Dr. Sebastian Sons works as senior researcher on Gulf monarchies for the German-based Center for Applied Research in Partnership with the Orient (CARPO). He holds a Ph.D. from Humboldt University of Berlin with a thesis on media discourses on labor migration from Pakistan to Saudi Arabia. He studied Islamic Studies, History, and Political Sciences in Berlin and Damascus. Prior to that, he was trained as journalist in print, TV, and radio media at the Berlin School for Journalists.