Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman is Professor and Director of the Laboratory for Coastal Research at Florida International University. He received his Ph.D. in Environmental (Coastal) Sciences from the University of Virginia, and completed his undergraduate degree in Geosciences at North Carolina State University. Prior to joining FIU, Stephen was Professor and Director of the Laboratory for Coastal Research at the University of Maryland; Director of the National Park Research Unit at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; and Assistant Professor in the Department of Geology at Boston University. Stephen has authored or edited 16 books, including Sea Level Rise: Causes and Consequences; Barrier Island Handbook; Overwash Processes; Cape Cod: From Glaciers to Beaches; and America’s Best Beaches. He has also authored over 200 journal articles and technical reports, including articles in both Science and Nature. Stephen has provided expert testimony multiple times for the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives. He was also the on-screen host and co-producer of the 1992 film “Vanishing Lands”, winner of three international film awards, including the Golden Eagle.
Sarah-Jane's research is focused on twentieth-century American poetry with a particular interest in the literary history of New England and the study and preservation of archival materials related to this period. She is the Official Historian for the New England Poetry Club in Boston, MA and her research has been funded internationally by several universities. In 2019 she was a Research Fellow at the Houghton Library, Harvard. She has also been the recipient of an Everett Helm Visiting Fellowship at the Lilly Library, Indiana University and a Dissertation Grant from the Schlesinger Library for the History of Women in America, Harvard. She has worked in both academic and professional roles in the tertiary sector including the English department at Macquarie University, Sydney and the Library division of Western Sydney University.
Principal Researcher, Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet I conduct quantitative genetics research predominantly focusing on schizophrenia and bipolar disorder as well as some projects on depression and eating disorders. My current studies aim to better understand the genetic and environmental contributions to disease risk, comorbidities associated with these disorders, and the observed variability within patient groups. I also have a keen interest in developing ways of subtyping patients to better understand the heterogeneous etiological pathways that give rise to these disorders. My strong foundation in neuroscience offers added biological context to the results from genetic research studies. Ultimately, I hope my research will contribute to improved treatment and prevention strategies for serious, chronic mental illnesses.
Professor of Physics, School of Earth and Space Exploration, Arizona State University Sara Walker is an astrobiologist and theoretical physicist interested in the origin of life and how to find life on other worlds. She is most interested in whether or not there are “laws of life’ related to how information structures the physical world that could universally describe life here on Earth and on other planets. Walker is deputy director of the pioneering Beyond Center for Fundamental Concepts in Science, which is devoted to confronting the big questions of science and philosophy. She also co-founded the astrobiology-themed social website SAGANet.org, and is a member of the board of directors of Blue Marble Space. She is active in public engagement in science, with appearances at the World Science Festival and on "Through the Wormhole" and NPR's Science Friday.
Research scientist College of Science, University of Nevada, Reno I am a writer by training and have worked as a journalist and foreign correspondent around the world for 25 years, often writing about environmental issues. I am a frequent contributor to National Geographic's various media platforms. In recent years, I have been employed by the College of Science, University of Nevada, Reno, as a research scientist and involved with a USAID-financed research project focused on the Mekong River Basin in Southeast Asia.
Professor, Department of Psychology, Durham University I am Professor of Social and Intercultural Psychology in the Department of Psychology at Durham University (UK), where I lead the Quantitative Social Psychology Research Group. I am also honorary senior research fellow at the University of Melbourne and at the Australian National University, and a former Associate Professor at the University of Newcastle (Australia). My research and teaching specialise on the psychology of diversity and social cohesion; I investigate the determinants and consequences of prejudice, stereotyping, and discrimination, as well as ways to mitigate these problems. I am the author of over 55 peer reviewed journal articles and book chapters and I have delivered 120+ conference papers and book contributions. I am best known for my research on intergroup friendship in sectarian Northern Ireland, my theoretical and empirical syntheses on stereotype formation and change, research on negative intergroup contact and contact valence asymmetries. My more recent contributions are on topics of intergroup contact seeking and avoidance and contact volition. My research is highly cited by peers and is discussed in policy briefs by peak organisations like the WorldBank, the United Nations, and UK’s Equality and Human Rights Commission. It has earned science and research awards by the (US-led) Academy of Management and the Australian Psychological Society. My research has been funded by the European Community, the UK’s Economic and Social Research Council, the Australian Research Council, the Keats’ Endowment Fund and Daphne Keats Chair Endowment Fund. I have recently secured a large research grant from the Australian Research Council to investigate the ecologies and consequences for individuals, groups and communities of voluntary and involuntary intergroup contact. To this end, I will be leading an interdisciplinary research team of social psychologists and human geographers from three continents on a mixed-method research program. Recently, I have chief edited a special issue on “Advances in Intergroup Contact research” and convened over a dozen of symposia at major international conferences. I have served as Section Editor and I am now on the editorial board of Social Psychology and Personality Compass and Associate Editor for Frontiers in Psychology. I am currently member of the Australian Research Council’s Medical Research Advisory Group. I was recently awarded the Distinguished Service award by the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues. I am passionate about Equity and Diversity Issues (EDI) in academia, science, and broader society. I received several service and community awards for my EDI work and I am regularly consulted by the media for my contribution to intergroup dialogue, social cohesion and minorities’ empowerment. I have an extensive track record in research supervision and mentoring of young academics. I am currently seeking capable research students interested in my areas of research expertise and in joining my research laboratory.
