Zeba R. Kokan

I am the proud granddaughter of the late Sadiqa Begum and Iqbal Unnisa, matriarchs from Tamil Nadu, India, whose resilience and wisdom deeply influence my work. Their legacy inspires my commitment to participatory research, emphasising diverse traditions and lived experiences as integral to the co-production of knowledge.

I am a Research Assistant specialising in Participatory Methods and Co-Design within the Neuroscience, Ethics & Society (NEUROSEC) research group at the University of Oxford’s Department of Psychiatry. In this role, I co-lead the NeurOx Young People’s Advisory Group (YPAG), facilitating co-research with young people across diverse research projects. Additionally, I contribute to the Wellcome Trust Discovery project, which examines the ethical and phenomenological dimensions of interventions for anxiety and depression in youth.

My programme of research integrates participatory methods, ethical frameworks, and diverse epistemologies to advance mental health justice. I focus on themes of survivorship, healing, and health justice, particularly within communities shaped by colonisation, displacement, and systemic inequalities.

In October 2024, I earned an MSc in Evidence-Based Social Intervention and Policy Evaluation from the University of Oxford via the Harry S. Truman Scholarship. My dissertation involved a qualitative evidence synthesis exploring resilience, sumud, and agency among Palestinian youth residing in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Simultaneously, I worked as a Research Coordinator for the University of Minnesota’s Research in Adolescent Depression (RAD) Lab, where I managed a mixed-methods study examining fluctuations in suicide risk and resilience among Native American young adults. 

Prior to relocating to England, I lived in Sheet’ka (Sitka), Alaska, serving as a health and resilience guide via the Alaska Fellows Program. There, I collaborated with high school students to promote mental health and well-being, with an emphasis on Indigenous health and student success. 

My earlier roles include implementing a community-based participatory research project at the Weitzman Institute in New Britain, Connecticut, as a Health Policy Research Fellow. This project combined photography and storytelling to explore the intersections of housing insecurity, health, and social needs among youth.

I graduated from Purdue University in 2021 with a B.S. in Brain and Behavioral Sciences and a B.A. in Global Studies, earning recognition as the Outstanding Senior of Purdue’s School of Interdisciplinary Studies.