Maria Grazia Cammarota is a full professor of Germanic Philology at the Department of Foreign Languages, Literatures and Cultures, University of Bergamo. She serves as the Department's Quality Policy Officer and coordinates the PhD programs in Linguistic Sciences and in Philological and Linguistic Studies on Written and Oral Heritage. Her research focuses primarily on medieval Germanic traditions with particular expertise in: Old English philology Old and Middle German studies Textual criticism of medieval Germanic literature Translation theory and practice for Germanic texts Comparative analysis of Germanic cultural traditions Professor Cammarota's scholarly output reveals a consistent focus on the translation and interpretation of medieval Germanic texts, with particular attention to the Nibelungenlied , the Tannhäuser legend, and cultural representations of life-death interactions. Her work demonstrates sophisticated engagement with both philological methodology and contemporary translation theory, examining how these texts have been received and adapted across different linguistic and cultural contexts over time. As an academic leader, Professor Cammarota teaches advanced courses on Intercultural Phenomena in the Germanic World, Medieval Germanic Cultures, and Textual Criticism and Transmedial Studies. She coordinates two PhD programs, significantly shaping doctoral research in linguistic and philological studies at the University of Bergamo.
Dr. Stefan Nowicki is an Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Social Communication and Media, University of Wrocław, Poland, specializing in educational methodologies and digital literacy. He serves as Director of the Distance Learning Center, focusing on enhancing educational quality through instructional design and technological solutions. Current academic rank: Assistant Professor Primary institutional affiliation: Faculty of Social Communication and Media Administrative role: Director of Distance Learning Center Research interests span multiple domains: Educational technology and e-learning systems Instructional design principles Student motivation and engagement strategies Digital inclusion/exclusion dynamics Historical communication practices in the ancient Near East, particularly Mesopotamian royal inscriptions Religious and ritualistic practices of Mesopotamian civilizations As Director of the Distance Learning Center, he oversees implementation of digital education platforms including LMS systems and content management tools like Joomla and WordPress. His work also involves developing evaluation metrics for educational processes and designing practical workshops for instructional development.
Prof. Dr. hab. Helena Słotwińska is a full-time Professor at the Department of Integral Catechetics within the John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin, Poland. Her academic career spans decades, focusing on religious education, pedagogy of religion, and the intersection of theology with moral and educational practices. Role: Professor in Integral Catechetics Institution: John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin Her research explores the emotional and psychological impacts of religious education, the role of liturgy in pedagogy, and the challenges of aggression and moral development in educational settings. She emphasizes the authority of educators and the integration of theological values into modern pedagogical frameworks. Recent publications highlight her work on sacramental rites, teacher-student dynamics, and the sociological dimensions of religious pluralism. Her articles span journals like Religions , Collectanea Theologica , and Pedagogical Annals , reflecting both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. While no explicit scientific awards are listed in the provided texts, her extensive bibliography and advisory roles (e.g., reviewing Fr. Grzegorz Śniadach's doctoral thesis) underscore her influence in academic and pastoral theology.
Alaya Palamidis is an Associate Professor at Université Toulouse 2, affiliated with the Patrimoine, Littérature, Histoire (PLH) research unit. Her academic work focuses on ancient Greek religion, particularly the study of divine names, sanctuaries, and religious practices in the ancient Mediterranean world. Her research interests center on the linguistic and cultural aspects of divine nomenclature in ancient Greece, particularly as reflected in the works of Herodotus and Pausanias. She examines how divine names functioned as both identifiers and etymological markers within Greek religious thought, and how they reflected cultural exchanges between Greece and Egypt. Her work also explores the decay and rehabilitation of sacred spaces, particularly in times of conflict, and investigates the transmission of religious knowledge within ancient Greek sanctuaries. Her comparative studies extend to examining divine hierarchies across Greek and Semitic religious traditions, with particular attention to minor deities and household religion. Dr. Palamidis's scholarly output reveals a consistent focus on the intersection of language, religion, and cultural identity in the ancient world. Her publications demonstrate expertise in philological analysis, archaeological interpretation, and comparative religious studies, with a particular strength in examining how religious concepts were transmitted and transformed across cultural boundaries. She has received recognition for her scholarly contributions through invitations to contribute to major edited volumes and to present at international conferences. Her collaborative work with Corinne Bonnet on divine names has been particularly influential in the field. Dr. Palamidis is an active member of the PLH research team at Université Toulouse 2, where she contributes to the unit's focus on heritage, literature, and history. She participates in interdisciplinary projects that bridge historical, archaeological, and philological approaches to understanding ancient Mediterranean religions. Her work often involves collaboration with international scholars and institutions, reflecting the global nature of classical studies today.
Timothy Lubin is the Jessie Ball duPont Professor and Chair of the Department of Religion at Washington and Lee University, where he also serves as Adjunct Professor of Law. He heads the Law, Justice and Society Program and the Middle East and South Asia Studies Program, and is Vice-President of the American Society for Premodern Asia. A leading scholar in South Asian religious history and Hindu law, Lubin maintains active research affiliations with institutions across Asia and Europe. His educational background includes: Ph.D. in South Asian religious history, Columbia University (1994) M.Phil. in South Asian religious history, Columbia University (1991) Certificate in South Asian Studies, Columbia University School of International and Public Affairs (1991) M.T.S. in comparative study of religion, Harvard University (1989) B.A. in French literature and linguistics, Columbia University (1986) Lubin's research focuses on Hindu law (Dharmaśāstra) , Brahmanical authority , and the legal and religious history of premodern South and Southeast Asia . His current projects examine the institutionalization of Brahminical traditions, the reception of Sanskrit legal texts in Java and Bali, and the political economy of religious practices. He employs interdisciplinary methods spanning philology, epigraphy, and diplomatics to analyze how religious professionals shaped legal norms and social structures. His extensive publication record reveals consistent engagement with the dynamics of status, religious endowments, and legal pluralism in premodern contexts. Lubin's work bridges religious studies, legal history, and political economy, demonstrating how cosmopolitan legal norms were adapted to local conditions across South and Southeast Asia through charter immunity clauses, property rights, and ritual practices. Key scientific awards include: American Council of Learned Societies fellowship National Endowment for the Humanities fellowship Fulbright-Hays Faculty Research Abroad fellowship American Philosophical Society Sabbatical Fellowship Science and Religion Course Award (2002) Lubin has received substantial research support including Lenfest Foundation sabbatical grants and Glenn Summer Research Grants from Washington and Lee University. His academic leadership extends to organizing major conferences on status and justice, and mentoring junior scholars through collaborative projects. As principal investigator for the ERC-funded DHARMA Project's Southeast Asia components, he directs international teams editing Old Javanese legal texts and analyzing cross-cultural legal transmission. He maintains active research collaborations through the DHARMA Project (ERC 809994), where he co-leads task forces on Southeast Asian textual sources and coordinates with epigraphers at the École française d'Extrême-Orient. Lubin also directs Washington and Lee's Law, Justice and Society Program, fostering interdisciplinary research on legal traditions across historical and cultural contexts.
James S. Bielo is an Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Northwestern University, specializing in the anthropology of religion with a focus on Christianity in the United States. His research investigates materiality and language as lived resources in religious life, exploring the intersections of religion and power through ethnographic fieldwork. Key projects include the interactive digital scholarship initiative Materializing the Bible , featuring physical exhibits at institutions like the Martin Marty Center and Newberry Library special collection. His recent Secondhand Sacred project examines the circulation of Christian material culture through estate sales, thrift stores, and digital platforms. Bielo's scholarship spans books like Ark Encounter (2018) and Anthropology of Religion: The Basics (2015), blending ethnography with public scholarship.
Professor Ian Kerridge is a renowned academic at the University of Sydney , where he holds the Chair in Bioethics and Medicine at Sydney Health Ethics (SHE) . He is also a Staff Haematologist/Bone Marrow Transplant physician at Royal North Shore Hospital in Sydney. His career spans clinical practice, academic leadership, and interdisciplinary research, with a focus on bridging philosophical inquiry and empirical bioethics in healthcare. Education: Trained in medicine at the University of Newcastle, bone marrow transplantation (BMT) at the Royal Free Hospital in London, and philosophy at the Universities of Sydney, Newcastle, and Cambridge. Research Interests include biomedical ethics, public health ethics, organ transplantation, stem cell research, end-of-life care, and the socio-cultural implications of medical innovation. He has extensively explored conflicts of interest, over-diagnosis, and the commercialization of healthcare, particularly in reproductive medicine and transplantation. Teaching & Supervision : Coordinated the Masters in Bioethics program at the University of Sydney and supervises students across medicine, philosophy, nursing, and humanities in Honours, Masters, and Doctoral projects. Leadership Roles: Former Director of SHE (2003-2015) and the Clinical Unit in Ethics and Health Law at the University of Newcastle (1995-2001). Committee Memberships: Chair of the South East Sydney LHD Clinical Ethics Committee, member of the Australian Ethical Health Alliance (AEHA), NSW Health Ethics Advisory Panel, and Director of Praxis Australia. Publications : Authored 6 textbooks and over 500 peer-reviewed papers, with recent work examining the ethical implications of health data use, pandemic research integrity, and the cultural dimensions of assisted dying.
Dr. Sebastian Zerhoch serves as a Researcher at the Institute for Religious Studies within the Department of History and Cultural Studies at Free University of Berlin since October 2016, concurrently holding a 2024-2025 fellowship at Harvard University's Center for Hellenic Studies. His academic trajectory includes extensive research on ancient Greek religious practices and literary traditions. His educational background features: 1998-2005: Studies in Greek Philology, Judaic Studies, and Philosophy at Heidelberg University and Free University of Berlin 2005: Magister Artium in Greek Philology and Judaic Studies, Free University of Berlin 2014: PhD in Greek Philology (Dissertation: Erinys in Epos und Tragödie. Fluchbegriff und personale Fluchmacht ), Free University of Berlin Dr. Zerhoch's research centers on Ancient Greek Religion and Literature , with groundbreaking work on libation rituals as both religious practice and literary metaphor. His investigations span archaic and classical periods, examining divine powers in cultic contexts, mythological frameworks, and textual transmission through palaeographic analysis. His recent publications reveal a methodological synthesis of epigraphic, literary, and historical approaches, with consistent focus on ritual liquids, metaphorical systems, and scholarly reception history. Approximately 60% of his 2020-2024 output directly addresses libation practices across diverse media. His scientific recognition includes: Fellow, Center for Hellenic Studies, Harvard University (2024-2025) Dr. Zerhoch has secured significant research funding through DFG projects including Opfer und Libation im antiken Griechenland and prior contributions to Topoi Cluster's Aetiology of Culture . While no formal advisees are documented, he has instructed 12 graduate-level courses since 2016 covering ancient religion, mythology, and textual analysis. He operates within the Institute for Religious Studies' research collective and maintains active collaborations with Harvard's Center for Hellenic Studies and Berlin's Topoi excellence cluster, focusing on ritual spatiality and knowledge formation in antiquity.
Naveen Kanalu Ramamurthy serves as an Associate Professor at the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences (EHESS) in Paris, where he is affiliated with the Center for Historical Research (CRH). His scholarly work centers on the institutional history of the Mughal Empire (1526-1857) in South Asia, with particular emphasis on the relationship between Hanafi Islamic law and imperial governance structures. Dr. Ramamurthy completed his Doctorate in History at the University of California, Los Angeles (2015-2021), preceded by multiple Master's degrees from prestigious Parisian institutions: Iranian Studies from Sorbonne Nouvelle University Paris 3, History of Economic Thought from Panthéon-Sorbonne University Paris 1, and History and Philosophy from Paris Ouest Nanterre. His academic foundation includes studies at the École Normale Supérieure – Ulm and undergraduate work in Economics at the University of Delhi. His research program examines three interconnected dimensions of Mughal governance: (1) the administrative organization of imperial space, (2) the intersection of legal normativity and historical anthropology, and (3) the regulation of political economy. Drawing on Arabic legal manuscripts, Persian administrative documents, and vernacular language sources, Ramamurthy reveals how Islamic legal institutions adapted to local contexts across precolonial South Asia, challenging simplistic narratives of imperial uniformity. Dr. Ramamurthy's publications demonstrate consistent scholarly engagement with Mughal legal frameworks within trans-imperial networks connecting South Asia with the Middle East and Central Asia. His work bridges historical methodology with theoretical innovation, particularly in analyzing how bureaucratic practices shaped imperial urbanity and legal consciousness during the 17th-18th centuries. Among his significant recognitions, Dr. Ramamurthy received the Collège de France Prize for Young Researchers in 2023. He currently leads the ANR-funded MugUrba project (2024-2027) examining bureaucratic rhythms of imperial urbanity in Mughal South Asia and co-directs the interdisciplinary "Empire" research program at EHESS. As an educator, Ramamurthy teaches courses on "The State in Islam: Authority, Law and Institutions in the Mughal Empire in India," theoretical approaches to historical practice, and contributes to the PRI Empires program. He serves on editorial boards including Annales. Histoire, sciences sociales and participates in the pedagogical council for the History Master's program at EHESS. Dr. Ramamurthy also contributes to the "Research Sources and Data" Collective at CRH, supporting digital initiatives that enhance historical research methodologies while maintaining his primary focus on Mughal institutional history through traditional archival scholarship.
Zachary Wallmark is an Associate Professor of Musicology and Area Chair of Musicology and Ethnomusicology at the University of Oregon's School of Music and Dance. His interdisciplinary research bridges musicology, cognitive science, and sound studies, with a particular focus on musical timbre and its relationship to emotion, meaning, and cultural context. Wallmark maintains a joint affiliation with the Center for Translational Neuroscience at the University of Oregon, reflecting his cross-disciplinary approach. His research interests span popular music studies, timbre analysis, music cognition, and sound studies, with particular attention to how musical timbre functions in emotional response, aesthetic judgment, and music sociology. Wallmark's work explores these themes across diverse musical contexts including American popular music, free jazz, extreme heavy metal, and traditional Japanese music. Wallmark's publications reveal a consistent focus on timbre as a critical yet undertheorized dimension of musical experience. His work spans empirical studies of timbre perception, corpus analyses of timbre semantics, interdisciplinary investigations of timbre's role in meaning-making, and theoretical explorations of timbre's relationship to cultural and social contexts. Recent publications increasingly integrate cognitive neuroscience methodologies with traditional musicological approaches. GRAMMY Museum Foundation Scientific Research Grant UO Presidential Fellowship in Humanistic Study AMS Ruth A. Solie Award Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada Partnership Grant National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Fellowship Wallmark's research has received significant external funding from prestigious organizations including the NEH and the GRAMMY Museum Foundation. He is active in the Analysis, Creation, and Teaching of Orchestration (ACTOR) group, an international research partnership funded by the Canadian Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. His work has been presented at major international conferences including the American Musicological Society (AMS), Society for Music Perception and Cognition (SMPC), Society for Music Theory (SMT), and Society for Ethnomusicology (SEM). Wallmark has also been invited to lecture at notable venues including the National Academy of Sciences in Washington, D.C. Beyond his academic work, he is a published composer, commercial musician, jazz bassist, and performer of the Japanese shakuhachi flute.
François Gauthier is a Full Professor in the Department of Social Sciences at the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, University of Fribourg. Originally from Quebec, he earned his PhD in Religious Sciences from UQAM and previously taught at the Department of Religious Sciences at UQAM from 2009-2012 before joining the University of Fribourg in 2013. He is also the co-founder and co-editor of MAUSS International, an interdisciplinary English-language journal, and serves on the editorial board of the Revue du MAUSS semestrielle. His research spans a wide range of topics including: Sociology and anthropology of modern and contemporary religion in a global perspective Gift theory and its applications Religion and politics Religious festivals (particularly Burning Man and Rainbow Gatherings) Ritual studies (including death rituals) Neo-shamanism and alternative spiritualities Globalization and religion Gauthier's work focuses on developing analytical frameworks for understanding modern and contemporary religious transformations within a global context, particularly examining the relationship between religion and the rise of neoliberalism and consumerism. His approach draws heavily on Marcel Mauss's gift theory and connects with broader social scientific theories. His recent publications reveal a strong focus on the marketization of religion, with particular attention to Global Islam, religious transformations in Orthodox Eastern Europe, and Chinese religious developments. He has conducted significant research on transformational festivals like Burning Man and Rainbow Gatherings, exploring their ritual creativity and religious dimensions. His work also examines wellbeing-oriented spiritualities, religious change in risk societies, and the halal market phenomenon. Gauthier has received research funding from the Swiss National Science Foundation (FNS) for multiple projects including: "Spirits and Gods" (2025-2027) "Religion in the Market Era: The Rise of Market Islam, the Revenge of Confucius, and Other Stories from a Global Age" (2024) "European Network on Death Rituals - Annual Workshop" (2019-2020) "Burning Man and Transformational Event Cultures" (2018) "Ritual Creativity in the Swiss and European Rainbow Gatherings" (2017-2022) "Burning Progeny: The European Efflorescence of Burning Man" (2016-2019) He is particularly known for his work on the European adaptation of Burning Man and its ethos, having organized symposia and conducted ethnographic research on European transformational festival cultures. His research on death rituals in Europe has contributed to understanding contemporary transformations in funerary practices across linguistic regions of Switzerland.
Christoph De Spiegeleer serves as an unpaid guest professor at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (Free University of Brussels), affiliated with the History, Archaeology, Arts, Philosophy and Ethics faculty. His academic work centers on the Secular Studies Association Brussels, where he has been active from 2011 to 2024. His research interests primarily focus on secularization processes, particularly examining the historical development of secular thought and practices in Belgium. His work spans several interconnected fields including funeral practices, 19th century Belgian history, freethinkers movements, and the evolution of atheism in European contexts. A significant portion of his research analyzes how secular alternatives to religious funeral practices developed in 19th century Belgium, exploring the cultural, political and social dimensions of this transformation. De Spiegeleer's publications reveal a strong emphasis on the intersection of religion, death culture, and political identity in Belgian history. His recent work has examined topics such as the moral dimensions of disbelief among Brussels freethinkers (1854-1870), secular burial practices, and the historical context of the Peasants' War. His research often employs transnational perspectives, as seen in his work on Charles Potvin and the Risorgimento. Among his notable recognitions are the De Bock-Doehard Prize for best historical dissertation at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (2009-2010) and the Emile Zola dissertation award (third place, 2012). De Spiegeleer has been actively involved in academic collaborations, including the Workshop on Secularism and Biography (March 2024) and the conference 'THE NON-RELIGIOUS AND THE STATE' (October 2022), where he served as an organizer. His ORCID profile (0000-0002-4927-8607) documents his extensive scholarly output across multiple formats including journal articles, book chapters, books, and conference papers.
Enrique R. Rodríguez-Alegría is a Professor in the Department of Anthropology at The University of Texas at Austin's College of Liberal Arts, where he has established himself as a leading scholar in Mesoamerican archaeology and colonial history. His interdisciplinary approach bridges archaeological, historical, and ethnohistorical methodologies to explore the complex dynamics of cultural interaction during colonial encounters in Latin America. Dr. Rodríguez-Alegría earned his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago, which provided the foundation for his research on how material culture shaped social relations and power dynamics in colonial contexts. His academic journey has focused on understanding indigenous agency within colonial structures through detailed analysis of household artifacts, ceramics, and urban spaces. His research interests span archaeology, history, ethnohistory, Mesoamerica, the Spanish empire in Latin America, Mexico, Puerto Rico, archaeometry (INAA and LA-ICP-MS), colonialism, religious conversion, and food studies. Rodríguez-Alegría's work particularly emphasizes how material culture served as both a medium and expression of power relations between indigenous peoples and colonizers. Through detailed analysis of ceramics, architecture, and household artifacts, he reveals the nuanced ways indigenous communities maintained agency while adapting to colonial structures, challenging simplistic narratives of cultural replacement. Analysis of Rodríguez-Alegría's publications reveals consistent thematic threads across two decades of research. His work demonstrates how colonial encounters created complex material worlds where indigenous technologies persisted alongside European imports. His research on Xaltocan, Mexico, particularly demonstrates how indigenous people maintained and even intensified certain technologies like chipped-stone tool production after the Spanish conquest. His 2023 monograph How to Make a New Spain: The Material Worlds of Colonial Mexico City represents a substantial contribution to understanding colonial Mexico through probate inventories and archaeological evidence from 39 Spanish colonizers. Dr. Rodríguez-Alegría has made significant scholarly contributions through major edited volumes including The Oxford Handbook of the Aztecs (2017) and The Menial Art of Cooking: Archaeological Studies of Cooking and Food Preparation (2012), which have shaped conversations in their respective fields. His work with instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) and portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) has advanced archaeological methods for studying material culture in colonial contexts. As an educator, Rodríguez-Alegría teaches courses including Introduction to Mesoamerica, Introduction to Archaeology, Aztecs and Spaniards, Ceramic Analysis, and Anthropology and Technology. His graduate seminar ANT 392K (Intro To Graduate Archaeology) helps train the next generation of archaeologists. His teaching schedule extends through Fall 2025, demonstrating his active engagement in academic life at UT Austin.
Nicolas Meylan is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Lausanne's Faculty of Theology and Sciences of Religions, specializing in the history of religions with a focus on medieval Iceland and Old Norse literature. His research integrates theories of discourse analysis, religious historiography, and the conceptual evolution of 'mana' in Western thought. Doctorate in History of Religion, University of Chicago Divinity School (2010) Licence ès sciences des religions, Université de Lausanne (2003) His research spans religious history of Iceland (12th-14th centuries) , discourse analysis in medieval texts , and theoretical frameworks in the study of religion . Notable trends include the role of magic as a political resistance tool, the reinterpretation of land spirits post-conversion, and cross-cultural analysis of mana. Recent publications emphasize theoretical rigor and medieval Scandinavian socio-political dynamics . While he has no listed awards, his work bridges Norse mythology , religious epistemology , and critical historiography .
Fulvio Rinaudo is a Full Professor in the Department of Architecture and Design (DAD) at Politecnico di Torino, Italy, specializing in geomatics and cultural heritage documentation. With decades of experience in the field, he leads research in Geographic Information Systems (GIS), Historical Building Information Modeling (HBIM), photogrammetry, and the documentation of cultural heritage through advanced metric surveying techniques. His research interests span across multiple domains of cultural heritage preservation, including: Georeferenced databases (GIS) for cultural heritage management HBIM applications for architectural documentation and conservation Automatic digital photogrammetry for objects and contexts of varying scales Metric survey techniques for documenting historical buildings and urban contexts Digital documentation methodologies for cultural heritage preservation Rinaudo's recent scholarly output demonstrates a clear focus on advancing technological approaches to cultural heritage documentation, particularly through HBIM systems, environmental risk assessment for heritage sites, and innovative surveying methodologies. His work increasingly integrates emerging technologies like SLAM systems, 360° imaging, and cloud-based platforms to create more efficient and accurate documentation workflows. A significant portion of his recent research addresses the challenges of documenting and preserving heritage in Central Asia, particularly through the ERAMCA project focused on environmental risk assessment. Among his notable recognitions is the Best Poster Award at the CIPA Symposium awarded by ICOMOS CIPA-HD in France (2013). His leadership in the field is further evidenced by his current role as President of CIPA Heritage Documentation (2024-2027) and previous position as Secretary of ICOMOS Italy (2020-2022). Professor Rinaudo actively supervises PhD students across multiple institutions including Politecnico di Torino and Sapienza University of Rome. He has secured significant research funding through competitive grants including the ERAMCA project (Environmental Risk Assessment and Mitigation on Cultural Heritage assets in Central Asia), the RURITAGE project, and the GAMHER project (Geomatics data Acquisition and Management for landscape and built Heritage in an European Perspective). He serves on editorial boards for journals including VIRTUAL ARCHAEOLOGY REVIEW and APPLIED GEOMATICS, and participates in major international conferences as a scientific committee member for CIPA and ISPRS events. His external teaching engagements include positions at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium) and Turin Polytechnic University in Tashkent.
