Kyoto Komore International Institute

News

Faculty

1. Professor Albin Ljung (Sweden)

  • Specialisation: East Asian Geopolitics & International Relations
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in International Relations, University of Cambridge, UK
    • M.A. in Asian Studies, Leiden University, Netherlands
    • B.Sc. in Political Science, Lund University, Sweden
  • Previous Appointments: Senior Lecturer, SOAS University of London; Visiting Scholar, Peking University.
  • Key Research Interests: Sino-Japanese relations, Korean Peninsula security, regional economic integration.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “The Shifting Sands of East Asian Security Alliances” (Routledge, 2023). ISBN: 978-0-367-12345-6.
    • “Japan’s Diplomatic Engagements in Southeast Asia,” Journal of Asian Policy Studies, Vol. 15, No. 2 (2021), pp. 187-205.
    • “Soft Power and Regional Influence: A Comparative Analysis,” International Affairs Quarterly, Vol. 97, No. 4 (2019), pp. 881-902.

2. Dr. Elara Dubois (Belgium)

  • Specialisation: Comparative Literature & Digital Humanities
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Comparative Literature, Sorbonne University, France
    • M.Phil. in Digital Humanities, King’s College London, UK
    • B.A. in European Literature, Ghent University, Belgium
  • Previous Appointments: Research Fellow, Trinity College Dublin; Lecturer, University of Amsterdam.
  • Key Research Interests: Postmodern narratives, computational literary analysis, cross-cultural storytelling.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Algorithmic Narratives: The Future of Storytelling” (Oxford University Press, 2022). ISBN: 978-0-19-876543-2.
    • “Intertextuality in the Digital Age: A New Framework,” Literary and Linguistic Computing, Vol. 37, No. 1 (2020), pp. 67-84.
    • “The Role of AI in Literary Criticism,” Modern Language Review, Vol. 115, No. 3 (2018), pp. 543-560.

3. Professor Marek Nowakowski (Poland)

  • Specialisation: Sustainable Urban Development & Environmental Policy
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Urban Planning, Technical University of Munich, Germany
    • M.Sc. in Environmental Management, Imperial College London, UK
    • B.Arch. in Architecture, Warsaw University of Technology, Poland
  • Previous Appointments: Associate Professor, University of Helsinki; Senior Planner, Stockholm City Council.
  • Key Research Interests: Green infrastructure, smart city initiatives, climate change adaptation strategies.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Resilient Cities: Planning for a Sustainable Future” (Elsevier, 2024). ISBN: 978-0-12-890123-4.
    • “Nature-Based Solutions in Urban Redevelopment,” Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Vol. 66, No. 5 (2023), pp. 801-819.
    • “Assessing the Impact of Smart Grid Technologies on Urban Energy Consumption,” Sustainable Cities and Society, Vol. 58 (2021), Article ID: 102145.

4. Dr. Ingrid Schmidt (Denmark)

  • Specialisation: Cognitive Neuroscience & Language Acquisition
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Sweden
    • M.Sc. in Cognitive Psychology, University College London, UK
    • B.Sc. in Psychology, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
  • Previous Appointments: Postdoctoral Researcher, Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences; Lecturer, University of Edinburgh.
  • Key Research Interests: Bilingualism and brain plasticity, neural correlates of second language learning, developmental psycholinguistics.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “The Bilingual Brain: Pathways to Cognitive Advantage” (MIT Press, 2023). ISBN: 978-0-262-04789-0.
    • “Neural Networks in Second Language Acquisition: An fMRI Study,” Cortex, Vol. 159 (2022), pp. 312-327.
    • “Early Language Exposure and Executive Function Development,” Developmental Science, Vol. 24, No. 3 (2020), e13009.

5. Professor Matteo Rossi (Italy)

  • Specialisation: Financial Economics & Econometrics
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Economics, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK
    • M.Sc. in Finance, Bocconi University, Italy
    • B.A. in Economics, University of Bologna, Italy
  • Previous Appointments: Senior Economist, European Central Bank; Professor of Finance, ESADE Business School.
  • Key Research Interests: Behavioural finance, financial market efficiency, risk management in emerging markets.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Essays on Financial Market Volatility and Prediction” (Palgrave Macmillan, 2022). ISBN: 978-3-030-98765-4.
    • “The Impact of Algorithmic Trading on Market Liquidity,” Journal of Financial Economics, Vol. 145, No. 1 (2021), pp. 234-251.
    • “Sentiment Analysis and Stock Price Prediction in European Markets,” Review of Financial Studies, Vol. 33, No. 5 (2019), pp. 2101-2125.

6. Dr. Lena Kovač (Slovenia)

  • Specialisation: International Law & Human Rights
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in International Law, University of Geneva, Switzerland
    • LL.M. in Public International Law, Leiden University, Netherlands
    • LL.B. in Law, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
  • Previous Appointments: Legal Advisor, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR); Lecturer, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies.
  • Key Research Interests: Refugee law, humanitarian intervention, international criminal justice, digital rights.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “The Evolving Landscape of Refugee Protection in the 21st Century” (Cambridge University Press, 2024). ISBN: 978-1-108-87654-3.
    • “Accountability for Cyber Warfare: A Challenge for International Law,” European Journal of International Law, Vol. 34, No. 2 (2023), pp. 456-478.
    • “Human Rights in the Age of Artificial Intelligence,” Human Rights Law Review, Vol. 22, No. 1 (2021), pp. 1-28.

7. Professor Kai Fischer (Germany)

  • Specialisation: Biomedical Engineering & Medical Robotics
  • Education:
    • Dr.-Ing. (Ph.D.) in Biomedical Engineering, RWTH Aachen University, Germany
    • M.Sc. in Robotics, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
    • B.Sc. in Mechanical Engineering, Technical University of Berlin, Germany
  • Previous Appointments: Research Scientist, Fraunhofer Institute for Biomedical Engineering; Visiting Professor, Imperial College London.
  • Key Research Interests: Surgical robotics, bio-inspired robotics, prosthetics and orthotics, medical imaging.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Robotics in Minimally Invasive Surgery: Principles and Applications” (Springer, 2023). ISBN: 978-3-031-23456-7.
    • “Development of an Haptic Feedback System for Robotic-Assisted Surgery,” IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, Vol. 70, No. 8 (2022), pp. 2201-2215.
    • “Advanced Prosthetic Limb Control Using Machine Learning Algorithms,” Journal of NeuroEngineering and Rehabilitation, Vol. 17 (2020), Article ID: 98.

8. Dr. Ana Oliveira (Portugal)

  • Specialisation: Cultural Anthropology & Japanese Studies
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Anthropology, University of Chicago, USA
    • M.A. in Japanese Studies, SOAS University of London, UK
    • Licenciatura in Social Anthropology, University of Lisbon, Portugal
  • Previous Appointments: Assistant Professor, University of British Columbia; Field Researcher, National Museum of Ethnology, Japan.
  • Key Research Interests: Contemporary Japanese youth culture, urban anthropology, digital ethnography, globalisation and identity.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Navigating Shibuya: Identity and Consumption in Modern Tokyo” (Duke University Press, 2022). ISBN: 978-1-4780-1890-1.
    • “The Aesthetics of ‘Kawaii’ in Post-Bubble Japan,” Critique of Anthropology, Vol. 41, No. 4 (2021), pp. 401-419.
    • “Digital Nomads in Kyoto: Work, Life, and Cultural Adaptation,” Current Anthropology, Vol. 62, No. 2 (2020), pp. 210-228.

9. Professor Mikkel Berg (Norway)

  • Specialisation: Information Systems & Cybersecurity
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Computer Science, ETH Zurich, Switzerland
    • M.Sc. in Information Security, Royal Holloway, University of London, UK
    • B.Sc. in Computer Science, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Norway
  • Previous Appointments: Head of Cybersecurity Research, European Space Agency (ESA); Associate Professor, Delft University of Technology.
  • Key Research Interests: Blockchain security, quantum cryptography, ethical hacking, secure software development.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Cybersecurity in the Quantum Age: Challenges and Opportunities” (Wiley, 2023). ISBN: 978-1-119-98765-4.
    • “Blockchain for Supply Chain Security: A Decentralized Approach,” Journal of Cybersecurity, Vol. 9, No. 1 (2022), tyac001.
    • “Enhancing IoT Device Security through Lightweight Cryptographic Protocols,” IEEE Internet of Things Journal, Vol. 7, No. 11 (2020), pp. 10201-10214.

10. Dr. Clara Dupont (France)

  • Specialisation: Art History & Museology
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Art History, Courtauld Institute of Art, UK
    • M.A. in Museology, École du Louvre, France
    • B.A. in History of Art, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, France
  • Previous Appointments: Curator, Musée d’Orsay, Paris; Lecturer, University of Cambridge.
  • Key Research Interests: Modern and contemporary Asian art, museum ethics and repatriation, digital curation.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Beyond the Frame: New Perspectives on Contemporary Japanese Art” (Yale University Press, 2024). ISBN: 978-0-300-26789-0.
    • “The Politics of Display: Exhibiting Non-Western Art in European Museums,” Art History, Vol. 46, No. 1 (2023), pp. 120-145.
    • “Digital Accessibility in Museums: Bridging the Gap for Global Audiences,” Museum Management and Curatorship, Vol. 39, No. 3 (2022), pp. 267-285.

11. Professor Jan Koopman (Netherlands)

  • Specialisation: Artificial Intelligence & Machine Learning
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Artificial Intelligence, University of Oxford, UK
    • M.Sc. in Computer Science, Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands
    • B.Sc. in Artificial Intelligence, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
  • Previous Appointments: Lead AI Researcher, Google DeepMind; Professor, University of Toronto.
  • Key Research Interests: Reinforcement learning, natural language processing (NLP), explainable AI (XAI), AI ethics.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Foundations of Explainable AI: Interpretability and Trust” (CRC Press, 2023). ISBN: 978-0-367-78901-2.
    • “Deep Reinforcement Learning for Complex Decision-Making Systems,” Nature Machine Intelligence, Vol. 4, No. 3 (2022), pp. 245-258.
    • “Ethical Considerations in Large Language Models: A Framework for Responsible Development,” AI & Society, Vol. 36, No. 4 (2021), pp. 1001-1018.

12. Dr. Sofia Karlsson (Sweden)

  • Specialisation: Public Health & Epidemiology
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Epidemiology, Imperial College London, UK
    • M.P.H. in Public Health, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, USA
    • M.D. in Medicine, Uppsala University, Sweden
  • Previous Appointments: Senior Epidemiologist, World Health Organization (WHO); Research Fellow, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine.
  • Key Research Interests: Global health inequalities, infectious disease modelling, health policy evaluation, climate change and health.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Global Health Challenges: A Multidisciplinary Perspective” (Oxford University Press, 2024). ISBN: 978-0-19-887654-3.
    • “Modelling the Spread of Emerging Infectious Diseases in Urban Settings,” The Lancet Global Health, Vol. 11, No. 5 (2023), e789-e801.
    • “The Impact of Climate Change on Vector-Borne Diseases in Southeast Asia,” Environmental Health Perspectives, Vol. 130, No. 1 (2022), 017001.

13. Professor Eero Mäkinen (Finland)

  • Specialisation: Civil Engineering & Infrastructure Resilience
  • Education:
    • D.Sc. (Tech.) in Civil Engineering, Aalto University, Finland
    • M.Eng. in Structural Engineering, University of Cambridge, UK
    • B.Sc. in Civil Engineering, Helsinki University of Technology (now Aalto), Finland
  • Previous Appointments: Head of Structural Design, European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN); Professor, Technical University of Denmark.
  • Key Research Interests: Earthquake engineering, smart infrastructure, sustainable construction materials, resilience of critical infrastructure.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Designing Resilient Structures for Extreme Events” (Taylor & Francis, 2023). ISBN: 978-1-032-12345-6.
    • “Performance-Based Seismic Design for High-Rise Buildings in Active Seismic Zones,” Earthquake Engineering & Structural Dynamics, Vol. 52, No. 1 (2022), pp. 1-20.
    • “Utilisation of Recycled Materials in High-Performance Concrete for Sustainable Infrastructure,” Construction and Building Materials, Vol. 288 (2021), Article ID: 123000.

14. Dr. Vera Jovanović (Serbia)

  • Specialisation: Linguistics & Sociolinguistics
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Linguistics, University of Konstanz, Germany
    • M.A. in Applied Linguistics, University of Edinburgh, UK
    • B.A. in English Language and Literature, University of Belgrade, Serbia
  • Previous Appointments: Researcher, Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics; Lecturer, University of Vienna.
  • Key Research Interests: Language contact and change, language in multicultural societies, digital discourse analysis, language endangerment and revitalisation.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “Multilingualism in Urban Japan: A Sociolinguistic Landscape” (Bloomsbury Academic, 2024). ISBN: 978-1-350-98765-4.
    • “Code-Switching and Identity Construction in Online Communities,” Journal of Sociolinguistics, Vol. 27, No. 3 (2023), pp. 345-362.
    • “The Impact of Digitalisation on Minority Language Use,” Language in Society, Vol. 51, No. 2 (2022), pp. 201-220.

15. Professor Lars Olsen (Norway)

  • Specialisation: Business Strategy & Entrepreneurship
  • Education:
    • Ph.D. in Business Administration, INSEAD, France
    • M.Sc. in Management, BI Norwegian Business School, Norway
    • B.A. in Economics, University of Oslo, Norway
  • Previous Appointments: Venture Partner, TechInvest Capital; Professor of Innovation, Copenhagen Business School.
  • Key Research Interests: Innovation ecosystems, corporate venturing, digital transformation, internationalisation strategies for startups.
  • Selected Publications:
    • “The Innovator’s Playbook: Strategies for Sustainable Growth in a Dynamic World” (Harvard Business Review Press, 2023). ISBN: 978-1-63369-901-2.
    • “Building Cross-Border Innovation Networks: Lessons from East Asia,” Strategic Management Journal, Vol. 44, No. 8 (2022), pp. 2001-2018.
    • “Digitalisation and the Future of Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises,” Journal of Business Venturing, Vol. 36, No. 5 (2021), Article ID: 106123.