Dalia Salaam Rishani is a Lebanese publisher, philanthropist and advocate for educational reform. In 2010, she co-founded the Dalia and Ramzi Rishani Foundation which supports high-impact initiatives in education, healthcare, culture and heritage. A long-standing champion of educational opportunity, Dalia has facilitated graduate scholarships for Lebanese students for over 25 years. In 2023, in recognition of her distinguished service to Lebanon, Dalia was awarded the Insignia of the National Order of the Emigrant by the Lebanese Government.

Dalia is Vice-Chairperson of the Center for Lebanese Studies, focusing on research in education. She is a trustee of the St. Peter’s College Foundation at Oxford University and was recently elected to a Founders’ Fellowship of the college. Dalia serves as a Global Advisor to the Knight Hennessy Scholarship Program at Stanford University. She is also a trustee of the Al-Makassed Philanthropic Islamic Association of Beirut and a trustee of the Khalidi Library in Jerusalem which contains one of the oldest and largest collections of Arabic manuscripts in Palestine.

In 1996, Dalia founded Hood Hood Books, a London-based children’s publishing house that specialises in the Islamic and Eastern civilisations. Through its many publications, Hood Hood Books has sought to foster a greater understanding of diverse cultures and traditions among young readers.

Dalia graduated from Oxford University with a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics and earned a Master’s degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service. She began her career in finance at SG Warburg Securities in London.