Dalitso Ruwe is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy and Black Political Thought at Queen's University, holding a cross-appointment in the Department of Gender Studies. He is affiliated with the Centre for the Study of Democracy and Diversity. His research focuses on the Intellectual History of Africana Philosophy, Anti-Colonial Theory, and Black Male Studies. Ruwe's work bridges historical analysis with contemporary social justice issues, particularly regarding Black freedom struggles and educational equity. Education: Ph.D. in Philosophy from Texas A&M University. His postdoctoral research (2020-2021 at University of Guelph) examined Black abolitionist debates and the role of Canada in shaping Black socio-political critiques of American slavery. He is currently developing a manuscript titled *Ontological Sovereignty: The Quest of Black Freedom in the Age of Slavery*. Recent publications explore themes like Black resistance, critical race theory in education, and anti-Black propaganda. Research interests also include Hip Hop Philosophy, Africana Legal History, and culturally sustaining pedagogy. Ruwe’s interdisciplinary approach integrates philosophy with historical, legal, and cultural studies frameworks.
Katharine Mershon is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Philosophy and Religion at Western Carolina University's College of Arts and Sciences. She holds a Ph.D. in Religion, Literature, and Visual Culture from the University of Chicago Divinity School, an M.A. from the same institution, and a B.A. in English Literature from Lake Forest College. Her research explores intersections of religion with contemporary social issues, including animal studies, American religious practices, race, gender, sexuality, and popular culture. She utilizes interdisciplinary approaches bridging literary analysis, visual culture, and ethnographic methods. Dr. Mershon's scholarly publications demonstrate consistent focus on cultural representations of animals, pedagogical approaches in religious studies, and critical examinations of religion in American society. Her work frequently engages with ethical frameworks and narrative analysis across various media formats.
Jessica S Henry is a Professor of Justice Studies at Montclair State University’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences. She holds a BA from Bucknell University and a JD from New York University School of Law. Prior to academia, she served as a public defender in NYC for nearly a decade. Her research focuses on wrongful convictions, severe sentencing (death penalty/life without parole), hate crimes, and criminal justice reform. She authored the award-winning book Smoke But No Fire (2020), exploring no-crime wrongful convictions. Key awards include the 2022 University Distinguished Scholar Award and 2015 Montclair Distinguished Teacher Award. Teaching specialties include Wrongful Convictions, Criminal Law/Procedure, Death Penalty Perspectives, and Hate Crimes. Her work appears in Journal of Criminal Law , Criminal Justice Policy Review , and media outlets like NPR, TEDx, and Crime Story Podcast . She frequently appears as a legal commentator on national TV/radio. Her advocacy spans public lectures at institutions like the Newkirk Center for Science & Society and the Texas RioGrande Legal Aide. Research emphasizes systemic flaws in criminal prosecutions, with focus on marginalized populations and procedural justice. Ongoing projects include studies on virtual life sentences and indigent defense reforms. She directs Montclair’s Justice Studies Department initiatives and co-founded the Just Justice Podcast to amplify criminal justice discourse.
Adelina Iftene is an Associate Professor of Law at the Schulich School of Law, Dalhousie University, and Coordinator of the Criminal Justice Certificate Program. She specializes in criminal law, evidence, sentencing, and prison policy, with a focus on prison health care, aging prisoners’ rights, and access to justice. Her research addresses systemic issues in Canadian penitentiaries, including compassionate release mechanisms, end-of-life care, and pandemic management. Education: LLB (Babes-Bolyai University, Romania) LLM (Queen’s University) PhD (Queen’s University) LLB Accreditation (Canadian Federation of Law Societies) Research Interests: Prison law, sentencing reform, Charter rights of incarcerated individuals, medical assistance in dying for prisoners, and the intersection of public health and criminal justice during crises such as the pandemic. Awards: President’s Research Excellence Award (2020) Hanna & Harold Barnett Teaching Award (2019) SSHRC Post-doctoral Fellowship (2015–2017) Advising & Grants: Leads projects on sentencing vulnerability, prison mother-child programs, and pandemic policies. Holds grants from SSHRC and institutional funding for penal policy research. Supervises students in criminal justice and sentencing studies. Labs/Teams: Member of the Dalhousie Health Justice Institute and the Prison Law Advisory Committee (Legal Aid Ontario). Active in advocacy roles like the Canadian Association of Prison Lawyers.
Steven Waller is a Professor and Associate Department Head in the Department of Recreation and Sport Management at the University of Tennessee, within the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences. His academic career spans over three decades, with leadership roles including Co-Director of the Sport and Religion Research Alliance. Education: He holds a DMin in Pastoral Care and Counseling from United Theological Seminary, a PhD in Parks & Recreation Administration from Michigan State University, and additional degrees in Public Administration and Recreation Management from the University of Michigan and Central Michigan University. Research focuses on organizational behavior in recreation/sport organizations, diversity equity inclusion (DEI), and the intersection of religion and sport. Notable areas include barriers to career advancement for minorities, institutional evil in organizational culture, and sport chaplaincy professionalization. Recent projects examine African American career mobility patterns and the impact of religiosity on athlete families. Key publications address sport chaplaincy identity formation, compassion fatigue in therapeutic settings, and systemic racial inequities in sport structures. His work bridges faith-based practices with sport management through interdisciplinary frameworks. Received 2021 CEHHS Equity Summer Institute Certification 2017 Literary Award from Christian Society for Kinesiology 2015 Meritorious Service Award (Knox County Parks Board) Teaching incorporates Jack Mezirow's Transformative Learning Theory, emphasizing critical reflection and adult learning styles. Current appointments include Editorial Board roles for multiple journals, and leadership in diversity initiatives through UTK's Division of Diversity and Engagement. Active in community service: Board member of Project GRAD Knoxville and the International Sports Chaplaincy Federation. Serves on editorial boards for Journal of the Christian Society for Kinesiology , Journal of Public Management and Social Policy , and others. Led the 2020 Special Issue on Diversity in Aquatics for International Journal of Aquatics Research and Education , addressing systemic barriers in swimming access and equity initiatives.
Kim Willey is an Adjunct Professor at the Faculty of Law, University of Victoria. He is a practicing corporate commercial solicitor and a member of both the British Columbia Law Society and the Bermuda Bar Association. Willey holds a PhD from the University of Cambridge, an LL.M. from Osgoode Hall Law School, and a combined B.A., LL.B., and MBA from the University of Victoria. His research focuses on corporate governance, accountability, and legal mechanisms supporting public policy initiatives like long-term investing and share buybacks. He teaches business associations, combining academic rigor with practical legal experience. Education: BA (History Honours) – UVic (1999) LL.B. – UVic (2004) MBA – UVic (2004) LL.M. (Business Law) – York University, Osgoode Hall (2015) PhD – University of Cambridge (2019) Willey’s publications explore stock market short-termism, corporate accountability, and policy reforms. His work bridges legal frameworks and economic realities, addressing issues such as pension models, gender diversity in corporate leadership, and tax policies for sustainable investment. His advisory and grant activities are not explicitly detailed in the provided text.
Dr Amy-Leigh Rowe is a Research Fellow at the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use, University of Sydney, within the Faculty of Medicine and Health. She holds a PhD in Psychology from Western Sydney University and specializes in adolescent health, eHealth interventions, and trauma-informed prevention programs. Education: Bachelor of Applied Science (Sport & Exercise), University of Sydney (2011) Bachelor of Psychological Studies (First Class Honours), Western Sydney University (2018) PhD in Psychology, Western Sydney University (2023) Research focuses on preventing substance use and mental health issues in youth through school-based programs like the OurFutures Vaping initiative, now nationwide. She also leads curriculum-aligned healthy relationship education and contributed to NSW Ministry of Health’s youth health policy. Awards : Matilda Centre Awards 2022: Outstanding Contribution (Team) - 2023 School of Psychology Outstanding Engagement Award - 2022 Dean’s Medal for Academic Excellence - 2017 Advising: Supervises Annabelle Hawkins on e-cigarette use trends. Active in grants and policy development, including Makers and Shapers Award (Team) - 2022. Part of the Matilda Centre’s Diversity and Inclusion portfolio and Australian Rotary Health awardee (2024). Labs/Teams: Leads the Matilda Centre’s preventive intervention design and collaborates with the NSW Ministry of Health on youth health initiatives.
Wenona Giles is a Professor Emerita of Anthropology at York University and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC). She retired from teaching in 2018 but continues research on gender, migration, forced migration, refugee issues, and access to education for marginalized populations. Her work focuses on protracted refugee situations, particularly in Africa and the Middle East, and she co-led projects like the Borderless Higher Education for Refugees (BHER) initiative in Kenya’s Dadaab camps. Giles holds a PhD in Anthropology from the University of Toronto and has authored numerous books, including Refugees in Extended Exile (2017) and Sites of Violence: Gender and Conflict Zones (2004). Education: Ph.D. Anthropology, University of Toronto M.A. Anthropology, University of Toronto B.A. Liberal Arts (English and French Literature), University of Santa Clara Diplôme de Langue et des Lettres Françaises, Université d'Aix-Marseille Research Interests: Gender relations in migration, refugee education, protracted displacement, militarization, and the intersection of gender and nationalism. She has conducted fieldwork in Iran, Kenya, and post-Yugoslav states, emphasizing the lived experiences of refugees and marginalized groups. Awards: Officer of the Order of Canada (O.C.) Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada (FRSC) Grants & Projects: Co-investigator of the SSHRC-funded Canadian Refugee Research Network and founder of the Women in Conflict Zones Research Network. She led initiatives to provide higher education access to refugees in Dadaab through partnerships with Kenyan and Canadian universities. Labs/Teams: Centre for Refugee Studies at York University, where she served as a Resident Research Associate.
Nicola Wilson is a researcher specializing in library and publishing history, with a focus on understudied topics such as subscription libraries, feminist bibliography, and transatlantic literary networks. She received the 2013 Justin Winsor Essay Award for her groundbreaking work on Boots Book-Lovers' Library, which highlighted intersections between social history, censorship, and readership practices. Her research spans from 19th-century subscription libraries to modernist publishing houses like the Hogarth Press, with notable contributions to understanding women's roles in early 20th-century publishing and the cultural politics of literary societies. Wilson's scholarship bridges library history with broader cultural studies, addressing themes such as LGBT issues in historical contexts, copyright challenges in digital archives, and the economic dimensions of small-press publishing. Her work often emphasizes collaborative networks—between authors, publishers, and readers—while interrogating how publishing practices shape literary canons and access to knowledge. Her most recent publications (2024) explore transatlantic book clubs and modernist authorship, continuing her commitment to uncovering marginalized voices in publishing history. Despite no explicitly stated institutional affiliation in the provided texts, her extensive bibliography reflects sustained academic engagement with archival research and interdisciplinary approaches to cultural history.
Dr. Gail Jones is a University Distinguished Professor in the Department of STEM Education at North Carolina State University. Her research focuses on science education, particularly teaching and learning in diverse sociocultural contexts, including gender, minority, and visually impaired student populations. She directs the Nanoscale Science Education Research Group and collaborates with institutions like the STEPS Center and Research Triangle Nanotechnology Network. Her work explores phosphate sustainability education, virtual reality tools, and micro-credential systems for teacher professional development. Education: PhD in Science Education, North Carolina State University MA in Biology, Appalachian State University BS in Biology, Appalachian State University Research Interests: Dr. Jones investigates how sociocultural factors influence science learning, including family science experiences, STEM career aspirations, and the use of emerging technologies like virtual reality. She examines equity issues in science education, teacher preparation, and interdisciplinary graduate programs. Key Contributions: Her research on teacher attitudes, citizen science, and science hobbyists has advanced understanding of informal learning pathways. Notable projects include developing 3D virtual reality tools for biology education and studying the impact of lab coats on student self-concept. Awards & Recognition: 2022 AERA Fellow 2015 Outstanding Science Teacher Educator of the Year Multiple NC State teaching and mentoring awards Labs/Teams: Leads the Nanoscale Science Education Research Group and collaborates with the Friday Institute for Educational Innovation.
Hanna Bäckström Olofsson is an Associate Professor in the Department of Social Work at Umeå University. Her work bridges Gender Studies, Public Health, and Social Work, focusing on issues of social inequality, gender-based violence, and feminist activism. She leads the project *Negotiating the risk of segregation* examining responses to socioeconomic segregation in Umeå, and co-leads research on social services' approaches to gender-based violence. Her postdoctoral work focuses on feminist youth empowerment centers in Sweden. She holds a PhD in Gender Studies (2020) from Umeå University, exploring altruism and activism in civil society. Her research interests include feminist ethics, community development, digital activism, and the intersection of public policy with gendered violence. Notable projects include analyzing how social services identify violence through question-centered protocols and studying peer-support networks for young women's mental health. She has contributed to over 15 peer-reviewed articles since 2015, addressing topics from migrant ideologies to app-based interventions against violence. Education: PhD (Gender Studies, Umeå University, 2020) Grants: Involved in projects funded by Forte (2021–2025) and others Labs/Teams: Collaborates with interdisciplinary teams in social work, gender studies, and public health Her work emphasizes practical interventions while critiquing systemic barriers, blending theoretical frameworks from feminist ethics with participatory research methods.
Masha Antokolskaia is a Full Professor of Private and Family Law at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, where she also heads the Department of Private Law and leads the Amsterdam Centre of Family & Law. Her academic career includes roles as the Marcel Storme Honorary Chair at the University of Ghent and a Royal Dutch Academy of Science Senior Research Fellow. She holds a PhD from the State Law Academy in Moscow (1986–1989). Her research focuses on empirical legal studies, comparative law methodologies, and multidisciplinary investigations into family law, with a particular emphasis on European and Russian family law frameworks. Key interests include the legal empowerment of vulnerable adults, historical developments in family law, and policy impacts of legal reforms. Her work has influenced Dutch judicial policies, notably through high-impact reports on divorce prevention and post-separation parenting. Awards include the 2020 presidency of the International Society of Family Law and fellowships at prominent institutions. Masha has advised governments and contributed to legal education globally. Her leadership roles, such as chairing FL-EUR, reflect her influence in shaping European family law discourse. She is affiliated with interdisciplinary teams and initiatives addressing contemporary family law challenges.
Elsa Devienne is an Assistant Professor at Northumbria University's Faculty of Arts, Design and Social Sciences, where she has been teaching since 2019. Previously, she taught at Princeton University, Université Paris Nanterre, Science Po Paris and the École des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales. Her scholarly expertise focuses on environmental history, urban history, and the history of the body within the context of 20th-century United States, with particular attention to how everyday environments shape human experience and social relations. Education: PhD in History, École des hautes études en sciences sociales MA in History, École normale supérieure de Lyon Devienne's research is unified by her interest in understanding the mundane aspects of everyday life and how seemingly natural environments are socially and materially constructed. Her work demonstrates how spaces like beaches, urban areas, and public spaces have been transformed through historical processes that often reflect broader social inequalities. She approaches environmental history through the lens of environmental justice, consistently examining how environmental changes have benefited certain communities while disadvantaging others, particularly vulnerable populations. Her scholarship bridges historical analysis with contemporary environmental concerns, making historical perspectives directly relevant to current ecological challenges and policy discussions. Her publications reveal a consistent focus on environmental and urban transformations, particularly in coastal settings. Across her work, she explores how human interventions have reshaped natural environments, how these spaces have been regulated and contested, and how they have served as sites for the construction of social identities and cultural practices. Her research spans multiple disciplines, connecting environmental history with urban studies, cultural history, and body studies to provide comprehensive analyses of human-environment relationships throughout the 20th century. Scientific Awards: Willi Paul Adams Award (2021) Doyce B. Nunis, Jr. Award (2019) Finalist of the Prix de la Recherche SAES/AFEA (2021) The Arthur Miller Centre First Book Prize (June 2025) Devienne has secured significant research funding from prestigious organizations including the Fulbright Program, Princeton-Mellon Initiative, British Association of American Studies, FACE Foundation, Historical Society of Southern California, Ahmanson Foundation, and British Academy/Leverhulme Small Grant scheme. She actively contributes to academic discourse through editorial work, including co-editing special issues on 'Beaches: Contested Territories' and 'Places and Cultures of Capitalism.' She serves on the executive committee of the British Association of American Studies, co-leading their sustainability initiative Green BAAS, and represents France in the European Society of Environmental History. Her current research projects include 'The War on Plastics: A History of the Anti-Plastics Movement in the US and the UK' (2025-2026), examining how environmental activism has shaped mainstream discourse on plastics, and a study on pedestrianism and air pollution in cities from the perspective of parents and children. At Northumbria University, Devienne teaches American studies and history modules including 'From Sea to Shining Sea: US History from 1776 to 2008,' 'Affluence & Anxiety: US history 1920-1960,' and 'Red, White and Green: The American Environment through Time,' where she has pioneered efforts to integrate environmental perspectives into historical education. She regularly engages with public audiences through media appearances on radio, podcasts, and television, and has contributed to publications like Time Magazine and The Wall Street Journal, demonstrating her commitment to making historical scholarship accessible and relevant to contemporary environmental challenges.
Orna Kupferman is a Full Professor in the Computer Science Department at the Hebrew University since 2008, where she has held multiple leadership roles including Head of the Computer Science Department (2005-2007), Chair of the School of Engineering (2008-2011), and Advisor on Gender Issues to the University President (2011-2013). She currently serves as Vice Rector of the Hebrew University. Professor, Hebrew University (2008-present) Vice Rector, Hebrew University (2012-present) Editor-in-Chief, ACM Transactions on Computational Logic Keynote speaker at LICS, CONCUR, ICALP, and TACAS conferences Her research focuses on the theoretical foundations of formal verification and synthesis of computer systems, with notable contributions to automata-theoretic approaches for branching-time model checking and synthesis of reactive systems. She pioneered 'safraless decision procedures' for automata on infinite words and developed formal measures for system quality analysis. Prof. Kupferman received an ERC Starting Grant (2012-2017) and secured competitive international grants for collaborations between Israel and the US/Germany. Her editorial roles include membership on the Editorial Board of Formal Methods in System Design and Logical Methods in Computer Science . Published over 40 journal papers and 140 conference papers Chaired the IEEE Symposium on Logic in Computer Science (LICS) in 2013 Volunteer speaker at high schools and drug-addiction centers
X. Christine Wang is a Professor in the Department of Learning and Instruction at the Graduate School of Education of the University at Buffalo . She serves as Director of the Fisher-Price Endowed Early Childhood Research Center and holds the role of Senior Associate Dean for Interdisciplinary Research . Her work bridges early childhood education , computational thinking , and digital innovations , with a focus on qualitative research methods and diversity in learning contexts. PhD in Curriculum and Instruction, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign MEd and BA in Education, Beijing Normal University, China Her research explores how digital media and embodied learning shape young children’s cognitive development, literacy, and STEM engagement. She emphasizes multimodal text engagement , gender equity , and global educational issues . Recent projects analyze computational thinking in preschool settings, leveraging robotics and programming toys to enhance learning. Wang’s scientific awards include the Best Paper Award at ISLS Annual Meeting (2022) and the Dean’s Apple Award for Outstanding Service (2022). She has secured grants from the Spencer Foundation and NSF to investigate critical pedagogy, science inquiry, and multimodal literacy in early education. She actively contributes to academic service as an Associate Editor for Early Childhood Research Quarterly and co-chairs committees for the AERA Division C . Her lab, the Fisher-Price Endowed Early Childhood Research Center , focuses on integrating technology and interdisciplinary research into early childhood practices.
