Tankut Atuk

Tankut Atuk is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Science and Technology Studies (STS) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI), where he teaches and conducts research at the intersection of public health, medical sociology, and queer activism. His interdisciplinary scholarship bridges global health, social epidemiology, and feminist studies, with a regional focus on Turkey.

Education:

• PhD in Feminist Studies & Anthropology, University of Minnesota
• MA in Gender Studies, Central European University
• MA in Sociology, Complutense University of Madrid
• BA in Sociology, Bosphorus University

His research focuses on the socio-political dimensions of public health, particularly the HIV epidemic in Turkey, where he critiques public health as a pathogenic technology that exacerbates structural violence against LGBTQI+ communities. He employs community-engaged and activist methodologies to center lived experiences and challenge systemic injustices. Additional research areas include Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, AI in telehealth, and methamphetamine use in queer communities.

The recent publications reflect a strong trend in critical public health, biopolitics, and queer/feminist digital ethnography, often analyzing how health technologies and policies produce exclusion and violence. His work spans urban health, trans rights, digital cruising, and pharmaceutical governance, frequently coalescing around themes of justice, ethics, and resistance.

Scientific Awards:

• Best Graduate Student Paper Award, AIDS and Anthropology Research Group, Society for Medical Anthropology (2021)

Tankut Atuk is deeply committed to mentoring graduate students and welcomes prospective advisees working on topics such as HIV/AIDS in the Middle East or the transnational movement of PrEP. He collaborates widely and is involved in grassroots HIV activism in Turkey and beyond. His teaching philosophy is grounded in feminist, anti-racist, and decolonial pedagogies, inspired by Paulo Freire’s problem-posing education, emphasizing student well-being and critical consciousness.

He is also involved in activist-scholar networks and aims to produce research that intervenes in real-world inequalities. While no formal lab name is highlighted beyond 'Sage Lab', his work is community-engaged and interdisciplinary, likely involving collaborative research teams focused on health justice and digital ethnography.