Professor Silvia Gaia is a Professor of Accounting at Essex Business School (EBS), University of Essex. She currently serves as the EBS Director of Sustainability and the Deputy Head of the Accounting Group. Previously, she held the position of Undergraduate Program Director for Accounting from 2018 to 2021 and worked as a Lecturer in Accounting at the University of Cagliari in Italy. She has also held visiting scholar positions at the University of Birmingham (UK), HEC Montréal (Canada), and Columbia Business School (USA). Her educational background includes a PhD from the University of Roma TRE and an MA from the University of Cagliari. Professor Gaia's research focuses on the interplay between financial and non-financial reporting, social and environmental issues, and corporate governance. Her specific research interests include: Corporate Governance Executive remuneration Shareholders activism Voluntary disclosure Financial reporting Social performance and Business Ethics Social and environmental reporting Her recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on integrated reporting, sustainability disclosure, and the relationship between corporate governance practices and social/environmental performance. She has published in highly reputed academic journals such as Accounting, Auditing and Accountability Journal, Accounting and Business Research, British Accounting Review, Accounting Forum, Regional Studies, and Journal of Business Ethics. Professor Gaia has received several research grants from notable bodies including: Financial Reporting Council (FRC) Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) Institute of Family Business (IFB) British Academy (BA) She serves as an Associate Editor for Accounting Forum and Journal of International Accounting Auditing and Taxation and is an editorial board member of the Journal of Accounting in Emerging Economies. From 2021 to 2024, she was the Chair of the Special Interest Group of the British Accounting and Finance Association (BAFA) on Financial Accounting and Reporting (FARSIG) and currently sits on the FARSIG Advisory Board.








