critical leadership resource in times of uncertainty The Covid-19 pandemic has reshaped the world of work with unprecedented speed, forcing organizations to make difficult decisions under intense pressure and uncertainty. In moments like these, organizational culture is not a “soft” concern—it becomes a critical asset that shapes how leaders communicate, how decisions are made, and how people experience trust, fairness, and purpose. Drawing on conversations with senior leaders across business and civil society, this article reflects on practical ways organizations can intentionally cultivate ethical culture during crisis, ensuring that values such as integrity, transparency, and compassion guide action when they matter most. Read More

Consultation, Equity, and Community Voice: Applying the Principle of Shūrā to Mining and Natural Resource Governance Mining has long generated profound environmental, social, and economic consequences, often exacerbating inequality and marginalizing the very communities most affected by resource extraction. While decades of stakeholder engagement and corporate social responsibility efforts have sought to balance competing interests, recent discourse has shifted from notions of mutual benefit toward a stronger emphasis on equity, justice, and meaningful participation. As automation and technological advancement further threaten community inclusion, the limitations of existing consultation frameworks have become increasingly apparent. This article explores the Islamic principle of Shūrā (consultation) as a normative and ethical lens through which community participation in the mining sector can be reimagined. By examining Shūrā’s core principles of equality, collective deliberation, representation, and shared responsibility, the paper offers insights into how consultation processes can be strengthened to ensure fairer, more inclusive, and more sustainable outcomes—both within natural resource governance and beyond. Read More

Rethinking Health and Safety in Mining: From Compliance to Ethical Responsibility Recent global health and safety incidents, compounded by the unprecedented challenges of COVID-19, have forced the mining industry to confront difficult questions about its responsibilities to employees, communities, and society at large. While mining has long operated with extensive health and safety frameworks, persistent injuries, fatalities, and broader social harms suggest that compliance alone is no longer sufficient. The pandemic has exposed deeper ethical considerations—highlighting the power organizations hold, the risks they impose, and the expectations placed upon them in times of crisis. Drawing on reflections from industry dialogue and emerging global risks, this article argues for a new modus operandi for health and safety in mining—one that moves beyond regulatory minimums toward a more expansive, values-driven, and human-rights-based approach to decision-making. Read More

Reflections from the Doctoral Journey: Learning to Do Qualitative Research with Rigor and Purpose Doctoral study offers a rare opportunity to pause, reflect, and critically examine not only what we research, but how and why we conduct research in the first place. As part of my current Doctorate journey, I have engaged in a range of research topics and methodologies, prompting deeper reflection on the practices, assumptions, and habits that shape qualitative inquiry. Drawing on formal research training, professional consulting experience, and ongoing academic supervision, this article distills key learnings that have emerged from my recent research work. Grounded in a commitment to engaged, evidence-based scholarship, these reflections aim to bridge academic rigor with practical relevance, offering insights for researchers seeking to produce work that is both methodologically sound and meaningful for organizations and practitioners. Read More

Building and Sustaining Trust in an Increasingly Virtual World of Work Trust is a foundational element of organizational performance and culture, shaping how employees collaborate, engage, and commit within increasingly complex work environments. In the knowledge economy, high levels of trust have become a source of competitive advantage, linked to stronger morale, higher productivity, and lower employee turnover. As organizations continue to shift toward remote and virtual work—accelerated dramatically by the COVID-19 pandemic—the mechanisms through which trust is established and maintained have fundamentally changed. While trust can be built in virtual settings, it requires more deliberate structures, behaviours, and leadership practices than traditional face-to-face environments. This article examines the unique challenges of cultivating trust in remote and virtual teams and proposes a practical framework that highlights the foundational, organizational, and individual components necessary to build and sustain trust in a digitally mediated workplace. Read More

From Crisis Response to Strategic Redesign: Making Sense of Remote Work as Organizational Change The way people work within organizations has undergone a profound transformation in recent years, with virtual and remote work shifting rapidly from a peripheral practice to a central organizational norm. While some of this evolution was already underway—driven by talent expectations, technological advances, and cost pressures—the COVID-19 pandemic acted as a powerful external shock that accelerated this transition at an unprecedented pace. For many organizations, the sudden move to remote work represented a form of discontinuous change, requiring rapid adaptation under conditions of uncertainty. As the immediate crisis response gives way to longer-term decision-making, organizations now face the challenge of transitioning from reactive change to a more deliberate and planned approach. This article explores that shift, examining how organizations can navigate the move from discontinuous to planned change while accounting for employee experience, sensemaking, and the realities of remote and virtual work. Read More

Why Numeracy Matters Beyond the Classroom Numeracy is far more than the ability to perform mathematical calculations—it is a foundational life skill that shapes how people manage money, make decisions, maintain their health, and participate meaningfully in society. In South Africa, where persistent inequalities in education continue to limit opportunity, weak numeracy skills have far-reaching economic and social consequences. As the country marks National Numeracy Day, the urgency of strengthening numeracy across all stages of learning has never been clearer. Improving numeracy is not only an education priority; it is essential to building a healthier, more productive, and more inclusive society. Read More

Remote Work as Ethical Transformation: Trust, Change, and the Lived Realities of Muslim Women The rapid institutionalization of remote and flexible work in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic represents a profound shift in how organizations conceive of work, control, and accountability. While this transformation is often framed through narratives of efficiency, flexibility, and technological progress, its ethical dimensions remain largely underexamined—particularly in relation to marginalized and faith-based identities. This article situates remote work within theories of discontinuous and planned organizational change, arguing that trust constitutes both the structural and moral foundation of sustainable remote work. By centering the lived experiences of Muslim women and drawing on Islamic ethical principles such as amānah (trust), ʿadl (justice), and mīzān (balance), the paper challenges dominant organizational logics and advances an ethically grounded framework for understanding remote work not merely as a technical adjustment, but as a moral reconfiguration of organizational life. Read More