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MAGa MAGa DRin ZEYNEP ARSLAN M.A.

Gender and diversity expert, author, editor, project and event manager, curator, certified group trainer

Arslan works mainly on the following topics: Identity and belonging development and definition processes, Alevisms and Alevities, democratization processes, women’s movements and gender, group dynamics (e.g. Zaza-Zazaki / Kırmancki / Dimili, Kurdish-Kurdi languages), migration processes, dynamics and developments, the establishment of power and rule as well as relationships of dependency and dominance.

Zeynep Arslan has initiated and coordinated various scientific conferences such as “Zazaki – yesterday, today and tomorrow. Survival and Standardization of an Endangered Language” (2015). The omnibus volume “Zazaki-Yesterday, today and tomorrow. Survival and Standardization of a Threatened Language hast been published at the Grazer Plurilingualism Studies under the series editor of Prof. Dr. Dieter Halwachs. This book was also published in Turkish under the title “Zazaca – Dünü, Bugünü ve Yarını. Yok olma tehlikesi altında olan bir dilin yaşatılması, geliştirilmesi ve standartlaşması”. Another scientific conference initiated and coordinated by Arslan is entitled: “Eighty Years of Dersim-Genocide” (2018). Another omnibus volume emerged from this conference, for which Arslan was the main editor and coordinator as part of the 6th volume for the yearbook of Kurdish studies. Most recently, Zeynep Arslan initiated and coordinated the conference “Sister [s in] Action – Formation of intersectional axes of solidarity and intersubjective learning processes” (2020). In connection with this, Arslan works more specifically in various women *, gender and diversity political networks and platforms. Most recently, Arslan organised the women’s conference „SISTERs in SOLIdarity“ (2023) as a continuation to concretely promote the formation of solidarity axes with women affected by the earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.

In addition to her monographs such as “Democratization through self-empowerment” (2018, Tectum Verlag, series of Applied Religious Sciences), Arslan has published various peer reviewed papers on gender and minority-specific topics, such as “The multiethnic Dersim and its Zaza identity. A self-reflection as a Dersimi Kızılbaş-Alevi Woman” (Kurdish Yearbook, Vol. 6, 2018) or “The multi-identity of an “ethnicized religious community” and its resistance to integration into new-old dominance relationships” (Aspects of Austrian Migration History, 2019) as well as “Options for the development of a clear political orientation to focus on the demand for democratic rights“ (GPS, Vol. 4, 2017) and “The Alevi Diaspora – Its emergence as a political actor and its impact on the homeland” (TPL, Border Crossing, 2016) etc.

Arslan has been interdisciplinary linguistically publishing plurilingual manuscripts for a few years now. Most recently, she coordinated the publication of the multilingual edition of the fairy tale of the wrestling girl (Za. Sanıka Çêneka Pelevane, 2021), which she received from her father Mehmet Arslan in the endangered language Zazaki, as part of the treffpunkt sprachen – Zentrum für Sprache, Plurilingualismus und Fachdidaktik. In 2023, the series GPT (Grazer Pluriligunale Texte), which started with the fairy tale book, was followed by the publication of „Gulvang u itiqatê Kurmancu“ by Ali Dikme, which is also transmitted in Zazaki and published in several language

Zeynep Arslan is also a journalist and makes scientific-analytical reference to socio-political topics in connection with the discussion of inequalities as well as equal and participatory approaches to decision-making processes.

Furthermore, Arslan is a certified group trainer and lecturer on topics about migration, gender and radicalization of minority groups and group dynamics for different target groups, e.g. pedagogues.

Other conference organizations, such as „Tag der Psychischen Gesundheit“ (Mental Health Day), which takes place annually for the Vienna Health Association in the Vienna City Hall, was organized and coordinated by Arslan in 2017, 2018 and 2019 in a new concept.

Zeynep Arslan was the Gender and Diversity Officer of the Vienna Health Association. In addition to her very diverse field of activity, it is in particular the target group-oriented and multi-track measures „Professional Deutsch for Employees of the Vienna Health Association“, various measures against sexual harassment at the workplace, such as „No Chance for Sexual Harassment“, as well as training series such as „Violence Makes You Sick! which have been organized since 2022 in a new conceptualized form to raise awareness among employees and shape the corporate culture with a diversity-sensitive focus, that have been started and are still continuing under her initiative.

Zeynep Arslan has been Head of Strategic Gender and Diversity Management for the Vienna Healthcare Association since 2024. Arslan strives to anchor and promote gender and diversity awareness (focus: staff retention) and gender and diversity orientation (focus: staff recruitment) with strategic and target group-specific gender and diversity work throughout the company and with broad institutional impact. A further central goal is to raise awareness of gender and diversity in the provision of care to patients, residents and members of Vienna’s increasingly diverse urban population. Zeynep Arslan strives to make sustainable contributions to raising the profile of the Vienna Healthcare Association as an attractive, contemporary, safe spaces offering healthcare provider, trainer and employer.