Mina Momeni

Mina Momeni is an Assistant Professor at the University of Waterloo, specializing in digital media studies, human-computer interaction, and the societal impacts of technology. Her research explores how digital platforms and smart technologies both empower and constrain user agency, with a focus on intersections between media studies, visual culture, and smart technologies. She holds a PhD in Communication and Culture from Toronto Metropolitan University and York University, alongside an MFA in Documentary Media from Toronto Metropolitan University.

Her current projects include a book manuscript analyzing Twitter bots' role in U.S. political discourse around the 2019 'build the wall' debate, and a research-creation project examining Instagram's visual presentation of pandemic-era public health information. Momeni’s interdisciplinary artwork—spanning photography, video, and installation—explores cultural memory, monuments, and digital mediation, exhibited globally across Europe, North America, and the Middle East.

• Educations:
  • PhD in Communication and Culture (Toronto Metropolitan University & York University)
  • MFA in Documentary Media (Toronto Metropolitan University)

Her research interests coalesce around digital media affordances, platform politics, and the visual dimensions of technology. Awards include the Rogers Fellowship (2016–2021), Ontario Graduate Scholarship (2019), and multiple graduate awards from Toronto Metropolitan University.

• Awards:
  • Rogers Fellowship (2016–2021)
  • Ontario Graduate Scholarship (2019)
  • Graduate Development Award (2017–2018)
  • TMU Graduate Fellowship (2017)
  • GDA Travel & Prize Award (2016)

Momeni’s work bridges academic research and creative practice, addressing urgent questions about technology’s role in shaping human interaction and cultural narratives.