Professor Karen E. Smith is a leading scholar in European Union foreign policy studies at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). She serves as a Professor in the Department of International Relations and directs the European Foreign Policy Unit. Her research focuses on EU foreign policy formulation, ethical foreign policy goals (human rights advocacy), genocide policy-making, and EU-UN relations. Notable contributions include work on feminist foreign policy frameworks, emotions in EU diplomacy, and mass atrocity prevention. She has held leadership roles including Head of the International Relations Department (2019–2022). Awards include the 2020 ACUNS Award for best UN-related book and Royal Society of Arts Fellowship (2016). Education: PhD in International Relations (LSE, 1996), MA from Johns Hopkins SAIS (1998), BA from Wellesley College (1987). Academic leadership includes co-editing the Palgrave Macmillan Global Foreign Policy Studies series and directing the LSE IDEAS Women in Diplomacy project. Recent projects analyze gender representation in diplomacy and EU responses to humanitarian crises. Teaching includes courses on EU global engagement and supervision of doctoral students in EU foreign policy areas. Key publications address EU-UN coalition politics, feminist policy impacts, and genocide designation strategies. Grants include EU-funded research networks on EU-UN relations (2012–2019) and contributions to the UN Prevention of Mass Atrocities Task Force (2012–2013). Her work bridges theoretical insights with policy-relevant analysis for global governance challenges.
Mark Elliott is Professor of Public Law at the Faculty of Law, University of Cambridge, and a Fellow of St Catharine's College, Cambridge. He served as Deputy Chair of the Faculty (2018-2019) and Chair (2019-2024), and is Legal Adviser to the House of Lords Constitution Committee. He co-founded the biennial Public Law Conference series and maintains the influential blog Public Law for Everyone . His research focuses on UK constitutional dynamics, including the impact of Brexit, judicial review mechanisms, human rights frameworks, and devolution. Elliott explores intersections between legal doctrine, political practice, and constitutional change, with emphasis on parliamentary sovereignty, executive accountability, and common law rights. His publications demonstrate consistent engagement with constitutional crises, Supreme Court jurisprudence, and the evolution of administrative law. Recent works analyze post-Brexit governance challenges, judicial scrutiny of executive power, and the resilience of constitutional principles amid political pressures. Awards and Honors: Pilkington Prize for Excellence in Teaching University of Cambridge Yorke Prize for doctoral thesis As a trusted policy adviser, Elliott has shaped legislative scrutiny processes at the House of Lords. He engages public audiences through accessible legal commentary and academic outreach, though no specific grants, labs, or supervised students are detailed in available materials.
Xenia Chryssochoou is a Professor of Social and Political Psychology at Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences in Athens, Greece. She holds a PhD from the University of René Descartes-Paris V (1996) and has held academic positions across France, Switzerland, the UK, and Greece. Currently, she directs the Social and Political Psychology Lab and serves as Vice President of the Scientific Council of the Hellenic Foundation for Research and Innovation. Education PhD in Psychology, University René Descartes-Paris V (1996) Masters/Undergraduate degrees in Psychology, University of Athens Research Interests Social and political identity construction in liberal societies Multiculturalism, migration, and integration challenges Political participation and crisis response mechanisms European integration dynamics and national identities Her research emphasizes societal cohesion and conflict in multicultural environments, with a focus on identity processes during crises. Over 36 peer-reviewed articles and 4 authored books reflect her work on inequality, globalization perceptions, and collective action. Editorial Roles Associate Editor, International Review of Social Psychology (2015–2018) Consulting Editor, Journal of Social and Political Psychology Guest Editor for special issues on political engagement and globalized societies Labs/Teams Director of the MSc program in Social Psychology of Conflicts and the university’s Social and Political Psychology Lab.
Colum McCann is a Professor of Contemporary Literature and Writer-in-Residence at The European Graduate School (EGS), and teaches Creative Writing at Hunter College, City University of New York. A celebrated Irish-American author, he has won the National Book Award and Chevalier des arts et lettres. Born in Dublin (1965), he studied journalism at Dublin Institute of Technology before earning a BA in History/English from the University of Texas at Austin. His work explores themes of cultural memory, displacement, and identity across novels like Let the Great World Spin (2009), Zoli (2006), and Dancer (2003), which delve into Roma communities, ballet legend Rudolf Nureyev, and Irish-American experiences. McCann’s research methods involve immersive travel—such as living with Roma communities in Eastern Europe or tunnel-dwellers in NYC—to craft narratives that bridge personal and historical scales. His essays and articles address social justice, cultural preservation, and literary form. Over 20 awards honor his contributions to literature, including membership in Ireland’s Aosdana arts academy. Awards: National Book Award (2009), Deauxville Literary Prize (2009), Chevalier des arts et lettres (France), Aosdana membership Grants/Residencies: Extensive travel research funded by grants, including stays in Japan, Eastern Europe, and NYC Labs/Teams: Leads creative writing workshops at Hunter College and EGS; collaborates with international literary festivals
Béla Greskovits is a University Professor at the Central European University (CEU) in Vienna, Austria, holding dual roles in the Department of International Relations and Department of Political Science, alongside Emeritus statuses in both departments. He also serves as a University Professor in the Doctoral School of Political Science, Public Policy, and International Relations. His research focuses on the political economy of East-Central Europe, comparative economic development, social movements, and democratization, with a current emphasis on civil society’s role in the rise of right-wing populism. Academic appointments include visiting roles at Harvard University (2008-09), Cornell University (1998-99), and the European University Institute (2016-21). He earned a PhD in Economics from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (1996) and an MA from the Budapest University of Economics (1980). Fluent in Hungarian, English, and German, he has authored over 100 publications, including the influential book Capitalist Diversity on Europe's Periphery (2012, co-authored with Dorothee Bohle), which won the Stein Rokkan Prize in 2013. Key Awards: 2021 East European Politics Best Article Prize, 2021 Polányi Károly Prize, Danubius Award (2018), Bibó István Prize (2014), and CEU Outstanding Research Award (2014). His work bridges political economy and sociology, analyzing how economic systems interact with democratization processes. Recent publications explore nationalism, rule of law crises in Europe, and Hungary’s illiberal turn. He has advised numerous policy initiatives and remains a leading voice on post-socialist transformation and civil society dynamics.
Troels Schultz Larsen is an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Sciences and Business at Roskilde University, specializing in Social Dynamics and Change. With a PhD and MSc in Public Administration, he has been with Roskilde University since 2005, progressing from PhD fellow to his current position as Associate Professor since 2014. His work focuses on urban sociology, territorial stigmatization, and the dynamics of marginalized urban areas within the Danish welfare state context. Dr. Schultz Larsen's academic journey includes: 2014-Present: Associate Professor, Department of Social Sciences and Business, Roskilde University 2009-2014: Assistant Professor/Post-Doc, Department of Society and Globalization, Roskilde University 2005-2009: PhD Fellow, Department of Society and Globalization, Roskilde University 1998-2005: MSc (Public Administration equivalent), Department of Social Science, Roskilde University Identifying his theoretical position as "Historically-Specific Praxis-Theory," Dr. Schultz Larsen draws inspiration from Bourdieu, Wacquant, Gramsci, and other critical theorists. His research spans urban sociology, territorial stigmatization, welfare state dynamics, and public innovation. He examines how marginalized urban areas are produced and maintained through intersecting social, economic, and political processes, with particular attention to the Danish context and its "ghetto list" policies. His work challenges simplistic interpretations of urban marginality, emphasizing the complex interplay between housing markets, labor markets, education systems, and family structures in reproducing spatial inequalities. Dr. Schultz Larsen's recent publications reveal a deepening focus on territorial stigmatization as both a theoretical concept and practical policy issue. His 2024-2025 work, including the book "Fragmenting Cities: The State, Territorial Stigmatization and Urban Marginality," develops a comprehensive framework for understanding how state policies actively produce spatial inequalities. He critically analyzes Denmark's controversial "ghetto list" policy, demonstrating how such classifications function as mechanisms of dehumanization and social exclusion. His research increasingly adopts comparative perspectives, connecting Danish urban marginality to broader European and global patterns of spatial inequality. Dr. Schultz Larsen's scholarly contributions include: Active participation in major research projects including EU-HORIZON24's RURALITIC Membership in the Royal Danish Academy (2025-2027) Extensive media engagement on urban policy issues With over 15 years of teaching experience at Roskilde University, Dr. Schultz Larsen has supervised numerous student projects across social sciences, politics, and public administration. His supervision spans diverse topics including urban policy, social integration, housing, labor market policies, and public innovation. He has been involved in several significant research grants, most notably as a participant in the CLIPS project (Collaborative Innovation in the Public Sector), a major multi-institutional collaboration examining innovation in public services. His current research includes the EU-HORIZON24 project RURALITIC and the BOSID project on housing stigmatization in Denmark. Dr. Schultz Larsen is actively involved in research networks focused on urban marginality and territorial stigmatization. He collaborates closely with Dr. Katrine Nørgaard Delica on multiple projects and publications, including their forthcoming book "Fragmenting Cities." His work with the North Seeland Police Department on the "TRYK Politi" initiative represents a significant practice-oriented research partnership examining citizen engagement in crime prevention. As a member of the Royal Danish Academy (2025-2027), he contributes to national scholarly discussions on urban policy and social governance.
Novi Quadrianto is a Professor of Machine Learning at the School of Engineering and Informatics, University of Sussex, where he joined as a Lecturer in February 2014. He is currently a Principal Investigator on three active EU grants: BayesianGDPR (ERC), TANGO (EU Horizon RIA), and Act.AI (ERC Proof of Concept). He also holds an Adjunct Professor position in Data Science at Monash University, Indonesia, and serves as Strategic Lab co-Leader of the BCAM Severo Ochoa Strategic Lab on Trustworthy Machine Learning in Bilbao, Spain. His educational background includes a PhD in Machine Learning from the Australian National University (2012) and a BEng in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. During his PhD, he conducted research at multiple international institutions including HIIT-Finland, Yahoo! Research-US, University of Alberta-Canada, Fraunhofer IAIS-Germany, and IST Austria. From 2012-2014, he was a Newton International Fellow of the Royal Society at the University of Cambridge. Professor Quadrianto directs the Predictive Analytics Lab (PAL) since 2017, which focuses on "Responsible AI" research developing AI models that embed fairness, accountability, transparency, and trustworthiness. His research spans algorithmic fairness, federated learning, and computer vision, with applications in sustainable development, healthcare, and finance. His work has been funded by prestigious organizations including the European Research Council, EPSRC, and HM Treasury. His publications reveal a strong focus on addressing challenges in AI fairness, robustness, and privacy, particularly in dynamic environments and heterogeneous data settings. Recent work explores performative prediction, diversity-driven learning, and efficient vision transformer inference, demonstrating his leadership in cutting-edge machine learning research. European Research Council ERC Proof of Concept Grant (2023) Guarantor Researcher for BCAM Severo Ochoa Excellence Accreditation (2023) European Lab for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) Scholar/Fellow (2020) European Research Council ERC Starting Grant (2019) Newton International Fellowship (2012) Microsoft Research Asia Fellowship (2009) Professor Quadrianto currently supervises six PhD students and five postdoctoral researchers. He has served as Action Editor for Transactions on Machine Learning Research since 2022 and as Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Pattern Analysis and Machine Intelligence since 2016. He has also been an Area Chair for major conferences including NeurIPS, ICML, and AAAI. His PAL laboratory hosts a team of 15 members focused on inter-disciplinary AI research with domain experts across various sectors. The PAL Lab operates three innovation strands: AI for Sustainable Development (supporting UN SDGs), AI for Healthcare (transforming health outcomes), and AI for Finance (personalized loan decision-making). The lab also leads initiatives in Diversity & Inclusion in AI and offers Pro-Bono Office Hours to organizations seeking guidance on machine learning aspects.
Professor Michael Gordon is a Professor of Law at the University of Liverpool, affiliated with the School of Law and Social Justice within the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. He holds a Law degree from Queens' College, University of Cambridge, and a PhD from the University of Manchester. His research focuses on UK constitutional law, parliamentary sovereignty, Brexit implications, and constitutional reform, with notable contributions including his monograph Parliamentary Sovereignty in the UK Constitution (2015) and ongoing engagement with Brexit-related legal challenges. He co-authored Cases and Materials on Constitutional and Administrative Law and is co-editor of the UK Constitutional Law Association Blog. Teaching interests include Public Law and Jurisprudence, with awards including the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences Learning and Teaching Prize (2014, 2016). He supervises PhD students researching public law and legal theory, with a focus on UK, European, and international dimensions. Professional activities include membership in the Study of Parliament Group, UK Constitutional Law Association, and Society of Legal Scholars, alongside peer review roles with the AHRC. Research highlights include the British Academy-funded project Twenty Years On: Assessing the State of New Labour's Constitution (2017–2017). His work frequently addresses the interplay between law and politics, democratic accountability, and post-Brexit governance challenges, with media commentary across television, radio, and print outlets.
Mai’a Cross is the Dean’s Professor of Political Science, International Affairs, and Diplomacy at Northeastern University, where she also directs the Center for International Affairs & World Cultures. She holds a PhD from Princeton University and a BA from Harvard University. Her research focuses on international cooperation, space diplomacy, European Union policy, and transatlantic relations. She has authored/co-edited six books, including International Cooperation Against All Odds: The Ultrasocial World (2024) and Security Integration in Europe (2011), which won the 2012 Best Book Prize from the University Association for Contemporary European Studies. Education: PhD in Politics (Princeton University, 2005); BA in Government (Harvard University) Awards: Carnegie Corporation Grant (2024–2026), Norwegian Research Council Grant (2025–2028), multiple teaching awards, and Council on Foreign Relations membership. Her work examines breakthroughs in international cooperation, with recent projects on transnational political networks and space governance. She has held editorial roles in journals like Journal of European Integration and The Hague Journal of Diplomacy .
Dr. Céline Castets-Renard is a Full Professor in the Civil Law Section of the Faculty of Law at the University of Ottawa and holds the Canada Research Chair in International and Comparative Law of Artificial Intelligence. She also serves as the University Research Chair on Accountable AI in a Global Context (2020-2024) and is an affiliated researcher at ANITI (Toulouse) and Yale Law School's Internet Society Project. She previously held senior academic roles at Université Toulouse Capitole and was a visiting scholar at institutions including Fordham Law School and Osaka University. Her research focuses on digital technology and AI governance from an international and comparative law perspective, emphasizing EU, Canadian, and US frameworks. Key areas include AI law, data protection, digital copyright, platform regulation, and the intersection of technology with human rights, equity, and gender issues. She has authored over 100 articles, 2 monographs, and edited 4 books. Dr. Castets-Renard advises on EU initiatives such as the AI Office’s General-Purpose AI Code of Practice and the Digital Markets Act. Her work bridges legal scholarship with practical challenges in AI accountability, privacy, and transnational governance. Awards include the Honorary Junior Membership of the Institut Universitaire de France (2015-2019).
Marieke van den Brink is Professor of Gender & Diversity at Radboud University's Faculty of Social Sciences and scientific director of Radboud Gender and Diversity Studies. Her research bridges academic theory with applied work for institutions including the Dutch Police Force, Military, and government ministries, focusing on intersectional inequality dynamics in organizational contexts. She holds a cum laude Master's in Organizational Anthropology from the Free University of Amsterdam and a cum laude PhD in Management Sciences from Radboud University. Her research examines how organizational processes create intersectional (in)equalities through power dynamics, resistance, and diversity work politics, linked to macro-trends like migration and austerity. Methodologically, she pioneers mixed-methods approaches emphasizing organizational ethnographies and discourse analysis to capture micro-processual change. Recent publications (2019-2023) reveal consistent focus on intersectional equality frameworks across diverse sectors—from military integration resistance to father-friendly workplace policies—using qualitative insights to challenge conventional diversity management. Key recognitions include: Young Academy of the Royal Netherlands Academy for Arts and Sciences membership (2015) EU FP7 Garcia project leadership (2013) NWO Veni grant (2011) Praemium Erasmianum Study Prize (2009) Dr. I.B.M. Frye Stipend (2007) She directs major funded projects including EU-commissioned research on academic gender equality and national studies on workplace harassment, while leading Radboud Gender and Diversity Studies as an interdisciplinary hub for critical diversity scholarship.
Martin Gross is an Associate Professor (Akademischer Rat auf Lebenszeit) for Political Systems and European Integration at the Geschwister Scholl Institute of Political Science, Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. Previously, he served as Professor for Comparative Political Science (pro tempore, 2020-2021) and Professor for Political Systems and European Integration (pro tempore, 2019-2020 and 2023) at the same institution. He was also an External Fellow of the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research (MZES) at the University of Mannheim from 2017-2019. His educational background includes: PhD in Political Science from Friedrich Schiller University Jena (2015) Master of Arts in History and Politics of the 20th Century from Friedrich Schiller University Jena (2008-2010) Bachelor of Arts in Political and Administrative Science from University of Konstanz (2005-2008) Habilitation on 'Dynamic party competition in European multi-level systems' from Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (2022) Martin Gross's research focuses on party competition, coalition politics, and policy outputs in multi-level systems; local politics; EU Cohesion policy; political representation and responsiveness; and text analysis. His work examines how political parties behave across different governmental levels, with particular attention to German local politics. He has conducted extensive research on coalition formation, especially between the CDU and Greens in German cities, and has investigated patterns of political representation at the municipal level. His recent publications demonstrate a strong empirical focus on local politics, coalition formation, and representation in multi-level systems. His methodological approach combines quantitative text analysis with traditional political science methods to examine party manifestos, coalition agreements, and parliamentary questions. His work has been published in top political science journals including West European Politics, Party Politics, and Regional & Federal Studies. Martin Gross has received recognition for his work, including an award for the best dissertation in political science in 2015 at the Friedrich Schiller University Jena. His dissertation on coalition formation processes was published with Springer VS. He currently leads multiple research projects funded by the German Research Council (DFG) and the LMU Innovation Fund, focusing on intra-party conflict regulation, independent local lists, and the politicization of sports. Together with Michael Jankowski, he leads 'The Local Manifesto Project (LMP),' a resource for analyzing local party competition through computational text analysis methods. He has taught numerous courses at LMU Munich on comparative politics, local politics, coalition governments, and European integration.
Professor Michael Doherty is a Full Professor of Law at Maynooth University's School of Law and Criminology, where he has been a faculty member since 2013 and served as Head of School from 2013-2022. His academic career spans over two decades with previous positions at Dublin City University from 2004-2013. His educational background includes: LL.B from Trinity College Dublin LL.M from Queens' College Cambridge PhD (on Irish Trade Union Membership) from Trinity College Dublin Called to the Irish Bar in 2002 (Honorable Society of King's Inns) Professor Doherty's research focuses on employment and labour law, industrial relations, and EU labor policy, with particular expertise in collective employment rights, employee representation, trade union roles, and social pacts in socio-economic governance. His work bridges theoretical scholarship with practical policy applications, as evidenced by his numerous collaborations with European institutions and Irish government bodies. His recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on contemporary labor challenges including platform work, minimum wage regulation, worker classification, and collective bargaining in the digital economy. Professor Doherty has received significant recognition for his expertise: Appointed by the Irish Government in 2021 as Chair of a High Level Group reviewing industrial relations and collective bargaining in Ireland Past President of the Irish Association of Law Teachers Member of several European research networks examining labor law in the EU Serves on editorial boards including Employee Relations, Journal of Law and Politics, and Irish Employment Law Journal As an academic leader and researcher, Professor Doherty has supervised multiple PhD students working on employment rights, public procurement, and human rights implementation. His research projects include significant EU-funded work on public procurement, cross-border working conditions, and platform work. He is also a frequent media contributor on labor relations issues and has worked extensively with the European Commission and European Parliament on labor policy matters.
Dr. Petar Bankov is a Lecturer in Political & International Studies at the University of Glasgow. His research focuses on comparative party politics, political participation, populism, and Central and Eastern European politics. He employs mixed methods including regression analysis, survey experiments, and qualitative approaches (interviews, document analysis). He is Communications Officer for the PSA Left Radicalism Specialist Group and a member of the editorial team of dVERSIA , a Bulgarian left-wing magazine. His work emphasizes improving citizen-party relations to enhance political participation. Education: BA in International Relations, University of Sofia (Bulgaria) Joint International Master’s in Russian, Central, and East European Studies from University of Glasgow and Jagiellonian University (Poland) PhD research on electoral geographies of the European radical left Research Interests: Comparative politics, left-wing politics, political geography, and populism. His work explores party organization dynamics in post-communist contexts, electoral behavior, and democratic resilience. Grants: €10,000 from Friedrich Ebert Foundation-Bulgaria (2022) €3,000 Advanced Postdoctoral Fellowship (Babeș-Bolyai University, 2021) £3,500 Overseas Fieldwork Allowance (ESRC/SGSSS, 2017) Erasmus Mundus Master’s Scholarship (€20,000, 2012–2014) Teaching: Undergraduate: Politics 1B (Liberal Democracy), Politics 2B (Comparative Politics), Central and East European Studies modules Honours: Qualitative Methods in Social Sciences, Politics of the European Left Postgraduate: Qualitative Research Methods Labs/Teams: Part of the PSA Left Radicalism Specialist Group and dVERSIA editorial board. Engaged in non-formal education promoting intercultural exchange.
Daniel Müller-Gritschneder is an Adjunct Teaching Professor (Privatdozent) at the Technical University of Munich (TUM), affiliated with the Chair of Electronic Design Automation. He leads the 'Electronic System Level' research group, focusing on embedded systems, TinyML, virtual prototyping, and hardware resilience. He temporarily served as head of the Chair of Real-Time Systems (2019–2020) and holds a senior membership in IEEE. His research spans: TinyML : Optimizing neural network inference for microcontrollers. Virtual Prototyping : Fast simulation for embedded software development (e.g., ETISS simulator). Runtime Verification : Hardware monitoring for safety-critical systems. Fault Tolerance : Cross-layer resilience against soft errors. Design Automation : NoC synthesis and RISC-V toolchain optimization. His publications emphasize RISC-V-based systems, TinyML deployment, fault injection, and embedded AI. Recent works show trends toward compiler-assisted security, thermal management, and automated design-space exploration for edge devices. Awards: Best Paper Award (SiPS 2019) Habilitation Award (Bund der Freunde der TUM, 2019) 2nd Best Paper (SMACD'15) Best Paper nominations at DAC'07, DATE'10, Analog'10, NOCS'13 He advises researchers in the Electronic System Level group and contributes to EU projects (e.g., Scale4Edge). His lab develops tools like ETISS, MLonMCU, and Seal5 for RISC-V and TinyML ecosystems.
