Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Department of Anthropology, McGill University I'm a cultural anthropologist specializing in religion, ethics, and strategies of influence. I use my training as an ethnographer to make sense of situations where people find themselves pulled between conflicting commitments. I'm co-editor of the special issue "Religious Suasion" (Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute, 2024). My current work analyzes how moral values shape economic action in the social innovation sector.
Reader in Psychology, Brunel University London Dr Sofia Barbosa Boucas is a respected academic with extensive experience in psychology and education. She joined Brunel University London in January 2018, following a distinguished career path that reflects her dedication to research and teaching. Prior to her appointment at Brunel, Dr Barbosa Boucas held positions at respected academic institutions, where she made significant contributions to the field. She conducted post-doctoral research and served as a Teaching Associate at the School of Psychology & Clinical Language Sciences, and the Department of Food & Nutritional Sciences, School of Chemistry, Food & Pharmacy, University of Reading. Subsequently, she held a post-doctoral research position in Allied Health Research at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Southampton. In 2013, Dr Barbosa Boucas transitioned into an academic role as a Lecturer in Health Psychology at Oxford Brookes University. Her commitment to advancing knowledge in the field of health psychology was evident throughout her appointment. In 2015, she continued her academic journey as a Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Buckinghamshire New University, where she further honed her expertise in teaching and research. Currently, Dr Barbosa Boucas holds the position of Reader (Education) in Psychology within the Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences, College of Health, Medicine & Life Sciences at Brunel University London. In this role, she continues to contribute to the academic community through her research endeavours and her dedication to providing high-quality education to students. With her extensive background and commitment to academic excellence, Dr Barbosa Boucas is a valued member of the academic community at Brunel University London.
Associate Professor in Irish Language and Literature, University of Limerick Síle de Cléir lectures in Irish in the School of English, Irish and Communication, University of Limerick. She has been researching, writing and lecturing in Irish folklore and ethnology for some years, combining this with a career in public libraries until 2008. She studied folklore and ethnology in University College, Cork, and attended the Folklore Fellows' Summer School in Turku in 1993. Her research MA (UCC, 1992) was centred on Irish cloth and dress traditions and complemented an earlier period spent studying fashion design in LSAD and working for three years in the fashion/ clothing sector. Her MLIS (UCD, 1999) included a study of popular religious reading in early 20th-century Ireland, and her PhD (UCC, 2011) was a study of popular religious culture in Limerick city during the same period. Publications on dress include Creativity in the margins: identity and locality in Ireland's fashion journey' in Fashion Theory, Vol 15, Issue 2, June 2011 and on popular religion, Ritual and the city context', Béascna 6 (2010). A book on this same topic, entitled Popular Catholicism in Ireland: locality, identity and culture was published in 2017. She has also researched the heroic storytelling tradition in twentieth-century Ireland, and an article based on this research Gaisce, greann agus grá: Conall Gulban agus féidearthachtaí na scéalaíochta gaisciúla', (Heroism, humour and love: Conall Gulban and the scope of heroic storytelling') has been published in Béaloideas, 82 (2014).
Doctoral Researcher, Refugee Cultural Heritage and Connected Rights Protection | Affiliate, Kaldor Centre for International Refugee Law | Associate, Australian Human Rights Institute, UNSW Sydney Ms Al Shallah’s research project is a study of the framework for the protection and safeguarding of refugee cultural heritage and the cultural rights of refugees. Her research and writing focus is natural sites and cultural objects. Her research cuts across three areas of international law, which are international cultural heritage law (ICHL), international human rights law (IHRL) and international refugee law (IRL). She researches and writes from her perspective as an emerging scholar from a refugee source country living as a migrant in a cultural context that departs from her heritage.
Senior Teaching Fellow in Space and Cyber, Hunter Centre For Entrepreneurship, University of Strathclyde I am an interdisciplinary academic in the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship and a visiting academic at the International Space University in Strasbourg. I work at the intersection of the dual domains of space and cyber, I bring a blend of expertise in entrepreneurship, space technology, cybersecurity, simulation, and legal knowledge. With an understanding of the complex challenges faced by the space industry, I seek to leverage my interdisciplinary background to create transformative learning experiences that bridge the gap between theory and practice. Through my lectures and immersive storytelling, I aim to inspire students and professionals to embrace the dynamic intersection of space entrepreneurship, emerging technology and cybersecurity resilience. By infusing my teaching with practical insights and a focus on ethical decision-making. I seek to empower my students to become purposeful and visionary leaders who can navigate the ever evolving complex landscape in emerging sectors and economies. I am committed to fostering a collaborative and inclusive learning environment that nurtures creativity, critical thinking, innovation, entrepreneurship, and legal knowledge. I believe in the power of interdisciplinary education and strive to cultivate meaningful connections, with my students, guiding them to unlock their full potential and pursue their passions. Fundamentally my work is shaped by a desire to shape a secure entrepreneurially thriving, innovative and legally compliant space industry.
Professor of Microbiology, Mountain Top University Stella Ifeanyi Smith (PhD) is a director of research with the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research, Yaba, Lagos, Nigeria and professor of microbiology at Mountain Top University. She holds a PhD in medical microbiology from the College of Medicine, University of Lagos (1997). She had her pre-doctoral fellowship with EU Scholarship at the Withington Hospital, Manchester, UK and post-doctoral fellowships at Bordeaux, France and Dresden and Munich, Germany, with INSERM and Alexander von Humboldt fellowships respectively. Her special interest is in molecular epidemiology, antimicrobial resistance and microbiome of infectious diseases agents such as Helicobacter pylori, Salmonella spp, Campylobacter jejuni and C. coli, Enterohaemorraghic E. coli 0157:H7 and Vibrio cholerae. She was a consultant to the Maastricht VI project, Italy, 2021 as well as the Real-World Gastritis Initiative (RE.GA.IN), Italy 2022 as the only African, with 29 countries involved. She is the founding president of African Helicobacter and Microbiota Study Initiative Limited by Guarantee (AHMSI Ltd/Gte) with board members from 10 countries and 70 ordinary members spanning 17 African countries. She is the co-chair of the Food-Borne Disease Genomic Surveillance Network, an initiative of African CDC, and the group is finalising the roadmap for disease surveillance in Africa. She is the head of the Emergency Preparedness and Response Research Group in NIMR. In molecular biology hands-on-training, she has built capacity of over 720 students/participants with supervision/co-supervision of several BSc, MSc and PhD students. She is a reviewer for several international journals and editorial board member/special issue editor in some international journals. She has been an external assessor for several professorial candidates internationally (South Africa and currently one from Canada). She is a recipient of the 19th Edition of the Who is Who in the world and a member of the national Technical Working Group on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) as well as the chairperson of the Institute Biorisk Management Committee and AMR Committee. She is a member of several international organisations. She has attracted 16 research grants, both local and international and five equipment grants with several book awards. She is a fellow of the prestigious Nigerian Academy of Science (FAS), fellow of the Nigerian Academy of Medicine Specialties (FAMedS), fellow of the African Academy of Sciences and International Federation of Biosafety Association (IFBA) certified. She has 205 peer-reviewed publications and a Google Scholar citation of 4741 and h-index of 36.
