About
Tim Smits is a full Professor at KU Leuven's Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Communication Sciences, where he serves as Vice Dean for Education and leads multiple educational initiatives including the Bachelor of European Studies and Master of Teaching in Social Sciences programs. His work centers on media, information, and persuasion within the Media, Information & Persuasion Lab.
His research focuses on sustainable food communication, social media's impact on adolescent eating behaviors, and persuasive packaging design. Current projects include EU-funded initiatives like FEAST (Food systems supporting healthy/sustainable diets) and HashtagToFork (social media interventions for adolescent food choices), examining how digital environments shape consumer sustainability perceptions.
Smits' recent publications reveal strong thematic clustering in
- Digital food environment analysis (70% of recent work)
- Adolescent media exposure effects (50%)
- Experimental packaging/sustainability research (40%)
As an educator, he teaches advanced courses including Digital Marketing, Advertising, and Project-Based Learning in Social Sciences. His leadership extends to the Leuven Language Institute Executive Committee and Faculty Advisory Council.
His grant portfolio features 10 active projects (2023-2029) as Promotor/Co-Promotor with total funding exceeding €5M, primarily from EU and Flemish research councils focusing on food sustainability communication.
