Shahd Alasaly is a living dedication and prayer for healing community through collective resonance and recovery.

Her team, namely Katie, found Dopamine Dialogues and wrote

this email to me... which is why we now have this episode.

Thank you Katie for introducing us.

"Hi Sarika,
The stories stitched into every garment can sometimes say more than words, and no one embodies that philosophy better than Shahd Alasaly. With a rich background as an author, educator, and sociologist at the University of South Florida, Shahd’s work bridges research, fashion, and human resilience. She focuses on trauma, displacement, betrayal, and collective healing, especially within collectivist communities, an angle that brings fresh depth to conversations about belonging and transformation.
As founder and creative director of Blue Meets Blue, Shahd launched a humanitarian label in Chicago in 2015, dedicated to empowering refugee artisans through luxury, modest fashion collections deeply rooted in healing and cultural preservation. Now in Tampa, she is relaunching with a sharp focus on Syrian brocade, traditional embroidery, and building meaningful employment for refugees in the U.S. Her recent journey to Syria, where she partnered with local textile artisans rebuilding after war, gives her firsthand insight into cultural survival and hope.
Every Blue Meets Blue piece tells the story of survival, dignity, and craft, a powerful lens for your Dopamine Dialogues listeners exploring memory, collective recovery, and creativity as a force for justice. Beyond fashion, Shahd is the author of A Kids Book About Humanitarianism and is developing a children’s series on the refugee experience. Her commitment to ethical sourcing, sustainability, and storytelling creates a rare blend: someone who truly lives the connection between creative expression and empowerment.
Would love for you to consider Shahd as a future guest.
Best,
BMB Team

This episode is a call to soften, to witness, and to lead from the heart. It’s for anyone who believes that healing is communal, that leadership is energetic, and that love is the most radical strategy of all.

And of course, I got emotional. I ugly cry when I am deeply humbled.

Love

Sarika