Decolonising STEM
Professor Rana Dajani
As I reflect on what it means to decolonise STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), I have come to realise that the challenge is not only about who produces scientific knowledge, but also about how scientific questions are framed. Discussions of decolonisation have largely emerged from the humanities and social sciences, where scholars have examined how colonial histories have shaped knowledge production, power relations, and ways of understanding the world. While these contributions are essential, I believe we must also ask what it means to decolonise STEM itself.
Too often, science is assumed to be objective, neutral, and universal. Yet scientific inquiry is shaped by the questions we choose to ask, the assumptions we bring to our research, and the frameworks through which we interpret our findings. Decolonising STEM therefore requires us to critically examine these underlying assumptions and to recognise how dominant scientific paradigms can privilege certain perspectives while marginalising others.
My research on the intergenerational transmission of trauma among Syrian refugee families led me to question many of the assumptions embedded within dominant scientific narratives. Our study identified epigenetic signatures associated with violence and trauma across three generations. Yet, beyond the biological findings themselves, I became increasingly interested in how we interpret such results. Much of the existing literature approaches trauma through a framework of damage, pathology, and vulnerability. While these realities cannot be ignored, I believe this perspective is incomplete because it overlooks the remarkable human capacity for adaptation and survival.
This realisation led me to propose a shift in how we understand trauma:
| Dominant Trauma Framework | Alternative Framework I Propose |
|---|---|
| Trauma as damage | Trauma as adaptation and survival |
| Victimhood | Agency |
| Vulnerability | Resilience |
| Deficit-focused interventions | Strength-based approaches |
| Communities as objects of study | Communities as partners and knowledge-holders |
| Knowledge flows from the Global North to the Global South | Collaborative and reciprocal knowledge production |
For me, this shift does not diminish the reality of suffering. Rather, it expands our understanding of human experience. Instead of asking only how trauma harms individuals and communities, I believe we must also ask how people survive, adapt, and create meaning in the face of adversity.
I see this as an example of what decolonising STEM can look like in practice. Decolonisation is not simply about changing who conducts research; it is also about changing how research questions are framed and how scientific findings are interpreted. Too often, communities affected by conflict, displacement, and colonial histories are viewed primarily through a deficit lens. Their stories become stories of vulnerability. Yet throughout my work, I have witnessed extraordinary resilience, creativity, and agency. These qualities deserve scientific attention just as much as pathology and risk.
The possibility that epigenetic changes may reflect adaptive responses is particularly meaningful to me. I sometimes describe this idea as "my grandmother’s wisdom"—the notion that what is transmitted across generations may include not only the burden of trauma, but also the biological and cultural resources that support survival. This perspective encourages us to view inheritance not solely as the transmission of wounds but also as the transmission of strength.
For STEM disciplines, decolonisation means moving beyond inherited assumptions that define certain populations primarily by their deficits. It means recognising communities not merely as subjects of study but as partners in knowledge creation. It means valuing local knowledge, lived experience, and alternative perspectives as sources of scientific insight. Most importantly, it means expanding the kinds of questions we consider scientifically legitimate.
Ultimately, I believe science should help us document harm, but it should also illuminate resilience. By shifting our focus from victimhood and vulnerability toward adaptation and agency, we can develop a richer, more empowering understanding of trauma and human potential. In doing so, we begin to imagine what a truly decolonised STEM framework might look like: one that not only studies people but learns from them; not only identifies problems but also recognises strengths; and not only records suffering, but also reveals the extraordinary capacity of human beings to adapt and thrive.
References
Mulligan CJ, Quinn EB, Hamadmad D, Dutton CL, Nevell L, Binder AM, Panter-Brick C, Dajani R. Epigenetic signatures of intergenerational exposure to violence in three generations of Syrian refugees. Sci Rep. 2025 Feb 27;15(1):5945. doi: 10.1038/s41598-025-89818-z. PMID: 40016245; PMCID: PMC11868390.
Dajani R, Glass D, Fuentes A. Doing Science With Our Grandmother’s WISDOM: A Worldview Integrating Sociality, Diversity, and Observant Meaning-Making. Am J Hum Biol. 2025 Oct;37(10):e70138. doi: 10.1002/ajhb.70138. Erratum in: Am J Hum Biol. 2026 Jan;38(1):e70190. doi: 10.1002/ajhb.70190. PMID: 41025390; PMCID: PMC12481471.
Dajani R. Inheriting trauma, rethinking science. Science. 2026 Jun 18;392(6804):1251. doi: 10.1126/science.aeh7938. Epub 2026 Jun 18. PMID: 42313975.
Professor Rana Dajani is a Professor of molecular biology at the Hashemite University in Jordan. She has been a Visiting Professor at Harvard, Yale, MIT, Cambridge, and the Jepson School of Leadership. A social entrepreneur and founder of We Love Reading, she also champions women in STEM.