Sarah Overby Ridha: Anchoring action in peace, governance, and social change
“When you go to the places where initiatives and changes are implemented, that's when everything comes together."
Since 2020, Sarah has brought her passion and skills to NIRAS and contributed to projects that advance stability, democracy, and the overall wellbeing of communities. For many, this kind of work may simply be a career. But for Sarah, this is her way of staying connected with her values.
Whether on mild and balmy Sundays or in cold and windy weather, a group of women in yellow vests can be seen biking single-file along the streets of Copenhagen. Clad in helmets, they glide across the grainy asphalt. Some of the women are wobbly, uncertain about their balance, while others have already found their stride. They are still learning how to ride a bike and working together to form this skill is helping them build confidence.
Leading them is Sarah, a calm presence helping the women progress safely. She is there as a volunteer to teach these newcomers to Denmark a liberating life skill.
“It’s not every week that I teach, but it’s really nice when I get to,” says Sarah, who has been doing this for a year now. “Being able to ride a bike is a very practical and empowering skill to have in Copenhagen because it increases your mobility and gives you access to a lot of different things, including work.”
This is why Sarah carves out time to be there, juggling her role as a volunteer alongside a full-time job and motherhood. Through this volunteer work, she stays aligned with a value that moves her to action – helping others.
Since childhood, Sarah has been committed to causes that help others. Today, as a tender and project manager at the development consulting arm of NIRAS, she uses her time and efforts in a similar way, supporting people where they need her expertise the most.
A career grounded in service and social impact
As her fifth anniversary at NIRAS approaches, Sarah describes her role in the company as “three-legged”, holding several duties involving project management, business development and consultancy. But varied as they are, all these activities are rooted towards her goal of positive social change. And because NIRAS is a global company, Sarah has found a place where her conviction to help others finds spaces beyond Denmark.
For years now, Sarah has been working on the Deployment Facility for Peace and Democracy (DFPD) programme, which NIRAS has been administering since 2008. DFPD is a massive undertaking that reaches many conflict-afflicted countries; it requires immense support, making Sarah’s work all the more necessary.
In DFPD, seconding crisis management experts to European Union (EU) missions and election observers through the EU and the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) is the primary objective. Its mission lies in protecting people through the secondment of experts in countries with sensitive contexts. In her recent mission visit to Georgia, Sarah witnessed DFPD’s impact firsthand. People who have had limited mobility as a result of the August war in 2008, are supported by the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia in leading safe and normal lives in the local communities that have been impacted by the hostilities in the area.
“When you go to the places where initiatives and changes are implemented, that's when everything comes together,” Sarah says. “[The mission visit] showed me the tangible impact from the work that we do, also specifically in peace. Most projects will always have unforeseen events coming up, some of them big, some of them small – and this happens in the DFPD, too. But the team is good and strong and adapts well to the changing circumstances in the contexts in which we second experts.”
It’s a really good environment for learning and sharing. This culture of generosity in NIRAS is just amazing – you know that you can always approach a colleague within the office or across offices in other continents, and people will always be happy to help.
Sarah Overby Ridha
Seeing positive change heartens Sarah and reinforces her reason to continue her career in development. More importantly, these uplifting stories are, to her, a good balance against the dispiriting news that occupy much of our media today. And so, apart from contributing change on the ground, she is also helping shift the narrative towards hope in development work.
“So much good work is going on with development. It's very motivating to be one of the people who can actually report on the good stuff and spread the word to those who might not hear or know about it,” says Sarah, who also serves as a communications consultant for other NIRAS projects such as the Danida-funded Climate Change, Conflict, Displacement and Irregular Migration Programme (CCDMP) in the Sahel.
Even with her varied skill set, Sarah still seeks out opportunities to further hone her capabilities. She joined the NIRAS mentoring programme last year where her mentor, Julia Jakobsen, introduced her to the different facets of business development. Beyond the professional, Sarah found in this mentorship guidance that influenced her on a personal level.
“Julia was a really amazing mentor who had my back, pushed me forward, challenged me, inspired me. She’s the one who encouraged me to pick up my volunteering engagements again,” Sarah shares, referring to her biking classes for women. “That NIRAS sets up these initiatives is also a clear sign that they do care about their employees, and they want people to grow.”
“From the beginning of the mentoring journey between Sarah and I, it was clear to me, that she wanted to learn and reach her goals, and more importantly, that she had the skills, vision and discipline to make it happen,” Julia says. “She has the drive to learn from others, but also share her learnings, ensuring that she gives while she builds.”
The making of a changemaker
Sarah’s longstanding drive to help others can be traced back to her father; born in Iraq, he was forced to flee to Denmark as a political refugee. Inspired by this legacy, Sarah embraced opportunities to support others and spent two summers volunteering at camps for disadvantaged children, helping them form friendships and feel less alone.
In addition to taking a gap year abroad before university, Sarah chose a Danish folk high school to deepen her understanding of international and political issues. This experience showed her that a career in development could merge her values with her professional path. She went on to study political science at Aarhus University and later completed a Master’s in Global Studies at Roskilde University, where she first encountered NIRAS through a professor’s recommendation – a connection that launched her career.
From summer camps to bike-riding lessons for women to supporting peace and democracy in conflict-affected countries, Sarah’s commitment has always been rooted in one principle: showing up where she can make a difference. Now as a mother, that conviction feels even stronger: “I want to help where I can, and it energises me to do so. I don't see a reason not to do it.”
