Gran Hewad is a researcher with around two decades of focus on policy research and communication. He wrote for the Afghanistan Analysts Network (AAN) and USIP, managed the research department of the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU), and focused on sociopolitical transformation and conflict analysis. International relations, democratic change, radicalization, political economy, and youth were the topics he mainly covered. He had worked in various government agencies including the Afghan Parliament and Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, where he served as spokesperson and director of communication and public affairs. He joined SPIA as a resident fellow centered at the Afghanistan Policy Lab. He has a BA in economics and an MA in peace and conflict transformation.