Monika Gabryś-Sławińska is a Professor at the Department of Polish Literary History , part of the Faculty of Languages, Literatures and Cultures at the University of Maria Curie-Skłodowska (UMCS). Her research spans 19th- and 20th-century Polish literature , focusing on Stefan Żeromski , historical journalism , text editing , voice emission , and museology . MA in Polish Philology (1998, UMCS) PhD in Literary Studies (2007, UMCS) Habilitation in Literary Studies (2016, UMCS) Her research interests include political commentary in historical press , media's role in cultural identity , and sociolinguistic trends . She has edited over 29 academic volumes and authored 5 monographs. Scientific awards: Bronze Cross of Merit KEN Medals (Bronze, Silver) 8 Rector's Awards (UMCS) Lublin Mayor's Medal (2019) She has participated in 5 research grants , organized 35 academic conferences , and contributed extensively to Annales UMCS as a scientific editor.
Bart Wallet is Professor of Jewish Studies specializing in Early Modern and Modern Jewish History at the University of Amsterdam's Faculty of Humanities, where he is affiliated with the Department of Semitic Languages and Cultures. His academic work focuses on the intricate relationship between Jewish communities and Dutch society throughout history, with particular emphasis on the connections between the Dutch Royal House and Jewish communities. Wallet's research interests span Dutch Jewish history from the early modern period to the contemporary era, with special attention to Yiddish studies, religious history, cultural integration, and the development of Jewish identity in the Netherlands. His scholarly output reveals a consistent focus on how Jewish communities navigated their position as a religious minority within Dutch society, particularly examining the complex dynamics between Jewish citizens and the Dutch state and monarchy. His work often explores the tension between religious tradition and modernization, and how Jewish communities maintained their identity while integrating into broader Dutch society. Analysis of his recent publications shows a strong thematic concentration on Orange-Jewish relations throughout Dutch history, Jewish military service, religious education, and the material culture of Jewish communities. His scholarship demonstrates a methodological approach that combines cultural history with religious studies, often revealing how seemingly mundane aspects of daily life reflect broader societal patterns of integration and identity formation. The geographic focus remains predominantly on the Netherlands, though with comparative perspectives on Jewish communities in other European contexts. Professor Wallet has been active in public scholarship through media appearances, radio programs, and contributions to encyclopedias. His work has appeared in both academic journals and public-facing media outlets, demonstrating his commitment to making Jewish history accessible to broader audiences. He has contributed to numerous radio programs on Jewish history for Dutch Jewish radio stations and has written for newspapers including the Reformatorisch Dagblad. His academic contributions include extensive work on Dutch-Jewish relations, particularly focusing on the relationship between Jewish communities and the Dutch Royal House throughout history. He has also produced significant scholarship on Jewish integration in Dutch society, religious education, and the development of Jewish identity in the Netherlands from the early modern period to the present day. His work often examines how Jewish communities maintained religious traditions while adapting to changing social and political contexts.
Frédéric Kaplan serves as Director of the College of Humanities at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), where he holds the Chair of Digital Humanities. He also serves as President of the Time Machine Organisation, a nonprofit entity comprising over 600 institutions. His academic appointments span multiple departments including the Digital Humanities Laboratory (DHLAB), School of Architecture (SAR), and School of Humanities (SODH), demonstrating his interdisciplinary leadership across EPFL's academic structure. Dr. Kaplan's research focuses on the intersection of computational methods and humanities, particularly in historical urban analysis, cultural heritage digitization, and the development of the Mirror World concept. His work bridges computational techniques with historical scholarship, creating new methodologies for analyzing historical documents, maps, and urban structures through advanced digital tools. His research has significant implications for how we understand and reconstruct historical urban environments and cultural heritage. His publication record reveals a strong emphasis on computational approaches to historical data, with recent work focusing on LLM applications for historical cadastre navigation, historical map analysis through deformation patterns, 4D city modeling, and language technology applications for historical document processing. This research trajectory demonstrates an evolving focus from basic digitization toward sophisticated analytical frameworks that extract deeper historical insights from digital representations. Kaplan has supervised numerous doctoral students whose work spans digital heritage applications, historical document analysis, computational cartography, and language technology. His research has been supported through multiple institutional frameworks at EPFL and has resulted in practical applications demonstrated through exhibitions at major institutions including the Venice Architecture Biennale, Grand Palais, Centre Pompidou in Paris, and the Museum of Modern Art in New York. He leads the Digital Humanities Laboratory (DHLAB) which serves as a nexus for computational approaches to humanities research. The lab focuses on developing methodologies for historical data analysis, creating digital tools for cultural heritage institutions, and exploring the theoretical implications of computational approaches to historical scholarship. The lab's work with the Time Machine Organisation represents one of the most ambitious efforts to create comprehensive digital reconstructions of historical urban environments.
Hatoon Alfassi is an Honorary Research Fellow in Arabic and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Manchester. A Saudi historian specialized in pre-Islamic Arabian history and women's studies, she previously held positions at King Saud University and Qatar University. Alfassi earned her PhD from the University of Manchester focusing on women and power in ancient Nabataea. Her research examines women's historical agency in ancient Arabian societies, Islamic feminism, and contemporary gender rights in Saudi Arabia. She pioneered studies of Nabataean women through epigraphic analysis and comparative methodology. Current work analyzes intersections between religious interpretation, legal frameworks, and women's citizenship rights in Gulf societies. Alfassi received the MESA Academic Freedom Award (2018) and French National Order of Merit (2012). Her publications in Arabic and English include five books and numerous articles analyzing gender dynamics from antiquity to modern reforms. She maintains an active public intellectual presence through decades of newspaper columns addressing women's rights.
Susan Smith-Peter is a Professor of History at the College of Staten Island, City University of New York, specializing in Russian history beyond Moscow and St. Petersburg. Her research focuses on regional identity, civil society development, and imperial governance in 19th-century Russia, with particular attention to Siberia and provincial dynamics. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and a B.A. from Ohio University. Her work analyzes how Tsarist administrative frameworks fostered subnational identities through statistical bureaus, agricultural societies, and provincial newspapers. Notable contributions include *Imagining Russian Regions* (2018), which argues that autocracy’s civil society initiatives inadvertently fueled revolutionary movements. Her research has been supported by grants from the Fulbright Program, American Historical Association, and IREX. Professor Smith-Peter’s publications span journals like *Slavic Review* and *Kritika*, exploring topics from sugar beet industries to colonial Alaska. She has translated key texts into Russian and edited historical documents such as *The Great Republic Tested by the Touch of Truth*. She serves on campus committees and previously chaired Columbia University’s Seminar on Slavic History and Culture. Key Awards: Fulbright Fellowship, American Historical Association Grant, IREX Grant Grants: Fulbright-Hays Fellowship, University of Illinois Grant, CUNY Grant Her interdisciplinary approach bridges economic, cultural, and political history, emphasizing regional agency within imperial contexts. Ongoing projects explore Siberian historiography and the legacy of 19th-century provincial activism.
Kelly Askew is a Professor of Anthropology and Afroamerican & African Studies at the University of Michigan’s College of Literature, Science, and the Arts. She holds a PhD in Anthropology (Harvard, 1997) and a BA in Music and Anthropology (Yale, 1997), with over three decades of fieldwork in Tanzania and Kenya. Education PhD in Anthropology, Harvard University (1997) BA in Music and Anthropology, Yale University Key Roles Chair of the Department of Anthropology Niara Sudarkasa Collegiate Professor Her research bridges three primary domains: Postsocialist transitions (e.g., property rights formalization and land conflicts), art and political aesthetics (e.g., Swahili music, African visual arts, ethnographic filmmaking), and indigenous political movements (e.g., Maasai and Parakuyo pastoralists). She has produced award-winning documentaries like The Chairman and the Lions (2013) and Maasai Remix (2019), which examine cultural resilience and land rights. Scientific awards include being a finalist for the African Studies Association Herskovits Award (2002). Recent publications analyze land dispossession mechanisms, postsocialist cultural production, and media’s role in political identity. She has secured grants from the National Science Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, and Ford Foundation.
Brandon M. Stewart is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Princeton University with extensive interdisciplinary affiliations. He serves as Director of the Statistics Core at the Office of Population Research and maintains formal connections with the Politics Department, Princeton Institute for Computational Science and Engineering, Center for Information Technology Policy, and Center for the Digital Humanities. Stewart holds editorial leadership as Co-Editor-in-Chief of Political Analysis and Associate Editor at Sociological Methods & Research . His educational background includes: Ph.D. in Government from Harvard University (2015) Master's degree in Statistics from Harvard University (2014) Stewart's research pioneers innovative quantitative methods for social science applications, specializing in automated text analysis and modeling complex heterogeneity in regression. His methodological frameworks enable researchers to uncover hidden structures in large datasets that were previously too costly or impossible to analyze. While his recent work has focused on using newspaper archives to study propaganda mechanisms in contemporary China, his tools are deliberately designed for broad applicability across diverse domains including education, human trafficking, forced migration, international relations, constitutional law, and psychology. His publication record demonstrates consistent innovation at the intersection of statistics, machine learning, and social inquiry. Stewart's work shows a clear trajectory from foundational methodological development to practical implementation across numerous substantive areas, with recurring themes of enhancing causal inference with textual data, developing robust topic modeling techniques, and creating accessible computational tools for social scientists. Stewart's scholarly excellence has been recognized through multiple prestigious awards: 2024 Leo Goodman (Early Career) Award from the Methodology Section of the American Sociological Association 2023 Emerging Scholar Award from the Political Methodology Society Edward R Chase Dissertation Prize Gosnell Prize for Excellence in Political Methodology Political Analysis Editor's Choice Award Recognition for Excellence in Mentoring Graduate Students As a mentor, Stewart has guided several successful graduate students to faculty positions at institutions including UCLA and Georgetown. His collaborative approach is evident in numerous multi-author projects spanning disciplines from political science to computational linguistics. His leadership extends to the Sociology Statistics Reading Group, which he founded to foster interdisciplinary methodological exchange, and his summer methods camp that trains social scientists in advanced quantitative techniques.
Tamika Nunley serves as Research Professor of History at Duke University within the Arts & Sciences division, holding the prestigious William & Sue Gross Professorship. Her scholarly work centers on the intersection of slavery, gender, and early American history, with particular expertise in African American women's experiences during the 19th century. Her research interests focus on the history of slavery , African American women's and gender history , the early Republic , and the American Civil War . Through meticulous examination of nineteenth-century newspapers, government documents, letters, abolitionist records, legislation, and memoirs, she reconstructs how Black women navigated oppressive systems to develop conceptions of liberty, self-respect, and power. Her work reveals enslaved and free Black women as active agents in shaping Washington D.C.'s history and broader nineteenth-century transformations. Analysis of her publications shows consistent focus on gendered experiences within legal frameworks , Black intellectual traditions , and resistance strategies across her monographs and journal articles. Her scholarship bridges legal history, gender studies, and African American intellectual history through examination of freedom suits, clemency petitions, and literary production. Her scientific recognition includes: 2021 Letitia Woods Brown Book Prize for best book in African American women's history 2021 Pauli Murray Book Prize for best book in Black intellectual history 2021 Mary Kelley Prize for best book in women, gender, or sexuality in the Early American Republic 2023 Cary and Ann Maguire Chair in Ethics and American History from the Library of Congress Nunley's scholarly impact extends through editorial service on Civil War History , The Journal of Southern History , and The Journal of the Civil War Era , alongside committee work for major historical associations. Her research has received substantial support from the Andrew Mellon Foundation, Woodrow Wilson Foundation, American Association of University Women, and Bright Institute Fellowship program. As a lifetime member of the Association of Black Women Historians, she actively contributes to academic communities focused on African American women's historical experiences and intellectual traditions.
Julia Cagé is a Full Professor of Economics at Sciences Po Paris since 2024, having joined the Department of Economics in 2014 and receiving tenure in 2021. She is affiliated with the Laboratory for Interdisciplinary Evaluation of Public Policies (LIEPP), the Centre for Economic Policy Research (CEPR) where she leads the CEPR Research and Policy Network on 'Media Plurality,' and the CESifo Research Network. Her research spans political economy, media economics, and economic history with a focus on democracy, information economics, and political participation. Cagé's research interests center on the intersection of media, politics, and economics, particularly examining how media structures influence democratic processes, political participation, and information provision. Her work combines historical analysis with contemporary economic methods to understand the relationship between media markets, campaign finance, and political representation. She has pioneered research on media ownership models, the economics of digital journalism, and the long-term effects of historical institutions on contemporary political behavior. Her publications reveal a consistent focus on the economics of information and democracy, with particular attention to media markets, campaign finance, and electoral systems. Her work spans both theoretical and empirical approaches, often using historical data to inform contemporary policy questions. The research demonstrates increasing interdisciplinary integration, connecting economics with political science, history, and media studies to address fundamental questions about democratic representation and information markets. European Research Council Starting Grant (2021) for the PARTICIPATE project Best Young French Economist Award (ex aequo) by Le Cercle des économistes and Le Monde (2023) Yrjö Jahnsson Award (2025) Special Jury Prize for Best Book on Media (2016) Prix Pétrarque de l'essai by Le Monde and France Culture (2019) Cagé has supervised numerous PhD students and early-career researchers through her ERC grant and other research projects. She has secured substantial funding including the European Research Council Starting Grant and McCourt Institute grants in 2022 and 2023. Her research group at LIEPP has produced influential policy recommendations on media pluralism and democratic representation. She has also been involved in practical applications of her research through her board membership at Agence France Presse (2015-2022) and her policy engagement with French and European institutions. Cagé leads the PARTICIPATE research project funded by the ERC, which studies campaign finance, information, and political influence using individual-level data and computer science tools. Her work connects with broader research initiatives at Sciences Po focused on democratic innovation and the political economy of information. She frequently collaborates with interdisciplinary teams including economists, political scientists, historians, and computer scientists to address complex questions about democracy in the digital age.
Bruno Takahashi is the Brandt Endowed Professor of Environmental Communication at Michigan State University, holding a joint appointment in the School of Journalism and AgBioResearch. He serves as Research Director of the Knight Center for Environmental Journalism and maintains affiliations with the Health and Risk Communication Center, the Environmental Science and Policy Program, and the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies at MSU. Born and raised in Lima, Peru, Dr. Takahashi earned his bachelor's degree in communication from Universidad de Lima, followed by M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Environmental Science from SUNY ESF. Bachelor's in Communication, Universidad de Lima, Peru M.S. in Environmental Science, SUNY ESF Ph.D. in Environmental Science (specializing in environmental communication and participatory processes), SUNY ESF Dr. Takahashi's research program focuses on news coverage of environmental issues, environmental journalism practices in Latin America and U.S. Latino media, and identity in science communication. His work emphasizes counter-hegemonic environmental discourses in Latin American contexts, examining complex networks of actors, media, and communication processes embedded in post-colonial and social and environmental justice dynamics. He has conducted extensive field research in Peru, Bolivia, and Puerto Rico, with particular attention to environmental communication during disasters and in Indigenous communities. His recent scholarly output reveals a strong trend toward examining climate change communication through diverse cultural lenses, with significant attention to Latin American perspectives, immigrant experiences in the United States, and identity factors in science communication. His publications frequently address decolonial approaches to environmental communication and the need for more inclusive international scholarship that centers Global South perspectives. Scientific awards and recognitions include: 2024 AEJMC First Place in Latin American Communication Research 2021 Fellow of the Institute for Diverse Leadership, AEJMC 2019 Knudson Latin America Book Prize Multiple top paper awards from ICA and AEJMC conferences Dr. Takahashi actively mentors a diverse research team of Ph.D. students, post-doctoral associates, and MA students, with former students now holding positions at universities including University of Nevada, University of Minnesota, and Emory University. His research is supported by significant grants including a $2.8 million NSF grant for the SciComm Identities Project, funding from the Climate and Land Use Alliance, and multiple State Department and Embassy grants for environmental journalism training in Latin America. He has developed and led education abroad programs to Peru (2018, 2024) and the Netherlands/Belgium (2022), providing experiential learning opportunities for students in environmental communication. As Research Director of the Knight Center for Environmental Journalism, Dr. Takahashi leads initiatives supporting environmental journalists globally. His current projects include examining environmental discourses in the Peruvian Amazon related to oil spills affecting Indigenous communities, studying decolonial environmental journalism practices in Bolivia and Peru, and co-leading Working Group 5 on Public Engagement and Governance for The Lancet Countdown Latin America, which has generated significant media coverage in outlets like CNN and El País.
Henrik Andersson is an Associate Professor and researcher in Practical Philosophy at the Department of Philosophy, Lund University, within the Faculty of Humanities and Theology. He is also an affiliated researcher at the Birgit Rausing Centre for Medical Humanities (BRCMH). His academic career includes a postdoctoral fellowship at Lund University and the University of Colorado, and prior work at the Institute for Futures Studies on the project 'Population and the Sustainable Development Goals: An Ethical Evaluation.' Andersson's research focuses on value theory and applied ethics, with particular expertise in incomparability, semantic vagueness, and ethical evaluation of population policies. His fingerprint shows strong engagement with concepts of indeterminacy, incommensurability, vagueness, and ethics across multiple domains. His recent scholarly output demonstrates a clear trend toward addressing contemporary ethical challenges related to food systems, population policies, and moral progress. The articles show increasing engagement with practical applications of philosophical theory to real-world problems, particularly in the areas of sustainable development and technological innovation. Oscar II Scholarship for best humanities dissertation at Lund University (2017) Zapffe award (2024) Andersson has led and participated in significant research projects including 'Non-Determinate Trade-offs in Ethics' (active) and 'Value Relations' (completed dissertation project). He actively organizes academic events such as the Value Theory Seminar Series and Value Incommensurability workshops, demonstrating leadership in his field. His collaborative work spans multiple institutions and disciplinary boundaries, reflecting his commitment to interdisciplinary approaches to philosophical problems. Andersson maintains an active presence in both academic and public discourse, with publications ranging from peer-reviewed journal articles to newspaper contributions addressing ethical dimensions of contemporary issues.
Katrin Bromber is a German Researcher at the Centre for Modern Oriental Studies in Berlin, where she has led the research group "Progress and its Discontents: Ideas, Practices, Materiality" since 2014. Her career spans senior research roles at ZMO and academic teaching positions at the University of Vienna. Nationality: German. Language skills: Native German, fluent English/Swahili, moderate Amharic, good reading knowledge in French/Russian, basic Tigrinya. Habilitation (2009–): African Studies, University of Vienna PhD (1993): African Linguistics, University of Leipzig MA (1988): Swahili Studies, University of Leipzig Katrin Bromber's research interrogates intersections of body politics , sports history , Swahili linguistics , and Ethiopian modernity . Her work traces how physical culture, media representation, and colonial/imperial narratives shape national identities across Africa and Asia. Current focus: "Progress" as contested concept in Ethiopian and Gulf urbanism. Key article trends reflect her translocal methodology: 2017 studies on Ethiopian stadiums and fitness culture ; 2014-2013 publications analyzing East African military press , sports branding in the Gulf , and Swahili poetry ; 2007-2000 works on colonial linguistic politics , Indian Ocean slavery , and German colonial Swahili promotion . Recurring sub-fields: body as political text, translocal modernity, media historiography. Scientific Awards: Research Grant of the Berlin City Council (1999-2000): Gendered Slavery study Service to the Scientific Community: Chairwoman, Academic Association for Horn of Africa Studies (2012–) Editorial Advisory Board - Stichproben. Vienna Journal of African Studies (2015–) Editorial Advisory Board - Studies of Department of African Languages and Cultures (2015–) Teaching Experience: Textlinguistics, Mediacommunication, African Linguistics, Swahili (elementary/advanced), Swahili Literature, Swahili in Arabic Script at Leipzig, Humboldt-Berlin, Free Berlin, and Vienna universities Anthropology of the Body at Mekelle University Summer School Field Research: Tanzania (1993-2003): Swahili Poetry, Intellectual History Kenya (2005): Indian Ocean WW2 UAE/Bahrain (2009): Sports and Body Cultures Ethiopia (2009-2015): Sports, Body Politics
Steinar Aas is a Professor at Nord University since 2012, specializing in modern Norwegian and European history with a particular focus on World War II memory studies. He holds a Dr.artium degree from the University of Tromsø (UiT) obtained in 2007. His academic career spans several institutions including the University of Tromsø where he served as Senior Consultant (1993-1998), Researcher for Narvik municipality (1998-2001), Office Manager of the Department of History (2001-2010), and Researcher at University College Bodø/University of Nordland (2010-2012) before joining Nord University. Professor Aas's educational background includes his doctoral work at UiT completed in 2007. His extensive academic journey reflects deep engagement with Northern Norwegian history and institutions. His research focuses on the interwar period, urbanization and urban life, urban planning, modernization processes, polar history, political history, and the use of history through memory studies. His work particularly emphasizes Second World War experiences in Norway. His expertise spans diverse areas including Urban History/Planning, Bodø during WWII, European History, Fascism/National Socialism, History Didactics, War History, Women/Gender History, Local and Regional History, Memory Studies, Modern and Norwegian History, High North Studies, Polar/Circumpolar History, Social History, and Labor History. Professor Aas's recent publications (2023-2024) demonstrate a strong focus on Northern Norwegian urban development, particularly Bodø, with numerous works examining small town urbanization from historical and contemporary perspectives. He has made significant contributions to understanding polar exploration history, particularly regarding Roald Amundsen and Umberto Nobile's expeditions, as well as the complex history of Narvik during WWII and the interwar period. His work often intersects urban studies with memory studies, examining how historical events shape contemporary urban identity. Professor Aas is actively engaged in public discourse, frequently contributing to local newspapers like Avisa Nordland with historical commentary on contemporary issues, demonstrating his commitment to historical dissemination beyond academic circles. His work bridges academic research and public understanding of history. His academic advising and potential research grants are not explicitly detailed in the available information, though his extensive publication record suggests active mentorship and research leadership. His work on the history of Bodø and Northern Norway represents a significant contribution to regional historical scholarship while connecting to broader European and global historical narratives.
Todd Collins is a Professor of Political Science and Public Affairs at the University of Western Carolina’s College of Arts and Sciences. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Georgia, a JD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and a BA from the same institution. His research focuses on judicial decision-making, legal system biases, and the intersection of religion, politics, and policy. Key research interests include racial and gender disparities in legal contexts, media’s role in shaping public perception of courts, and religious influences on legislative behavior. Collins has extensively studied Supreme Court dynamics, appellate processes, and the interplay between public opinion and judicial rulings. His work bridges empirical legal studies with sociological and political frameworks, addressing issues such as courtroom fairness, attorney collaboration barriers, and the impact of religious affiliations on policymaking. Notable projects include analyses of case salience metrics and the role of precedent in judicial reasoning.
Katherine McDonough is a Lecturer in Digital Humanities at the School of Global Affairs, Lancaster University . She specializes in eighteenth-century French history and spatial digital humanities, focusing on historical maps and computational methods for analyzing infrastructure and socio-political reforms. PhD, Early Modern French History, Stanford University (2013) BA, History and French Literature, Johns Hopkins University (2006) Her research bridges Enlightenment history , infrastructure development , and digital methodologies such as computer vision and text analysis. She explores how historical actors contested coercive labor systems and reimagined governance through spatial data. Her recent work includes the MapReader software library (2023 Roy Rosenzweig Prize) and collaborations with the GEODE project in Lyon. She contributes to Living with Machines and Machines Reading Maps , analyzing 57,000 digitized maps. Roy Rosenzweig Prize (2023) Fellow, Royal Historical Society Software Sustainability Institute Fellow Collegium de Lyon Fellowship She co-leads the AHRC-funded Data/Culture project and previously served as UK PI for the AHRC-NEH Machines Reading Maps initiative. Her teaching includes undergraduate courses on eighteenth-century French history and MA-level modules on text/spatial analysis.
