Maryam joined the Institute of Political Science as a PhD candidate in March 2023, under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Diez. She studied Computer Engineering for her Bachelor’s degree at Guilan University and then changed her major to Regional Studies- Central Asia and the South Caucasus at Allameh Tabataba’i  University in Tehran.  There she worked on the concept and patterns of ‘Development’ and applied them to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan for her Master’s thesis. In 2017 she paid a short visit to L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University in Astana-Kazakhstan under a mutual agreement between the two universities.  Since her work in the field of development has made her enthusiastic about Sustainable Development Goals, policy making on environmental issues, and green transition, for her PhD thesis she is investigating the impact of European Union involvement in various environmental, energy and water resource management projects in Central Asia to find out to what extent the EU could be influential in assisting vulnerable countries of Central Asia adapt to environmental challenges.

She was awarded a DAAD Bridge Scholarship for Iran. Her research interests include environmental policy, Eurasian Studies and sustainable development.