Dr Kylie Moore-Gilbert

Dr Kylie Moore-Gilbert is an acclaimed author, academic, and human rights advocate who survived one of the most harrowing experiences imaginable: being falsely imprisoned in Iran for over two years. Arrested in September 2018 while attending an academic conference, Kylie was convicted of espionage in a sham trial and sentenced to 10 years, enduring solitary confinement, relentless interrogations, and extreme physical and psychological deprivation.

Before her ordeal, Kylie graduated from the University of Cambridge with first-class honours in Arabic and Hebrew and earned a PhD in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies from the University of Melbourne. She wrote her first book, taught undergraduate and master’s courses, and supervised research students.

During her incarceration, Kylie orchestrated hunger strikes, smuggled letters to the media, coordinated protests with other prisoners, and even attempted escape—all in a bid to survive and reclaim agency under impossible conditions. She was released in November 2020 through a high-stakes prisoner exchange, an experience that highlighted the complexities of global politics and inspired her advocacy for individuals unjustly detained abroad.

Kylie is the best-selling author of The Uncaged Sky, recounting the 804 days she spent in Tehran’s Evin and Qarchak prisons. Today, she speaks internationally on resilience, courage, hope, and the power of human endurance, sharing universal lessons from her extraordinary story with insight, immediacy, and vulnerability.