Biography
Rana is a PhD researcher at the Institute for Manufacturing (IfM), University of Cambridge, within the Industrial Resilience Research Group. Her research examines how critical industrial capabilities are lost, retained, and reconstituted over time, and what this reveals about the resilience of advanced industrial systems. Her work focuses on productive knowledge, industrial memory, and the conditions that determine whether strategically important capabilities can be recovered after periods of decline or disruption, with implications for industrial resilience, economic security, supply-chain strategy, and national preparedness. She also serves as an Industrial Fellow at the Global Supply Chain Observatory at the Department of Engineering.
With over 13 years of experience spanning marine conservation, litigation, and chemicals manufacturing, Rana founded The Surpluss in 2022. The company develops government and enterprise technology for industrial intelligence, verification, and organizational memory, helping complex organizations better understand and verify capabilities, resources, and dependencies across their extended operations. The Surpluss is a Future 100 company recognised by the UAE Ministry of Economy, B Corp certified, a two-time World Economic Forum Top Innovator, and recipient of the global BRICS Solutions Award.
Rana holds an MSt in Sustainability Leadership from the Cambridge Institute of Sustainability Leadership (CISL) with distinction, an LLM in International Law from Middlesex University, an M.Phil in International Peace Studies (specializing in transboundary resource management), and a B.A. in Philosophy, Political Science, Economics & Sociology (PPES) from Trinity College Dublin. She is an accredited GRI Sustainability Professional, Sustainability Excellence Associate, and Biomimicry Practitioner.
A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts (FRSA), Climatebase Fellow, Forbes Business Council member, and 2024 Harvard Climate Entrepreneurs Circle selectee, Rana is a trusted thought leader on supply chain sustainability, climate mitigation, and circular economy in the Arabian Gulf. Her op-eds have been featured by Harvard Business Review, Reuters, BBC, CNN, and The National. In 2024, she was featured in Vanity Fair's Global Goals list for championing UN SDG 12 and served as a reviewer for the Seventh Edition of the Global Environmental Outlook (GEO-7), UNEP's flagship report.
Rana also serves as part-time student representative for doctoral students at the Department of Engineering.
Please contact rh814@cam.ac.uk for collaborations.
Department role and responsibilities