I make things that change how people think and act.

WriterBehaviour Change ExpertCreative DirectorCultural ConsultantStrategy Consultant / Advisor

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Work

Design, strategy, and direction of behaviour change programmes and campaigns. For governments and institutions who understand that the most effective communication does not feel like communication.

FormatProgramme design · Strategy · Creative direction

Enquirekathy.ahfid@gmail.com

Consulting for institutions, governments and brands that need to understand the Middle East and North Africa, operate within it, or shift how people in it think and behave.

RegionsMENA · GCC · International

LanguagesEnglish · Arabic · French

Leading creative strategy for behavioural change campaigns.

RoleCreative Director, Behavioural Strategy & Influence

Writing a climate series for Earthrise Studio, hosted by Kal Penn. Making climate urgent and accessible.

BroadcastBloomberg TV

ProducerEarthrise Studio

A half-hour drama/comedy pilot in the works.

StatusIn development

DetailsOn request

About

I work at the intersection of strategy and storytelling. The best creative work understands why people think the way they do, and meets them there.

I'm Kathy, a writer, creative director and behaviour change expert based in London. I advise governments and entities on strategic communications, influence campaigns, information advantage & cultural and corporate transformation.

Currently I'm a Creative Director at M&C Saatchi World Services, where I lead creative strategy for behavioural change campaigns across cultures and contexts.

I love to read, write and watch TV, and you can put good money on a bet that you’ll find me doing either one of these things at any given point in time.

Based: London · Dubai · Rabat
Languages: English, Arabic, French
Background: Creative & Content Direction. Government Affairs. Strategy & Cultural Consulting.
Currently: Creative Director, M&C Saatchi World Services

Creative DirectionBehaviour Change StrategyNarrative DevelopmentBrand PositioningCampaign DesignNudge DesignPolicy CommunicationCross-Cultural ProgrammesGovernment AffairsTech and AI EnablementCapability BuildingPublic SpeakingMultiplatform Production

Writing

Newsletter · Substack

Everything is
Political

A personal newsletter where I share things that marinate in my brain. The result may or may not be a well-seasoned account of things keeping me busy these days.
Read on Substack ↗

Speaking

Talks · Lectures · Workshops

I've spent years inside governments, campaigns and crisis rooms across the Middle East, advising, writing, and watching how power actually moves. I talk about all of it, with the frankness of someone who's been in the room and the discretion of someone who intends to be invited back.

Politics & the MENA regionBehaviour change programmesLanguage & pop cultureCultural intelligenceNarrative & influence

Kathy Ahfid reading in the Middle East section of a bookshop, Oxford, 2026 — Oxford - 2026

Talks

KeynotePolitics & information strategy
MENA

Rethinking Influence in the New Middle East

For the better part of the past century, the world watched as the Middle East was ‘created’ by people who drew its borders in war rooms across Paris and London. These people understood how influence worked at the time. But today’s region transcends its map and the arbitrary lines separating its people. How can we understand influence in today’s Middle East, when borders have no bearing on how people feel, where they belong and how they organise?

50 minAdaptable
English · Arabic

WorkshopLinguistics & discourse analysis
Media literacy

In Plain Sight

Extremist organisations have been hiding in plain sight for decades. They are good at it. This workshop teaches you the tricks they use, and how to make yourself, and the people around you, significantly harder to manipulate.

90 minAdaptable
English · Arabic

Booking