Nobel Peace Prize winner Ouided Bouchamaoui will be the keynote speaker during the NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) 2024 Commencement ceremony on May 22. 

Bouchamaoui is a revered leader in international business and peace advocacy. She played a key role as a member of the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet, which was instrumental in the country’s democratic transition, and was honored with the Nobel Peace Prize in 2015. In April 2024, she was appointed Professor of Practice of Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution at NYUAD.

Bouchamaoui’s leadership in the peace arena long preceded her Nobel Prize. She was the first woman to serve as president of the Tunisian Union of Industry, Commerce, and Handicrafts, a role in which she actively fostered investment in the country and worked for fair labor practices. She also served as a Peace Envoy, promoting the critical role of dialogue in crisis resolution worldwide, and worked extensively in community engagement, negotiation, crisis management, and the empowerment of women and girls. 

NYUAD’s graduating class comprises some 475 students from more than 80 countries.

The ceremony will feature a tribute to the Class of 2024, as well as awards and accolades including the NYUAD Distinguished Alumni Award, and the Ceremony of the Torch. The NYU torch, symbolizing “academic purpose and authority,” has been an integral part of NYU's identity since 1911 and a part of its commencement ceremonies since 1938.

This ceremony will be NYUAD’s eleventh Commencement since graduating its inaugural class in 2014.