Alina Isac Alak (PhD in Philosophy - University of Bucharest) is specialized in contemporary Islamic hermeneutics, contemporary Islamic reforms, gender studies, local Muslims’ identity constructions. She has published two books regarding contemporary Qur’anic exegesis and, respectively, Islamic jurisprudence and various research studies in Journal of Loss and Trauma: International Perspectives on Stress & Coping, Journal for the Study of Religions and Ideologies, Studia Politica, Journal of Gender and Feminist Studies, ISPMN.
Magdalena Albulescu (PhD NUPSPA) is a researcher interested in the drafting of public education policies. Her research is concerned with the influence ideology has
on the educational and pedagogy systems. Her most recent work, "Ballot Absenteeism and Participation to Protests: A New Way of Political Participation in Romania after 2012", Journal of Democracy and Electoral Studies, 2015, focuses on the influence of political culture over voter turnout.
Radu-Alexandru Cucută (PhD NUPSPA) is Lecturer in Strategic Studies and in African Studies with the Department of International Relations and European Integration within the National School for Political and Administrative Studies. His research interests include theories of international relations and theories of revolution. His most recent research, ”Leading the World: Hegemonic Models in Contemporary Global Politics”, SGEM Conference on Political Sciences, Law, Finance, Economics and Tourism (conference proceedings), Albena, Bulgaria, 2014 (co-author, Radu-Sebastian Ungureanu) focuses on the meanings and the interplay among four different contemporary hegemonic models.
Angela Grămadă, PhD, is the president of the Experts for Security and Global Affairs Association. She is also a researcher and teaching assistant at th
e National School for Political and Administrative Studies. In 2011, she was part of a research team in the project “European Values Across the Black Sea Region” program, funded by the Soros Foundation Romania, from may 2011 to October 2011”. The result of this project was the publication of the volume with the title South Caucasus 20 Years After: Political Regimes, Security, and Energy, (Bucharest: Curtea Veche, 2012), in which Angela Grămadă contributed as a co-author.
Andrei Miroiu (PhD University of New South Wales, Sydney) is a researcher in History and Social Sciences. His recent publications include Romanian Counterinsurgency and its Global Context, 1944-1962 (London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016) as well as articles on asymmetric warfare in Small Wars & Insurgencies, Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, International Review of Social Research and Studia Politica.
Mihaela-Adriana Pădureanu, PhD – Teaching Associate and researcher at National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (NUPSPA). She joined the Center for East European and Asian Studies (NUPSA) in 2008 and published mostly on EU’s foreign policy and the Eastern Partnership. Her main research interests include the theory of international relations, foreign policy and security studies. Publications: “More expectations towards the European Union: The case of Ukraine” and “The role of the democratic peace theory in the evolution of the European Neighbourhood Policy”.
Dr Radu-Sebastian Ungureanu, the project manager, is Associate Professor at the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration. His research topics concern international security institutions, the relation between sovereignty and security, the role of morality in defining political communities. His relevant publications include Securitate, suveranitate şi instituţii internaţionale. Crizele din Europa de Sud-Est în anii ’90 [Security, Sovereignty, and International Institutions: The South-East European Crisis of the ‘90s], Iaşi: Polirom, 2010, „International Security Relations and Post-Imperial Orders”, LESIJ, No. XVIII, Vol. 1, 2011, ”European Union’s Identities: Mission and/or Europeanness in EU’s Security Approaches”, European Journal of Science and Theology, Vol. 9, Suppl. 2, 2013.
Sebastian Țoc is a PhD Candidate in Sociology at the National University of Political Science and Public Administration (NUPSPA). He has extensive experience designing and conducting quantitative and qualitative research. He is currently working as a teaching assistant for NUPSPA and he is also editor of the Romanian Journal of Society and Politics. His academic interests are sociology of education, social change in post-socialist Romania, research methodology and mixed methods.
Adina Voicilă is a PhD student in Political Science at the National University of Political Science and Public Administration (NUPSPA). With an academic background in Political Science and International Relations, her research interests expanded, encompassing regional politics (Japan-South Korea-Southeast Asia), cosmopolitan morality and politics of development aid. Her working experience as a political researcher gives her a sound knowledge of political systems and policies, as well as a thorough understanding of governmental functions and procedures.
Alexandru Voicu is a PhD candidate with the NUPSPA.He is currently studying the problem of great power’s interventions and their legitimacy in world politics. He is a Senior Researcher at the Center for Conflict Prevention and Early Warning as well. During the last 3 years as a Senior Researcher he has provided political, economic and energy analysis on the countries of the Visegrad Group.Reconstructie Postconflict represents his major publication. The book was written in 2015 together with Iulian Chifu and it discusses the main dynamics, extensions and concepts in the field of post-conflict reconstruction. Among other publication one could recall other articles and books as:‘Prospective of Ukraine Crisis: Scenarios for a mid-long term evolution’, ‘Great Powers aggression over small powers: Polish and Hungarian perspectives on the Russian aggression in Ukraine’, ‘TheEU’s Internal Frictions and their Consequences on the Eastern Neighbours’.
Fatma Ruxandra Yilmaz is a PhD Candidate in Political Science at the National University of Political Science and Public Administration (NUSPA).
Yilmaz’s work focuses on the relationship between religious and secular politics, immigrant integration, citizenship, Islam in Europe with special attention to issues of Muslim women in Europe. She works as a human rights activist and vocal advocate for the separation of the state and religion in Islamic countries, freedom of expresion and belief, and the defence for civil, human, women’s, and minorities rights in the MENA. Her latest forthcoming publication is “From Guest Workers into Muslims: The Transformation of Turkish Immigrant Associations in Germany”.
Mihai Zodian holds a PhD in Political Science and is interested in International Relations theory, epistemology and methodology, strategic studies, New Media and weapon procurement policies. His professional background includes experience in media and in research. This project offers an opportunity to study how social media can stimulate political communities’ restructuration and project different type of legitimizations. His recent publications include ”Neoclassical realism and the security environment”,Romanian Military Thinking, no. 1/2015, ”Waltzian Neorealism and the Pragmatism of Politics”, Strategic Impact, no. 3/2014, Rolul reţelelor sociale în generarea şi evoluţia crizelor politice şi economice (The Role of Social Networks in the Emergence and Evolution of the Political and Economic Crises), co-authors Ion Roceanu & Eduard Vitalis, Editura Universităţii Naţionale de Apărare “Carol I”, Bucharest, 2014.