Prof. Floris de Lange is a Professor at the Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, and holds a part-time W3-Professorship in Cognitive Computational Neuroscience at the University of Bonn. His research focuses on understanding how top-down factors like goals, attention, expectations, and prior knowledge shape perception, cognition, and decision-making. He uses behavioral and neuroimaging techniques (MEG, fMRI, TMS) to study these processes in healthy and pathological brains. Key research themes include predictive perception, attention, and the neural mechanisms underlying decision-making. His work has been supported by prestigious grants such as the Vici and ERC Consolidator Grants. He teaches courses on Attention and Prediction, Cognitive Control, and Neurophysiology of Cognition and Behaviour. Education: Not explicitly stated in the provided text. Awards: Vici Grant (NWO), ERC Consolidator Grant, Ammodo Science Award, and others. Labs/Teams: Leads the Predictive Perception and Cognition group within the Donders Institute. His research highlights the brain’s predictive nature, demonstrating how expectations modulate sensory processing in early visual cortex and influence decision-making. He collaborates internationally, including an adversarial testing project on theories of consciousness.
Damian White is a Professor of Social Theory and Environmental Sociology at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where he served as Head of the History, Philosophy and the Social Sciences department (2012–16) and Dean of Liberal Arts (2017–22). He holds degrees from Keele University (BA), Birbeck College (MS), and the University of Essex (PhD). His work bridges political sociology, environmental studies, and design theory, focusing on post-carbon transitions, urban ecologies, and the intersections of labor, ecology, and futurism. Education: BA, Keele University MS, Birbeck College PhD, University of Essex Research interests include the political sociology of design/architecture, environmental-labor studies, post-carbon transitions, utopian/dystopian futures, and critical urban studies. His books include Designing the Just Transition?: Design Politics, Labor and Post Carbon Futures (forthcoming 2026) and Environments, Nature and Social Theory (2015). He has edited volumes on technonatures, Colin Ward’s writings, and Bookchin’s critical theory. His articles analyze climate futures, just transitions, and the role of design in ecological modernization. Awards include the Edna Schaffer Humanist Award (2008) and the John R. Frazier Teaching Award (2012). He has held roles at Goldsmiths College (University of London) and James Madison University. Advising and grants: While no specific students are listed, his research emphasizes collaborative design and labor-centered approaches to sustainability. Editorial roles include Design Philosophy Papers , Science as Culture , and InTAR: Journal of Adaptive Reuse . Labs/teams: His work engages interdisciplinary teams in climate futures research, design politics, and eco-socialist frameworks.
Raju J Das is a Professor at York University's Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change, affiliated with graduate programs in Geography, Social and Political Thought, Environmental Studies, Development Studies, and Communication and Culture. His research bridges Marxist political economy with contemporary issues including neoliberal industrialization in India, class struggle, and the political dimensions of climate change and public health. Das earned a PhD in Geography from The Ohio State University, an MA in Urban Studies from the University of Akron, an MA in Geography from the University of Delhi, and a BA (Honours) in Geography from Utkal University. He serves on editorial boards of journals like Science & Society , Class, Race and Corporate Power , and the Dialectical Anthropology advisory board. His scholarly work examines geographical uneven development, the ruralization/urbanization of capital, and the interplay between neoliberal state policies and class power. Recent projects funded by SSHRC Insight Grant (2016-2022) analyze industrialization patterns in India's rural periphery, focusing on land acquisition conflicts and the dialectics of capitalist expansion. Das teaches radical political economy at the graduate level and undergraduate courses on global economy, international development, and state-civil society relations. He is a Faculty Fellow at York's Dahdaleh Institute for Global Health, integrating his critique of capitalism with health equity concerns.
Fouad Makki is an Associate Professor in the Department of Global Development at Cornell University. His work bridges sociology, political economy, and historical analysis with a focus on Ethiopia and northeast Africa. He teaches courses on sociological theory, development, and African studies. Makki holds a Ph.D. in historical sociology from Binghamton University and a B.A. in Comparative Studies from Cornell. Education: Ph.D. in Sociology, Binghamton University B.A. in Independent Major: Comparative Studies in Society and History, Cornell University (Summa cum laude, 1993) His research centers on uneven and combined development , exploring state-society relations, ecological dynamics, and modernity's impact. Key themes include land enclosures in Ethiopia, revolutionary trajectories, and the metabolic rift between society and nature. His work integrates global historical frameworks with on-the-ground ethnographic insights. Recent publications analyze Ethiopia's developmental pathways, global economic structures, and the socio-ecological consequences of land grabs. He has presented widely on topics like water scarcity, postcolonial political economy, and Red Sea cultural history. Awards: CALS Young Faculty Teaching Excellence Award (2010) Cornell University Summa cum laude (1993) Makki leads projects funded by the Polson Institute for Global Development, focusing on equity and sustainability. He advises students in global development and directs research teams addressing environmental justice and historical sociology. His interdisciplinary approach connects theoretical frameworks with empirical studies, fostering collaboration across departments and international partners.
Bjarte Hannisdal is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geosciences at the University of Bergen, Norway, and affiliated with the Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research. He plays a key leadership role in iEarth, a national Centre of Excellence in geoscience education, serving as the iEarth Education Chair and Head of Focus Area 1, which aims to develop innovative frameworks for higher education in geosciences. Department of Geosciences, University of Bergen Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research iEarth – Centre of Excellence in Geoscience Education His research lies at the intersection of geobiology, paleontology, and Earth system science, with a strong focus on quantitative methods. He investigates Earth system evolution, causality in dynamical systems, and the co-evolution of life and the planet using advanced statistical and information-theoretic approaches applied to geological and fossil records. His work spans microbial ecology in deep-sea sediments, paleoclimatology through isotope analysis, and the detection of causal interactions in deep time. Hannisdal has made significant contributions through a high-impact publication record, with articles in top journals such as Science , Nature Geoscience , PNAS , and Physical Review E . His recent publications highlight trends in applying machine learning and information theory to geoscience problems, including microbial responses to oxygen, causality detection in incomplete records, and the calibration of geochemical proxies. These works reflect a strong interdisciplinary trend, integrating biology, physics, and computational methods into Earth sciences. He is actively involved in higher education, having developed and taught courses such as GEOV114 (Introduction to Geobiology) and GEOV302 (Data Analysis in Geosciences), and contributes to others like GEOV344 and BIO318. His educational research explores student-centered learning and computational skill development. He has supervised doctoral research, including Dario Blumenschein’s project on educational change. His work is supported by funding from the Research Council of Norway, Trond Mohn Foundation, and EU Horizon 2020. Hannisdal collaborates widely across institutions and disciplines, as evidenced by his co-authorship with researchers from Norway, the US, Germany, and others.
Bengi Akbulut is an Associate Professor in the Department of Geography, Planning and Environment at Concordia University's Faculty of Arts and Science. Her academic work critically examines the intersections of political economy, ecological economics, and development studies with particular attention to Turkey's political-economic landscape and global alternatives to mainstream economic paradigms. Dr. Akbulut's research spans Political Economy, Ecological Economics, Development Economics, Economic Alternatives, Political Ecology, Feminist Economics, and Social Movements. Her scholarship critically analyzes the relationships between economic growth, environmental sustainability, and social justice, with significant contributions to degrowth theory and democratic economic planning. She investigates how authoritarian neoliberal regimes operate, particularly in Turkey, while exploring grassroots movements that challenge extractive development models. Her feminist economics work includes a multidimensional approach to gender gaps in poverty, demonstrating commitment to intersectional analyses of economic systems. Analysis of Dr. Akbulut's publication record reveals a consistent trajectory toward critiquing mainstream economic paradigms while developing concrete alternatives. Her work shows increasing engagement with degrowth theory and its practical applications, particularly in relation to democratic economic planning and ecological economics. She has made significant contributions to understanding the pluriverse of alternatives to sustainable development, with particular attention to how these alternatives manifest in practice across different contexts, while maintaining a strong geographic focus on Turkey. Dr. Akbulut actively participates in international scholarly networks focused on degrowth, ecological economics, and political ecology. Her frequent collaborations with researchers across institutions and countries indicate active engagement in transnational research collectives addressing critical issues at the intersection of political economy and environmental sustainability. She has co-edited special journal issues including a 2020 Virtual Special Issue in Ecological Economics on environmental justice and degrowth, demonstrating leadership in these scholarly communities.
Salvo Torre is an Associate Professor of Geography (SSD M-GGR/01) at the Department of Humanities, University of Catania, with a specific academic affiliation to the SDS of Ragusa. He has held this position since June 4, 2018, and obtained national scientific qualification as a full professor in 2021. His academic work is centered on critical geography, political ecology, and decolonial thought, with a strong focus on socio-environmental conflicts, urban struggles, and the Mediterranean region. He is actively engaged in international research networks and has held visiting positions at institutions such as the Institut d'Història de la Ciència, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, and KTH Royal Institute of Technology. His research interests are extensive and interconnected, including Political Ecology, Decolonial Thought, Socio-Environmental Conflicts, Urban Geography, Migration Studies, and Environmental Justice. His work critically examines the intersections of power, knowledge, and nature, often challenging Eurocentric and capitalist epistemologies. He is the director of the Radical Ecology book series at Mimesis Edizioni and has co-directed other academic series, reflecting his leadership in shaping scholarly discourse. The collection of his recent articles reveals a consistent and evolving intellectual trajectory focused on the crisis of capitalism and modernity from a socio-ecological and decolonial perspective. His publications analyze the production of nature, the epistemology of the urban, and the integral crises of reproduction, often situating Italy and the Mediterranean within broader global dynamics. His work bridges theoretical rigor with engagement in social movements, particularly around climate justice and migrant rights. Admitted to funding from the Fondo per il finanziamento delle attività base di ricerca (FFABR) – Ministry of Education, University and Research for the year 2017 Salvo Torre is a principal investigator (P.I.) for the national research project PRIN 2022 JUSTAINABILITY, which focuses on just sustainability and transformative knowledge for a just transition. He has led and participated in numerous other research projects, including those on decolonizing migration studies and administrative territories. He has supervised PhD students and mentored early-career researchers. He is also an active member of several scientific committees for academic journals and book series, such as Movimentos Sociais e Dinâmicas Espaciais , Annali della Facoltà di Scienze della Formazione , and the Intelligere series. He is deeply involved in academic and public discourse, organizing international workshops and symposia (e.g., Politics Ontologies Ecologies, Decolonizzare gli studi su Africa e migrazioni) and serving on university committees. His work extends beyond academia through public lectures, radio broadcasts, and contributions to media outlets like Il Manifesto , where he connects scholarly analysis with contemporary political struggles.
Dr. Andreas Mayer is an Associate Professor at the Institute for Social Ecology within the Department of Economic and Social Sciences at the University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU). With a Mag. in Social and Human Ecology from Alpen-Adria University (2009) and a BA in Sociology from the University of Vienna (2002-2006), he has established himself as a leading researcher in social-ecological systems. His career includes serving as a Research Fellow at ICTA, UAB in Barcelona (2014) and transitioning with the Institute of Social Ecology to BOKU in 2018 after previously working there as a Research Associate from 2009-2018. Dr. Mayer's research focuses on the complex interactions between society and nature, with particular expertise in social metabolism, agent-based modeling, socio-economic biomass metabolism, circular economy approaches, and integrated land use scenarios. His work bridges theoretical frameworks from ecological economics and political ecology with empirical analyses of sustainability transitions. He investigates how socio-ecological systems respond to climate change, resource constraints, and policy interventions, with special attention to agricultural systems, bioeconomy pathways, and urban-rural linkages. His extensive publication record demonstrates a strong trajectory in analyzing sustainability transformations across multiple scales, from local farming decisions to EU-level policy frameworks. Recent work shows increasing integration of biophysical modeling with social theory, particularly Polanyian concepts of re-embedding economic systems within ecological constraints. His research often employs mixed methods, combining quantitative material flow analysis with qualitative insights into decision-making processes. Stadt Wien-BOKU Research Funding Programm (BOKU Jubiläumsfonds): PACE - Pathways towards a circular bioeconomy in Vienna (2023) Best Paper Award for the year 2020 of the Journal 'Resources, Conservation & Recycling' (2021) 2019 Graedel Prize: Journal of Industrial Ecology (JIE) Senior Author Best Paper Prize (2020) Dr. Mayer actively supervises graduate students, with his most recent advisee completing research on global aquaculture feed requirements. He leads multiple significant research projects including 'Potentiale für eine klimaneutrale und zirkuläre Bioökonomie in der Wiener Metropolregion' (2023-2025) and previously led 'Multisectoral Analysis of climate and landuse change impacts on Pollinators, Plant diversity and crop Yields' (2019-2023). His work frequently involves international collaborations across European research networks focused on sustainability transitions. Based at BOKU's Institute for Social Ecology in Vienna, Dr. Mayer contributes to one of Europe's leading research centers examining the social dimensions of environmental change, participating in interdisciplinary teams that integrate natural science, social science, and policy analysis approaches to address pressing sustainability challenges.
Paul K. Gellert is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and a Visiting Research Scholar at the Earth & Environmental Sciences program of the CUNY Graduate Center (Spring 2025). He earned his Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1998 and has focused on Indonesia for over two decades, combining fieldwork with historical analysis. Current Positions: Professor, University of Tennessee; Visiting Research Scholar, CUNY Graduate Center Expertise: Environmental sociology, political economy of natural resources, global coal dynamics, ecologically unequal exchange, world-systems theory His research explores the dialectical relationship between society and nature through case studies on palm oil, coal, and timber industries. Collaborating with Paul S. Ciccantell, he analyzes coal's persistence in capitalist systems. The 15 most recent articles highlight themes of resource frontiers, climate obstruction, extractive peripheries, and long-term commodity cycles. His methodological approach merges structural fieldwork with world-historical analysis, emphasizing processes like financialization and accumulation by dispossession. Current projects include a book manuscript on Indonesia’s century-long natural resource dependency and critical assessments of energy transition narratives. His work challenges teleological assumptions about coal’s decline and examines transnational environmental justice frameworks through commodity chain and ecological exchange lenses.
Mauricio Betancourt is an Assistant Professor of Environmental Studies at Washington and Lee University (W&L), specializing in environmental sociology, global food systems, and ecological imperialism. He holds a B.Sc. in Biology (Summa Cum Laude) and an M.A. in Philosophy of Science from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), followed by an M.A. and Ph.D. in Sociology from the University of Oregon. His research focuses on the metabolic rift theory, ecological imperialism, and the socio-ecological impacts of resource extraction. Recent work examines the 19th-century guano trade’s role in U.S. imperial expansion, linking environmental history to political economy. He has taught courses on environmental justice, climate change, and agroecology, with prior rural work including seven years as a literacy teacher in Mexico and co-founding an agroecology project in Oaxaca. Publications span peer-reviewed journals like Socius , addressing topics from Cuban agroecology to hydroelectric trade-offs. His teaching emphasizes critical analysis of global environmental challenges and unequal development dynamics.
Manuel Luis Gonzalez De Molina Navarro is a Full Professor at Pablo de Olavide University (UPO) in Seville, Spain, specializing in Contemporary History within the Department of Geography, History and Philosophy. He serves as Coordinator of the Agroecosystems History Lab (AGROECOLOGYLAB) and directs the International Master's Program on Agroecology jointly offered by UPO and the International University of Andalusia since 1996. His research spans Environmental History , Agroecology , and Socio-ecological Metabolism , with particular focus on the historical analysis of Spanish agricultural systems. His doctoral work at Universidad de Granada examined La desamortización del trienio liberal en Andalucia (1984) under Dr. José Cepeda Adán. Key methodological contributions include the development of Social Agrarian Metabolism for analyzing agroecosystems and innovative sustainability assessment tools based on land cost calculations. His publication trends reveal deep engagement with long-term socio-ecological transitions in Mediterranean agriculture, examining energy flows, water dynamics, and sustainability metrics across historical periods. Recent work emphasizes agroecological transitions , food system redesign , and policy frameworks for sustainable agriculture, with notable publications in journals like Ecological Economics and Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems . He holds leadership positions as President of the Spanish Society for Agrarian History (SEHA) and former Vice-president of the Spanish Society for Organic Agriculture (SEAE, 2006-2014). His policy experience includes serving as Andalusian Minister of Organic Agriculture (2004-2007). He contributes to editorial boards of Historia Agraria , Anthropoce , Sustainability , and Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems . The Agroecosystems History Lab under his coordination conducts interdisciplinary research integrating historical, ecological, and socio-economic perspectives. His international collaborations include research stays at UC-Berkeley, Terza Universitá di Roma, and UAM-Campus Morelia, reflecting a globally engaged scholarly approach to agrarian sustainability challenges.
Laura McKinney is an Associate Professor of Sociology at Tulane University specializing in environmental justice and climate impacts, holding a Ph.D. from North Carolina State University. Her research examines environmental inequality through global political economy frameworks, with projects on climate justice, gendered HIV disparities, landfill siting inequities, and food deserts. Current work includes macro-comparative studies of ecological degradation and community-based sustainability initiatives. Publications demonstrate strong focus on intersectional environmental analysis, employing geospatial methods and cross-national datasets to explore climate vulnerability and policy failures.
Chiara Tornaghi is an Associate Professor at Coventry University's Centre for Agroecology, Water and Resilience. Her academic journey includes a PhD in Applied Sociology from the University of Milano-Bicocca and a Postgraduate Certificate in European Spatial Planning from Newcastle University. She has held roles at the University of Leeds, TU Vienna, and Politecnico di Milano. Her research focuses on urban agroecology, food justice, and grassroots planning, emphasizing socio-ecological justice and resource sovereignty. She co-chairs the EU-funded COST Action ‘Urban Agriculture Europe’ and leads projects like SOIL NEXUS and GAZA FOODWAYS. A Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, she actively engages in food sovereignty initiatives like Edible Public Space and Reclaim the Fields. Her work bridges academic research with activism, advocating for transformative agroecological urbanism. Education: MA Political Science, Università di Milano (2001) PhD Applied Sociology, University of Milano-Bicocca (2005) Postgraduate Certificate in European Spatial Planning, Newcastle University (2006) Research Interests: Urban agriculture, food sovereignty, insurgent planning, socio-environmental justice, and agroecological urbanism. Awards: Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (RGS). Key Projects: SOIL NEXUS (urban soil remediation and food systems) GAZA FOODWAYS (women-led agroecological systems) Agroecological Urbanism in Action (UK) Her vision emphasizes reimagining cities through agroecology, fostering public space as a site of socio-ecological regeneration. Recent publications explore urban metabolic rifts, community kitchens, and policy frameworks for agroecological transitions.
Brett Clark is Professor of Sociology at the University of Utah, where he has established himself as a leading scholar in environmental sociology and political economy. His research program focuses on the political economy of global environmental change and the philosophy, history, and sociology of science, with particular emphasis on Marxist ecological theory and the metabolic rift framework. Clark's educational background includes a PhD in Sociology from the University of Oregon, an MA in Sociology from Colorado State University, and a BS in Sociology from Black Hills State University. His academic career progressed from Assistant Professor at North Carolina State University (2008-2012) to his current position as Professor at the University of Utah (2019-present), having previously served as Associate Professor (2014-2019) and Assistant Professor (2012-2014) at Utah. Clark's research centers on developing and applying the metabolic rift theory to analyze how capitalism creates fundamental ruptures in the relationship between human societies and the natural world. His work spans environmental sociology, political economy, Marxist theory, and the history of scientific thought, examining how capitalist production transforms ecological systems and creates environmental inequalities. He is particularly known for his collaborations with John Bellamy Foster on books including The Robbery of Nature and The Ecological Rift . His recent publications reveal a strong focus on the connections between militarism and environmental degradation, the application of Lefebvrian spatial theory to ecological crisis, and the theoretical development of metabolic rift analysis. Clark's work consistently bridges theoretical innovation with empirical analysis of contemporary environmental challenges, particularly the relationship between military spending, economic growth, and carbon emissions. 2025: Honorable Mention for the Environmental Sociology Outstanding Publication Award 2024: Lifetime Achievement Award, Marxist Sociology Section 2024: Distinguished Contribution (Lifetime) Award, Environmental Sociology Section 2024: Honorable Mention for the PEWS Distinguished Professional Article Award 2023: University of Utah Distinguished Research Award 2020: Outstanding Marxist Sociology Article Award 2020: Excellence in Mentoring Award 2017: Paul Sweezy Marxist Sociology Book Award Professor Clark has been an active mentor to graduate students, supervising dissertation research in environmental sociology, political economy, and social theory. His teaching portfolio includes courses such as Classical Social Theory, Environmental Sociology, Foundations: Environmental Humanities, and Global Sustainability. He has received multiple awards for his mentoring and teaching excellence, reflecting his commitment to student development. Clark collaborates extensively with scholars across institutions, particularly those working in the tradition of ecological Marxism, contributing to a global network of researchers examining the social dimensions of environmental crisis. His work has significantly shaped contemporary environmental sociology through theoretical innovation and empirical analysis of the relationship between capitalism and ecological breakdown.
Katherine Freeman is the Evan Pugh University Professor in the Department of Geosciences at Pennsylvania State University, part of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. She is a leading figure in biogeochemistry and paleoclimatology, with research spanning ancient biomarkers, isotopic analysis, climate dynamics, and astrobiology. She is also affiliated with the Institutes of Energy and the Environment and contributes to NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission. Research Interests: Her work centers on carbon, water, and climate interactions across geological time. She investigates biomarkers of ancient landscapes , fire markers , habitats of early humans , microbial biogeochemistry , and biosignatures . Her lab explores organic matter in sediments, isotopic fractionation in lipids and hydrocarbons, and environmental fate of pollutants. She also applies these methods to extraterrestrial samples, including asteroid Bennu. Recent Publication Trends: Her recent articles (2023–2025) reflect a strong focus on compound-specific isotope analysis , lipid biomarkers in ancient rocks , climate proxies during hyperthermal events like the PETM , and environmental behavior of PFAS . She also contributes to planetary science through studies of organic matter in asteroid samples and Mars sample return protocols. Her work is highly interdisciplinary, combining geochemistry, microbiology, climate science, and analytical innovation. Scientific Awards: Arthur L. Day Medal Advising and Grants: While specific students are not listed, her frequent co-authorship with early-career researchers suggests active mentorship. She has received support from Penn State’s Institutes of Energy and the Environment, including seed grants, and leads major collaborative projects such as the Biogeochemical, Isotopic, and Paleo-Metagenomic Interrogation of Ecosystem Change in Southwestern Madagascar . She also contributes to high-impact NASA-funded initiatives. Labs and Teams: She leads a research group focused on organic geochemistry and is part of the Penn State Astrobiology Research Center. Her team utilizes advanced mass spectrometry and molecular techniques to analyze isotopic compositions at the compound and intramolecular level. She collaborates with international teams on projects ranging from ancient Earth environments to planetary protection for Mars missions.
