Emerging into the international art, heritage, and science engagement scene in the late 2010s, Hassun El-Zafar has become a dynamic force in multi-disciplinary art and public engagement. His work spans curating festivals, directing theatre, producing world-leading factual content and designing immersive award-winning immersive installations.
In 2021, his immersive installation
HEAR, which explores hearing loss and climate extinction, was showcased at the London Southbank Centre and received the emerging artist commission from Unlimited and Arthouse UK. In 2023, he led the production of community co-created virtual reality experience
Mirpur: The Atlantis of Kashmir.
Since 2019, El-Zafar has influenced Europe's science engagement sector. He has helped shape programmes with the Royal Society of Chemistry, Alan Turing Institute, Wellcome Collection, UK Atomic Energy Authority, UK Space Agency, Schmidt Ocean Foundation, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UNESCO, Faraday Institution, The Ramadan Tent Foundation, BBC Radio Four, Undaunted, London Institute of Mathematics, United Kingdom Research Institute (UKRI), and more.
Between 2022 and 2024, he notably led the post-pandemic recovery of
the Royal Institution of Great Britain’s public programme and content partnerships. He produced a world-class programme featuring science talks, short courses, and creative content with leading scientists, journalists, artists, politicians, and research institutes, which revived commercial, digital, and membership engagement.
In 2024, El-Zafar was appointed Director & CEO of the
Edinburgh Science Group, overseeing key programmes including the Edinburgh International Science Festival, Careers Hive, Generation Science, and Edinburgh Science Worldwide. Additionally, he holds a position as a non-executive director for
Union of Justice, a European, independent, people of colour (POC)-led organisation dedicated to racial and climate justice.
