Amalia Foka is an Assistant Professor in Computer Science Applications for the Arts at the Department of Fine Arts & Art Sciences , School of Fine Arts , University of Ioannina , Greece. She has held academic positions at the University of Patras (2005-2013), University of Ioannina (2005-2008), and Computer Technology Institute & Press "Diophantus" (2014-2015). Her research bridges Artificial Intelligence with Digital Art , focusing on Generative AI , Social Media Mining , and Human-Computer Interaction within artistic contexts. Education: BEng in Computer Systems Engineering (1998) from the University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology (UMIST) , UK MSc in Advanced Control (1999) from UMIST PhD in Robotics (2005) from the Department of Computer Science , University of Crete Her artistic research includes projects like Bushwalking (StyleGAN2 landscape generation), Breaking the Silence (NLP analysis of taboo topics), and The Invisible Structures of the Artworld (social media-driven network visualization). She leads the Multimedia Lab at the University of Ioannina, focusing on AI in Creative Processes and Digital Interaction methodologies.
Mohsen Lesani is an Associate Professor in the Computer Science and Engineering Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz's Baskin School of Engineering. His research focuses on reliability and security of software systems, particularly concurrent and distributed systems, with recent emphasis on secure replicated systems and distributed machine learning. Dr. Lesani received his PhD from UCLA, MS in artificial intelligence from Sharif University of Technology, and BS in software engineering from University of Tehran. He was previously a postdoc at MIT. His educational background provides a strong foundation for his interdisciplinary research spanning programming languages, distributed systems, and security. His research interests center on creating reliable and secure distributed systems. Current projects include resilient and secure distributed systems, heterogeneous and reconfigurable secure distributed systems, automatic analysis and synthesis of replicated objects, verification of distributed systems, data analytics, secure exchange across blockchains, machine learning for performance models, domain-specific languages and type systems, and automatic fence insertion for concurrent systems. His work bridges theoretical foundations with practical implementations to address real-world challenges in distributed computing. Lesani's research has been recognized with several prestigious awards including the NSF CAREER award in 2020 and DARPA YFA award in 2022. His work has also received the SIGPLAN Research Highlight in 2019, a distinguished paper award at OOPSLA 2018, and a best paper award at ISSRE 2015. These accolades reflect the impact and quality of his contributions to the field. He actively mentors PhD students in the Safe and Secure Software (S3) lab, including Xiao Li, Eric Chan, Javad Saber-Latibari, and Tejas Mane. His research has been supported by multiple NSF grants, demonstrating sustained funding for his innovative work. Lesani serves on program committees for major conferences including POPL, PLDI, OOPSLA, and DISC, contributing to the academic community. Lesani leads the Safe and Secure Software (S3) lab at UC Santa Cruz, where his team works on cutting-edge research in distributed systems, programming languages, and security. The lab fosters a collaborative environment where theoretical insights are translated into practical systems that address real-world challenges in reliability and security of distributed applications.
Kyprianos Papadimitriou is a Researcher at the Microprocessor and Hardware Laboratory within the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the Technical University of Crete . He holds a PhD in Electronic and Computer Engineering (2012) and has been involved in teaching laboratory courses such as Logic Design , Computer Architecture , and VLSI/ASIC Circuit Design . Research Areas : His work spans Reconfigurable Systems , Hardware Design , Computer Architecture , RFID Systems , and Real-Time Systems . He has developed innovative approaches in FPGA-based dynamic reconfiguration, MPSoC security, and 3D stereo vision for surveillance. Key Trends : Runtime reconfiguration for FPGAs Security frameworks for NoC-based MPSoCs Low-cost embedded vision systems Optimization of reconfiguration overhead Hardware task scheduling methodologies Genetic algorithm implementations on FPGAs Scientific Contributions : 1 USA patent (2005) Co-author of VLSI-SoC 2013 paper nominated for 1st Prize Active member of scientific committees (FPL, ReConFig) Peer reviewer for IEEE, Elsevier, and Springer journals Session chair at IEEE CNS and HPCC conferences Grants & Projects : Participated in competitive European and national programs, serving as scientific manager, coordinator, and technical coordinator. Developed spin-off company (2003-2005) to commercialize master's thesis research. Laboratory & Teaching : Affiliated with the Microprocessor and Hardware Laboratory , focusing on practical training in digital systems, processor-based systems, and VLSI design.
Amalia Miliou is a Professor in the Department of Informatics at Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, where she has served since 1993, progressing through the academic ranks from Lecturer to her current position as Professor since 2022. She holds a PhD in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Florida (1991) with specialization in Optoelectronics, following an MSc in the same field (1988) and a Physics degree from Aristotle University (1985). Her research focuses on optical communications systems, with specific expertise in optoelectronic circuits simulation, optical switching, optical RAM development, converged fiber-wireless technology, 5G networks, and secure optical communications using chaos theory. Over her career, she has supervised numerous graduate students across these research areas, with thesis topics spanning optical memory systems, fiber-wireless integration, chaos-based secure communications, and advanced optical network architectures. Her recent publications (2021-2024) demonstrate a strong focus on next-generation optical networking solutions for 5G/6G applications, including fiber-wireless convergence, optical memory systems for high-speed networks, and innovative approaches to optical signal processing. Her work bridges fundamental photonics research with practical telecommunications applications, particularly in addressing the bandwidth and latency challenges of modern mobile networks. Professor Miliou has served as the Coordinator of the LLP-ERASMUS student exchange program at the Department of Informatics since 1997 and has held various administrative positions including membership in the University Senate and General Assembly. She has led and participated in numerous research projects, most recently focusing on technological improvements for 5G systems through optical-wireless network development (2019-2021), next-generation healthcare applications leveraging 6G networks (2023-2027), and photonic integrated circuits for random access memory (2012-2015).
Emmanouel (Manos) Varvarigos is a Professor at the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), where he leads the High Speed Communication Networks Laboratory. He holds a Diploma from NTUA (1988) and an M.S./Ph.D. from MIT (1990/1992). Prior roles include Professorships at UC Santa Barbara (1992-1998) and Delft University (1998-1999), and leadership at the University of Patras (1999-2015). He has coordinated over 30 EU research projects, including H2020 initiatives like ORCHESTRA and FLEXGRID. His research focuses on optical networking, cloud computing, smart energy grids, and high-speed network protocols. He has published over 450 papers and serves on numerous conference committees. Awards include the NSF Research Initiation Award. His lab employs 5 postdocs and 10+ PhD students, addressing challenges in networking, data centers, and grid computing. Education: Ph.D., Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, MIT, 1992 M.S., Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, MIT, 1990 Diploma in Electrical and Computer Engineering, NTUA, 1988 Research Interests: Optical networking, high-speed network protocols, data center architectures, cloud computing, smart energy grids, wireless networks, and distributed systems. Grants & Projects: Coordinated 7 EU projects (e.g., FLEXGRID, ORCHESTRA) and participated in 35+ others. National projects include roles as Scientific Director of the Greek School Network and CTI’s Network Technologies Division. Labs & Teams: Directs the High Speed Communication Networks Lab (HSCNL), collaborating with global institutions on optical networks, edge cloud, and smart grids. The lab’s work includes EU-funded projects on 5G, data centers, and renewable energy integration.
Dr. Ioanna Kantzavelou is an Associate Professor at the Department of Informatics and Computer Engineering, School of Engineering, University of West Attica. She leads the INSSec Research Group, focusing on Information, Networks, and Systems Security. Her expertise spans Cybersecurity, Game Theoretic approaches in Intrusion Detection, and Critical Infrastructure Protection. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of the Aegean (2011), an M.Sc. from University College Dublin (1994), and a B.Sc. from the Technological Educational Institution of Athens (1991). Education: Ph.D. in Intrusion Detection with Game Theoretic Approaches – University of the Aegean (2011) M.Sc. in Computer Security – University College Dublin (1994) B.Sc. in Informatics – TEI of Athens (1991) Research Interests: Intrusion Detection in IoT/Wireless Sensor Networks (WSN) and Cyber-Physical Systems Cyber Ranges for Education and Research Cybersecurity for Merchant Shipping and Critical Infrastructures Hybrid Threats, Cyberterrorism, and Cyberwarfare Digital Forensics and Blockchain-Based Authentication Systems Her work includes over 30 peer-reviewed publications, three books, and contributions to R&D projects funded by the Greek government, EU, and Irish government. She actively reviews for IEEE, Elsevier, and Springer journals, and is a member of ACM, IEEE Computer Society, and the Greek Computer Society. Grants & Collaborations: EU-funded projects on Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection Greek government grants for Cyber Ranges and IoT Security Labs/Teams: Head of the INSSec Research Group, collaborating with industry partners on Cybersecurity solutions for maritime and industrial sectors.
Aris T. Pagourtzis is a Professor of Computer Science at the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering of the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), where he also serves as the Head of the Computer Science Division. He is additionally a Lead Researcher at the Archimedes Research Center, Athena RC. His academic career includes positions at the University of Ioannina, the University of Liverpool, the ETH Zuerich, the University of Athens, and the Athens University of Economics and Business. Education: Diploma in Electrical Engineering (1989) and Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering (1999), both from the National Technical University of Athens Professor Pagourtzis's research spans multiple areas of theoretical computer science, with particular emphasis on computational complexity, graph algorithms, distributed algorithms, approximation algorithms, network algorithms, cryptography, and counting complexity. His work often bridges theoretical foundations with practical applications in network design, security protocols, and optimization problems. He has developed novel algorithms for problems ranging from community detection in networks to Byzantine fault-tolerant protocols and privacy-preserving voting systems. His recent publications show a continued focus on fundamental algorithmic problems while expanding into newer areas like temporal graph analysis, blockchain applications, and privacy-preserving technologies. There's a clear trend toward addressing real-world challenges through rigorous theoretical frameworks, particularly in distributed systems, secure computation, and optimization under constraints. Professor Pagourtzis has served on program and organizing committees for numerous theoretical computer science and cryptography conferences, co-chairing CIAC 2017 and FCT 2021. His research has received funding from diverse sources including US, UK, French, EU, and Greek national resources. He is actively involved in teaching both undergraduate and graduate courses at NTUA, including Algorithms and Complexity, Foundations of Computer Science, Computational Cryptography, and Network Algorithms and Complexity. He leads the Computation and Reasoning Laboratory (corelab) at NTUA, which focuses on theoretical computer science research.
Ioannis Tsaknakis is an Associate Professor at the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, School of Engineering, University of Peloponnese. He holds a PhD in computational geometry and multidimensional data structures from the University of Patras (2004) and has been actively involved in software systems research since 2004. His work spans Database Information Management , Big Data Systems , and Knowledge Mining , with a focus on data structures and computational geometry. Research Interests : Information Management in Databases Big Data Management Systems Computational Geometry Knowledge Mining in Databases/Web Publications highlight his contributions to IoT-driven educational frameworks, machine learning applications, and cryptographic systems for data security. He has taught courses on software design and data management since joining the University of Peloponnese in 2019. Contact : jtsaknakis@uop.gr . Office hours are in Building K (Monday & Tuesday, 8:00-9:00).
Ioannis Theodoridis is a Professor at the Department of Informatics, University of Piraeus, and Director of the Data Science Laboratory under the School of Information and Communication Technologies. His research focuses on data science, particularly large-scale data management and analysis, with applications in maritime informatics, spatiotemporal data, and mobility patterns. He holds editorial roles at ACM Computing Surveys and has contributed to numerous international conferences and journals. As a project leader in Horizon 2020 initiatives, he has coordinated research on data-driven solutions for maritime safety and urban mobility. He earned his Diploma (1990) and PhD (1996) in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA). His work includes developing scalable systems for maritime route forecasting (e.g., GMSA), frameworks for vessel trajectory prediction (e.g., VesselVision), and platforms like i4sea for fisheries monitoring. Contact: ytheod@unipi.gr .
Kostas Magoutis is Professor and Chair of the Computer Science Department at the University of Crete , and a collaborating researcher at FORTH-ICS . His research focuses on scalable distributed systems, cloud computing, IoT, and quantum-enhanced control. Education and Career: Ph.D. in Computer Science, Harvard University (2003) Research Staff Member, IBM T. J. Watson Research Center (2003-2009) Assistant Professor (2014-2019, tenured 2017) and Associate Professor (2020-2024), University of Crete Professor and Chair, University of Crete (2024-present) Research Interests: His work spans distributed computer systems , cloud computing , scalable data stores and stream-processing engines , Internet of Things , and the emerging area of quantum-enhanced control . Representative projects include the H.F.R.I.-funded QUADS (2025-2028) on quantum-enhanced adaptive systems, STREAMSTORE (2020-2023) on elastic stream processing, SmartCityBus on IoT-driven public transport, and the EU FP7 PaaSage project on model-based cloud lifecycle management. Awards and Honors: Best Paper Awards: USENIX ATC 2002, USENIX BSDCon 2002, IEEE SRDS 2014 (Best Student Paper), IoT 2024 (Runner-up) Grand Challenge Audience Award, ACM DEBS 2022 Best Poster Award, ACM EuroSys 2022 EU Marie Curie IEF Fellow (2009-2011) Alexander S. Onassis Fellow (1994-1995) and J. William Fulbright Scholar (1993-1994) Students and Mentoring: He has supervised or co-supervised more than 30 Ph.D., M.Sc. and undergraduate students, including Antonis Papaioannou (Ph.D. 2021), Efthimios Papageorgiou (current Ph.D.), and numerous M.Sc. graduates now in industry and academia. Labs and Teams: At FORTH-ICS he leads activities within the Distributed Systems and Storage Laboratory, coordinating research on scalable storage, stream processing, and IoT data management. The lab collaborates closely with European and national initiatives, hosting visiting researchers and industry partners.
Evangelia Georgia Kostaki is a Biostatistician and Epidemiologist serving as a Lecturer in the Department of Hygiene, Epidemiology, and Medical Statistics at the School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (NKUA). She holds a PhD in Molecular Epidemiology from NKUA and has extensive teaching experience in medical statistics, epidemiology, and public health at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Her research focuses on molecular epidemiology of infectious diseases (HIV, HCV, HBV, and SARS-CoV-2), with emphasis on public health applications such as outbreak response and transmission network analysis. Education: Bachelor’s degree (NKUA) MSc in Biostatistics (NKUA) PhD in Molecular Epidemiology (NKUA) Research interests include HIV transmission dynamics, antiretroviral resistance surveillance, and pandemic response strategies. She has contributed to over 50 peer-reviewed articles and 2 book chapters, with active participation in global initiatives like the European AIDS Clinical Society (EACS) YING network and the Greek National Action Plan for HIV. Notable achievements include a New Investigator Scholarship (NSRF 2014-2020) and over 160 conference presentations internationally. Advisory roles include supervising 25+ MSc theses and supporting PhD candidates. Grants include co-investigator roles in national/international projects. She actively contributes to scientific societies, editorial boards, and guideline development for HIV testing protocols in Europe. Labs/Teams: Collaborates with the European Virus Bioinformatics Center (EVBC) and global networks addressing HIV and viral hepatitis epidemiology.
Labros Bisdounis is a Professor at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of the Peloponnese, Greece. He previously held positions at the Technological Educational Institute of Western Greece, including Associate Professor, Full Professor, and Dean of the School of Technological Applications (2016–2018). He has extensive industry experience as a senior research engineer and project manager at Intracom S.A. (2000–2008), focusing on VLSI circuits and telecom applications. His research interests include CMOS circuit timing/power modeling, low-power/high-speed design, MOSFET modeling, and sensor applications. He has authored over 30 papers with 740+ citations and is an IEEE member. Education: Diploma in Electrical Engineering (1992), University of Patras Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering (1999), University of Patras Research Interests: CMOS circuit timing and power dissipation modeling Deep-submicron/nano-CMOS circuit design MOSFET device modeling Low-power embedded systems and SoC Sensor applications and organic electronics Leadership Roles: Dean of the School of Engineering, University of the Peloponnese (2023–present) Director of Training & Lifelong Learning Centre (2019–2019) Board Member, Hellenic NARIC (2016–2019) Collaborations: Active at the Hellenic Open University as a tutor in Computer Architecture and Digital Systems modules. Co-developed the AETHER framework for pervasive computing and contributed to energy-aware SoC designs for 5 GHz WLANs.
Stavrakakis Ioannis is a Professor at the Department of Informatics and Telecommunications, School of Science, University of Athens, where he has served since 2002. He previously held academic positions at Northeastern University (1994-1999) and University of Vermont (1988-1994). Ph.D., Electrical Engineering (1988), University of Virginia Diploma, Electrical Engineering (1983), Aristotle University of Thessaloniki His research focuses on network resource allocation algorithms , cooperative content dissemination , mobile ad hoc networks , and privacy-aware protocols . He leads the Advanced Networking Research (ANR) Group. Recent publications highlight trends in AI-driven network optimization , edge computing for VR , drone-assisted sensor networks , and privacy in vehicular systems . Key themes include game theory applications, energy-efficient protocols, and distributed learning frameworks. Contact: ioannis@di.uoa.gr
Professor Foto N. Afrati is a Distinguished Faculty Member at the National Technical University of Athens, specifically within the School of Electrical and Computing Engineering and the Division of Communication, Electronic and Information Engineering. She has held this position since 1993, following previous academic ranks at the same university as Associate Professor (1989-1993), Assistant Professor (1985-1989), Lecturer (1982-1985), and Research Fellow (1980-1982). She completed her PhD in Electrical Engineering at Imperial College of the University of London in March 1980, with a dissertation focused on Error Correcting Codes by Algorithms. Her academic journey also included a Diploma from Imperial College (March 1980) and an earlier Diploma in Electrical and Mechanical Engineering from the National Technical University of Athens (June 1976). Professor Afrati's research interests span several critical areas in computer science: Parallel and distributed computation Processing of very large data (including MapReduce) Data and web mining Database Systems Information integration Query optimization Computation and complexity of algorithms Approximation algorithms Her most recent publications demonstrate expertise in MapReduce environments, query optimization with views, and data exchange frameworks. These works are published in prestigious venues like EDBT, VLDB, PODS, and ICDT, with specific focus areas including adaptive sampling techniques, data source integrity, and algorithm complexity in database environments. Professor Afrati has received significant recognition in her field, including Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Best Paper Award at the International Conference on Database Theory (ICDT) 2009 She has advised numerous PhD students throughout her career, including Theodoros Mitakos, Ezz Hattab, Nikos Kiourtis, and Angelos Vasilakopoulos. Her current PhD students include Victor Kyritsis and Nikos Stassinopoulos. Professor Afrati maintains strong professional networks through her various visiting positions at institutions such as Google, Stanford University, IBM Research Center, University of Helsinki, University of Paris, DIMACS, and others. She has served as associate editor and reviewer for major academic journals and conferences including IEEE TKDE, ACM Transactions of Database Systems (TODS), Journal of ACM (JACM), and Theoretical Computer Science (TCS). Her extensive work in research projects spans both national and international initiatives, with funding from sources including the European Union's Thalis project, ESPRIT working groups, HCM networks, and Greek General Secretariat of Research and Technology grants.
Evangelos Papapetrou is an Associate Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Ioannina, Greece. He holds a Diploma (1998) and PhD (2003) in Electrical and Computer Engineering from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki. His research focuses on wireless and mobile networks, including mobile ad-hoc networks, opportunistic networks, satellite networks, quality of service (QoS), and network coding. He has contributed to over 50 peer-reviewed publications and actively participates in EU/nationally funded projects. Research interests include: Wireless/Mobile Network Architectures Opportunistic and Social Mobile Networks Satellite Communication Systems Network Coding Techniques Routing Protocol Design His work emphasizes practical implementations of network protocols, with recent trends focusing on ultra-reliable low-latency communication, energy-efficient broadcasting, and protocol optimizations for 5G/IoT environments. He has developed simulation tools like Adyton for opportunistic networks and contributed to privacy-preserving routing solutions. Teaching responsibilities include courses on Computer Networks I and Wireless Networks (2024/25). He maintains active IEEE/ACM memberships and serves on conference review committees.
