Rik Crutzen is a Full Professor at the Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University, specializing in health promotion and digital interventions. His research focuses on leveraging technology to improve health behaviors across diverse populations, including adolescents, older adults, and immigrant communities. He leads projects in the CAPHRI research group for Promoting Health & Personalised Care. Research trends include: Digital health innovations (e.g., helplines, apps, algorithms) Chronic disease management (post-COVID-19, dementia risk) Health equity in immigrant populations (cervical cancer, maternal care) Behavioral interventions (physical activity, sleep, STI prevention) Systematic reviews and mixed-methods studies He has supervised 22 academic works and contributed to datasets on activity patterns and sleep-activity correlations. His work spans public health policy, health education, and technology integration.
Professor Andrew Chadwick is a leading scholar in political communication and digital media studies at Loughborough University, where he directs the Online Civic Culture Centre (O3C). He holds a BSocSc from Birmingham, MSc and PhD from the London School of Economics. His research focuses on hybrid media systems, disinformation dynamics, and digital politics. Key contributions include conceptualizing hybrid media events and analyzing misinformation in personal messaging platforms. His work has been recognized with prestigious awards, including the APSA Best Book Award. He supervises numerous PhD students exploring topics like social media influence, public opinion, and digital disinformation. Current projects include the Leverhulme-funded Everyday Misinformation Project examining numerical disinformation on messaging apps. His media engagements span BBC Radio 4 to The Washington Post. Research highlights include studies on misinformation warnings' ineffectiveness, vaccine hesitancy, and the role of celebrities in political representation. O3C serves as a hub for interdisciplinary research on digital civic culture. Chadwick’s academic leadership includes roles in editorial boards for top journals and international conference keynotes.
Professor Helen Kennedy is a leading scholar in digital society at the School of Sociological Studies, Politics and International Relations , University of Sheffield . She holds the title of Professor of Digital Society and is Director of the £4 million ESRC Digital Good Network. A Fellow of the British Academy (FBA) and the Academy of Social Sciences (FacSS), her work bridges academia and public policy through collaborations with the BBC, DWP, and international media organizations. Her educational background includes a BA in English and American Studies from the University of Birmingham, an MA in Cultural Studies from the Birmingham Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS), and a PhD from the University of East London (2002) on digital identity and multimedia. Helen's research centers on digital inequality, datafication, algorithmic culture, data ethics, and public engagement with data . She investigates how non-expert publics experience and interpret data, visualizations, and AI, with a focus on fairness, transparency, and resistance. Her work also examines data visualization in society , particularly in news media, and the emotional and cultural dimensions of data engagement. Her recent publications reveal a consistent trend in exploring public perceptions of data practices , the politics of data visualization , and ethical dimensions of data use across journalism, public services, and digital platforms. Themes include trust, fairness, emotion, and the socio-political shaping of data systems. Fellow of the British Academy (FBA) Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences (FacSS) Helen has led numerous major grants from the ESRC, AHRC, Nuffield Foundation, and EPSRC , including projects like Living With Data , Generic Visuals in the News , and Seeing Data . She supervises PhD students on topics ranging from algorithmic bias to digital self-tracking and has completed 13 PhD supervisions. She actively collaborates with policy makers (DWP, BBC, DCMS) , media organizations (Financial Times, Reach PLC) , and NGOs to translate research into impact, particularly in web accessibility and data governance. She leads the Living With Data research programme and is involved in the Everyday Life and Critical Diversities and Science, Technology and Medicine in Society research groups. Her work with the ESRC Digital Good Network brings together academics, practitioners, and civil society to envision equitable digital futures.
Taina Bucher is a Professor at the Department of Media and Communication, University of Oslo, specializing in algorithmic studies, digital infrastructure, and human-machine communication. She leads the Screen Cultures research group and serves as Principal Investigator for HumAIn , a five-year humanities hub reimagining AI (2024-2029). Research Focus: Her work examines Algorithmic power and politics Cultural imaginaries of digital technology Temporalities of algorithmic media Feminist epistemologies in digital contexts Monitorial citizenship in platform societies Publications: Bucher has authored two monographs: Facebook (Polity Press, 2021) and IF…THEN: Algorithmic Power and Politics (Oxford University Press, 2018). Her recent articles explore facial recognition systems, algorithmic temporality, and digital divides. Academic Background: PhD in Media Studies (University of Oslo, 2012), MSc in Culture & Society (London School of Economics, 2007), with visiting scholar appointments at The New School, Ryerson University, and New York University. Teaching: She supervises and teaches topics including Digital infrastructure Algorithm studies Screen cultures Media theory Critical data studies Digitalization of public sectors Editorial Roles: Active on editorial boards for Journal of Communication , New Media & Society , and Information, Communication & Society .
Chen Li is a Professor in the Department of Computer Science at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), affiliated with the Donald Bren School of Information and Computer Sciences (ICS). He holds a Ph.D. from Stanford University and bachelor's and master's degrees from Tsinghua University. His research focuses on data management, including databases, query optimization, machine learning systems, and open-source tools like AsterixDB and Texera. He has received prestigious awards such as the NSF CAREER Award and IEEE Fellow recognition. Li is also a board member of the VLDB Endowment and the former Faculty Director of UCI's ICS Master of Computer Science Program. Education: Ph.D., Computer Science, Stanford University M.S. and B.S., Computer Science, Tsinghua University Research interests span next-generation databases, approximate query processing, and AI-driven data analytics. Notable contributions include the Texera system for collaborative data science workflows and the Apache AsterixDB project. He has led NIH-funded initiatives in diabetes research and pandemic prediction, emphasizing real-world applications of data science. Professional roles include PC co-chair of VLDB 2015, General Co-chair of SIGMOD 2027, and a visiting research scientist at Google. His awards highlight his impact in both academia and industry. Advising and mentoring are central to his career, with a focus on graduate education. He has pioneered outreach programs like DS4ALL to teach high-school students data science using Texera.
John Gallagher is Associate Professor in English and Information Sciences at UIUC. His research examines how writers adapt to participatory audiences in digital environments, including social media interactions and AI writing tools. Using case studies and computational methods, he explores algorithmic audiences, ethical implications of AI, and technical communication in institutional contexts. He teaches courses in professional writing, digital rhetoric, and research methodologies. Recent projects analyze content creators' narratives about platform algorithms, inclusive emoji design, and academic integrity challenges posed by generative AI.
Dr. Muhammad Abdul-Mageed is an Associate Professor in the School of Information at The University of British Columbia, with joint appointments in Linguistics and an associate membership in Computer Science. He holds the Canada Research Chair in Natural Language Processing and Machine Learning. His research focuses on deep learning, socio-pragmatics, and speech/language technologies, particularly for Arabic and African languages. He leads the UBC Deep Learning & NLP Group and co-directs SSHRC-funded grants like I Trust AI and Ensuring Full Literacy. He is a founding member of the Center for Artificial Intelligence Decision making and Action and a member of the Institute for Computing, Information, and Cognitive Systems. His work spans automatic speech recognition, machine translation, computational socio-pragmatics, and low-resource language technologies. Notable projects include developing Arabic speech recognition systems, multidialectal Arabic benchmarks, and tools for African language processing. He has authored over 100 peer-reviewed papers and leads initiatives like the NADI Arabic Dialect Identification shared task and the NileChat project for culturally-aware LLMs. His research aims to create equitable, socially-aware AI systems for health, social media, and information management.
Antti Honkela is a Professor of Data Science at the University of Helsinki's Department of Computer Science, within the Faculty of Science. He also serves as the Coordinating Professor for the Privacy-preserving and Secure AI Research Programme at the Finnish Center for Artificial Intelligence (FCAI), and as Deputy Director of the Master's Programme in Data Science. His roles include membership in the Health and Social Data Permit Authority (Findata) and as an Action Editor for Transactions on Machine Learning Research. Honkela's research focuses on privacy-preserving machine learning, differential privacy, Bayesian methods, and their applications in computational biology and healthcare. He leads projects such as the European Lighthouse in Secure and Safe AI (ELSA) and the Data Literacy for Responsible Decision-making initiative. His work emphasizes developing robust frameworks for privacy-aware AI, including differentially private synthetic data and federated learning. Honkela has advised numerous PhD and Master's students, and his contributions span theoretical advancements and practical implementations, such as the D3p Python package for differentially private probabilistic programming. Key contributions include advancements in Bayesian inference from synthetic data, privacy accounting mechanisms, and computational methods for genomic epidemiology. His interdisciplinary approach bridges machine learning, statistics, and healthcare, addressing challenges in data privacy and secure AI deployment.
Dr. Jillianne Code is an Associate Professor at the University of British Columbia's Faculty of Education, Department of Curriculum & Pedagogy, directing the ALIVE Research Lab. Her work focuses on learner agency, educational technologies, and social media's impact on student success. Specializes in immersive virtual environments for assessment Researches self-regulated learning and formative feedback Investigates health education through digital interventions Her recent publications examine pandemic-era educational transitions, digital literacy in teacher training, and cognitive tools in virtual reality. She has received Outstanding Paper Awards for her work on immersive assessment. Dr. Code leads research projects on learning analytics, student engagement in digital spaces, and technology education sustainability. Her work bridges educational theory with practical interventions through digital badges, mobile health applications, and 3D learning environments.
Margarita Boenig-Liptsin is a tenure-track Assistant Professor of Ethics, Technology and Society at ETH Zurich's Department of Humanities, Social and Political Sciences, a position she has held since September 2022. Trained in Science, Technology and Society with dual PhDs from Harvard University (History of Science) and Université Paris-Sorbonne (Philosophy), she brings interdisciplinary expertise to examining the relationship between technology, power, democracy, and ethics. Her research spans several interconnected areas focusing on transformations to human identity and citizenship in relation to information technologies across time and cultures. She investigates the social and political aspects of digital technologies, identity and selfhood in technological societies, ethics of technology, and comparative cultures of innovation. Her work uniquely bridges historical analysis with contemporary ethical concerns, examining how concepts like human dignity evolve alongside technological developments from punch cards to AI governance frameworks. Her recent publications (2023-2025) reveal a strong focus on AI ethics, data justice, and the philosophical implications of algorithmic systems. These works demonstrate her consistent interest in how technology shapes democratic processes, citizenship, and ethical frameworks. Her research shows progression from historical studies of computer literacy programs to contemporary analyses of generative AI's impact on knowledge production and everyday ethics. Her scientific recognition includes: NSF funding for her collaborative project on Silicon Valley's innovation imaginary Mozilla Foundation Responsible Computer Science Challenge grant (2018-2021) Academic Data Science Alliance support (2020-2022) Sorbonne Université's Paris IAS Chair on 'Major Changes' (2021-2022) At ETH Zurich, she leads research and teaching initiatives that build connections between engineering and social sciences. Previously at UC Berkeley, she directed the Human Contexts and Ethics Program, developing the Human Contexts and Ethics component for data science education. Her work consistently emphasizes translating social science theory for diverse audiences and connecting scholarly work to community needs in Zurich, Switzerland, and Europe. She teaches courses including 'Artificial Intelligence and Human Values' and 'Research in Ethics, Technology and Society' for the Fall 2025 semester.
Lauren M.E. Goodlad is a Professor of English and Comparative Literature at Rutgers University, serving as Chair of Critical AI @ Rutgers and Editor of the journal Critical AI . She holds affiliations with the Center for Cultural Analysis (CCA), Rutgers British Studies Center, and Rutgers Center for Cognitive Science. Her research bridges 19th-century studies and critical AI, emphasizing 'critical AI literacies' and ethical AI development. Goodlad has held roles like Associate Chair of English and membership in Rutgers' AI Advisory Council and CASS (Cyberinfrastructure for Science, Engineering & Society). Her education includes a BSILR from Cornell University, MA in English from NYU, and PhD in English from Columbia University. Notable grants include NEH funding for global AI workshops ('Unboxing AI'), an NSF planning grant on teaching writing with AI, and an upcoming Global Humanities Institute on Design Justice AI. Research interests span Victorian literature, genre theory, television studies, and AI's sociocultural impacts. Awards include University of Illinois' Kathryn Paul Professorial Scholar and Provost Fellow for Undergraduate Education. Current projects include a book on 19th-century fiction's ontological influence and collaborations on AI ethics frameworks. Publications include The Victorian Geopolitical Aesthetic (Oxford, 2015), co-edited special issues on Mad Men and Victorian Internationalisms , and recent critical AI essays in Critical AI and New Literary History . She advocates for AI development aligned with public interest through pedagogical innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration.
James A. Evans is a Professor at the University of Chicago, where he serves as Director of the Knowledge Lab and Faculty Director of the Masters Program in Computational Social Science. He is also an External Professor at the Santa Fe Institute. His research bridges computational methods with social theory to analyze collective cognition, innovation, and knowledge production across science, technology, and broader societal domains. Director, Knowledge Lab Faculty Director, Masters Program in Computational Social Science External Professor, Santa Fe Institute Evans’s research explores how social and technical institutions shape discovery processes, utilizing machine learning, network modeling, and large-scale data analysis. His work spans fields like computational social science, sociology of science, and data science, focusing on team dynamics, peer review, and the global structure of scholarship. His recent publications examine team size effects on innovation, discursive influence in academia, and the interplay between tradition and novelty in research strategies. Articles trend toward interdisciplinary approaches combining social theory, computational methods, and science policy. Evans supports novel observatories for human understanding through crowdsourcing, sensor networks, and semantic modeling. He has received funding from the National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, and Air Force Office of Scientific Research, with findings featured in major media outlets like Nature , Science , and The New York Times .
Marc-Antoine Dilhac serves as Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy at the University of Montreal's Faculty of Arts and Sciences, where he also directs governance and international collaboration initiatives. He holds leadership roles as Scientific Director of Algora Lab and leads the Ethics and Politics research axis at the Centre de recherche en éthique (CRÉ). His academic affiliations extend to the Centre d'études et de recherches internationales (CÉRIUM) and the Canada Research Chair in Public Ethics and Political Theory (2014-2019). Education: PhD in Philosophy and Political Science, University of Paris I: Panthéon-Sorbonne (2009) Master 2 in Philosophy and Political Science, University of Paris I: Panthéon-Sorbonne (2003) Agrégation in Philosophy, University of Paris I: Panthéon-Sorbonne (2002) Dilhac's research spans ethics, political philosophy, and AI governance, with particular focus on democratic tolerance, multiculturalism, and the ethical implications of artificial intelligence. His work bridges theoretical political philosophy with practical applications in AI policy development, sustainable finance, and democratic institutions. He has contributed significantly to UNESCO's Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence and leads initiatives examining AI's impact on French-speaking culture and democratic values. His recent publications reveal a clear trajectory from foundational work on tolerance and justice theory toward contemporary AI ethics challenges. The thematic evolution shows increasing engagement with practical governance frameworks, particularly in finance and education sectors, while maintaining strong philosophical grounding in democratic theory and institutional design. Key Awards and Recognition: Canada Research Chair in Public Ethics and Political Theory (2014-2019) Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship (2011) Contributor to UNESCO's Recommendation on AI Ethics (2021) Dilhac has supervised over 15 graduate students across philosophy, political science, and interdisciplinary AI ethics programs. His research is supported by multiple grants from FRQSC, FRQNT, SSHRC, and MITACS, totaling over $2 million CAD. Current projects include the Generative AI Ethics Framework for Educational Technology (2024-2025) and the Sustainable Finance AI Tools project examining ESG/DEI disclosure analysis. He co-founded and leads the CORDÉ research group on corruption and democracy, and directs Algora Lab's work on AI governance. His upcoming February 2025 panel at Université Laval will address AI and Francophone cultural perspectives ahead of the Paris AI Action Summit.
Benjamin Mako Hill is an Associate Professor in the University of Washington Department of Communication and an Adjunct Associate Professor in Human-Centered Design & Engineering , the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering , and the Information School at UW. He is a Faculty Associate at the Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society at Harvard University and a Fellow at the Center for Information Technology Policy at Princeton University during the 2023–2024 academic year. Educational Background : PhD in an interdepartmental program at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) , involving the MIT Sloan School of Management and the MIT Media Lab , advised by Eric von Hippel, Yochai Benkler, Tom Malone, and Mitch Resnick. MS in Media Arts and Sciences from MIT. B.A. in Technological and Legal History from Hampshire College . Research Interests span peer production, online communities, collective action, cooperation, learning, and computer-mediated communication. His work explores how communication and information technologies shape social outcomes in collaborative environments like Wikipedia and Linux, focusing on governance, moderation, anonymity, and educational platforms such as Scratch. Article Trends : His publications analyze peer production dynamics, privacy in open collaboration, and computational thinking in youth. Topics include underproduction in open source software, algorithmic fairness, taboo knowledge production, and legitimate peripheral participation in online communities. Methodologies combine big data, quasi-experimental, and comparative analyses. Scientific Awards : Dordick Award for Best Dissertation (2013). CHI '22 Best Paper Honorable Mention (2022). CSCW '18 Best Paper Honorable Mention (2018). CHI '17 Best Paper Honorable Mention (2017). CSCW '13 Best Paper Award (2013). CHI '11 Best Paper Honorable Mention (2011). Advising and Grants : He co-founded the Community Data Science Collective and collaborates with researchers like Aaron Shaw. Grants include multiple National Science Foundation awards for studies on digital knowledge commons, anonymous participation, and collaborative success, as well as a Sloan Foundation grant for modeling underproduction in peer production. Labs and Teams : He leads the Community Data Science Collective , an interdisciplinary research group studying online communities, and contributes to open-source projects like Debian and Ubuntu . He actively edits Wikimedia projects and participates in the Cascadia Wikimedians User Group .
Professor Khin Than Win is a leading academic in health informatics and digital health at the University of Wollongong (UOW), holding appointments as Professor in the School of Computing and Information Technology, Head of Postgraduate Studies, and Deputy Head (Research). She also serves as Academic Program Director for UOW's Master of Health Informatics and Graduate Certificate in Health Analytics programs. Her research focuses on applying information technology to healthcare, particularly in behavior change support systems, persuasive technology, and ethical AI applications. She has supervised over 20 PhD students and holds leadership roles including Deputy Chair of UOW's Health and Medical Research Ethics Committee, and membership in international committees like the Persuasive Technology Steering Committee. Education: MBBS from Rangoon University, Master's and PhD in IT from Assumption University (Bangkok) and UOW (Australia) Research Interests: Health data analytics, AI in healthcare, privacy/security of health systems Leadership: Program/General Chair roles at ACIS and Persuasive Technology conferences Awards: Best Paper Awards (2023, 2018) Her extensive funding portfolio includes ARC grants and NHMRC projects, totaling over 24 funded initiatives. Current research explores blockchain in medical passports, AI ethics, and culturally tailored health interventions.
