Associate Professor at the School of Arts and Sciences Myriam El Khoury-Malhame has been recognized by the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Levant regional young talents program 2024. Themed “The world needs science, and science needs women,” the program celebrated female researchers hailing from Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, Syria and Palestine for their contributions to building a more sustainable future.

Dr. El Khoury-Malhame, a neuroscientist and clinical psychologist specializing in the intersection of biology and psychology, was selected among six applicants for her impactful research on the neural mechanisms that foster resilience in individuals coping with trauma and adversity, particularly those affected by the Beirut Port explosion.

In her work, Dr. El Khoury-Malhame employs advanced brain imaging techniques alongside psychological assessments to uncover what she describes as “resilience fingerprints”—unique patterns of brain activity and psychological traits that make some individuals more capable of growing after trauma.

This year’s award ceremony was held on February 13 under the patronage of Lebanon’s Minister of Information Ziad Makary at the Middle East Airlines Training Center in Beirut. It was attended by Minister of Environment Tamara El Zein, along with diplomats, academics, researchers, NGO representatives, media professionals and the L’Oréal Lebanon team.

“Our aim is not only to understand resilience but to cultivate it,” Dr. El Khoury-Malhame shared in a video highlighting her work. “By empowering individuals with the tools to navigate adversity, we can help build a more resilient future for our region—one brain at a time. It is about healing, adapting, and ultimately thriving, rising like a Phoenix, time and again.”

What does the L’Oréal-UNESCO award mean to you, both personally and professionally?

The award is a major source of pride, and I owe it to my mother first and foremost, who was among the early psychology professors in the country. I often joked about receiving a Nobel Peace Prize for helping my community, and now this recognition increases my chances.

It is also a professional milestone toward asserting the position of psychology as a scientific discipline with a modern focus on neurosciences. I’m grateful to channel my scientific curiosity into making a real impact in Lebanon, as it helps me bring academic progress beyond my institution and into the public sphere.

What were some of the key findings that stood out to you while examining the differing brain pathways of post-traumatic stress versus post-traumatic growth?

My research focuses on vulnerability versus protective factors after trauma. We have evidenced that brain wiring differences lead people to either bounce back or collapse post-trauma. The promising aspect of this is that brains are malleable, and we’ve shown that trauma symptoms can be alleviated through rapid, efficient psychotherapies like Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR)—which involves an eye movement pattern, similar to the one during sleep, while processing traumatic memories.

Interestingly, our findings align with Lebanese cultural wisdom, with expressions like ‘dawwa rasse‘—a brain translation for hyperactive amygdala—and ‘sakkar rasse’—signaling a hypoactive prefrontal cortex. This explains how trauma affects both our emotional and physical responses and our rational thinking.

We’ve also identified key factors for resilience, including spirituality, community, sleep and gratitude, which can be incorporated into preventive strategies. On the other hand, factors like younger age, female gender, lower education, financial insecurity and a history of trauma seem to contribute to distress and targeting them will allow us to tailor psychotherapies accordingly.

What challenges have you faced as a neuroscientist and clinical psychologist working in Lebanon?

Obviously working in Lebanon comes with its challenges, as trauma and resilience are all too abundant around us. There’s a real dearth of resources, such as master’s and PhD programs, research labs and MRIs for research. Add to that the stigma surrounding mental health and the fact that sciences, in general, take a back seat to more dominant fields like medicine, engineering, law and business, but perhaps not only in Lebanon.

That said, living in Lebanon also offers a unique set of blessings because the culture here is rich in spirituality. There’s the support of family, the closeness of parents and in-laws, the help of live-in nannies, and a wonderful community of mothers, all of which help provide a sense of belonging.

And, of course, the sunshine and coffee always seem to make everything here feel a little easier.

How do you envision your research being used to benefit communities affected by trauma in Lebanon and beyond?

I hope my research can help shift the focus of mental health professionals toward trauma and make academic findings more visible and impactful for the community. I want to encourage a broader dialogue with institutions—NGOs, media and others—to raise awareness about the importance of identifying and treating accumulated traumas.

I also see a real opportunity to engage with policymakers. We’ve already had success in one of our collaborations with the Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), where we introduced emotional intelligence training in schools. We’ve also worked with the Lebanese Order of Psychologists and the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) to promote the use of EMDR, both individually and in groups, especially in response to the Beirut blast and the 2024 Israeli atrocities.

I’m working to secure more funding to offer free group EMDR therapy as part of structured research programs at the crossroads of epidemiology, psychology and epigenetics. We’re currently exploring options with the LAU President’s Intramural Research Fund (PIRF), the Centre national de la recherche scientifique (CNRS), and other funding sources to make this a reality.

Looking ahead, what are the next steps in your research, and what are the biggest questions you still hope to answer?

About 3,000 years ago, our ancestors created the alphabet, with individual letters, and one man from Byblos is said to have spread it globally, helping make the world a more literate, and hopefully better, place.

In a similar spirit, as someone who’s originally from Byblos, I hope to help export Lebanon’s unique resilience and growth formula, and to make the world not just happier, but more peaceful as well.

This interview has been edited and condensed for the sake of clarity.