Kari Kammel
Center Director and Senior Academic Specialist
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Kari is the director of the A-CAPP Center and maintains an active research agenda on legal issues pertaining to trademark counterfeiting, U.S. state and federal law, e-commerce and social media liability for trademark counterfeiting, public international and intellectual property legal issues, and the impact of culture in the Middle East on intellectual property and trademark enforcement. She has testified before the U.S. House Judiciary Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee based on her research. She runs the Center’s education programming, including executive education, the professional certificate in brand protection, the Center’s student internship program and student placement. She also heads outreach to brand protection stakeholders for the center.
Prior to coming to the center, she spent a significant time working, traveling, and living in the Middle East, including Egypt, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Libya, Jordan, and others. She was Deputy Chief of Party at DePaul College of Law’s Iraq office, where she managed rule of law programs; and Deputy Executive Director in the Chicago office. She is a licensed attorney in Illinois and Michigan with a J.D. from DePaul University, an M.A. in Political Science from the American University in Cairo, and a B.A. from the University of Chicago. She is serving her second three-year term on the Academic Specialist Advisory Committee at MSU, where she has been chair, vice-chair, and chair of the promotion subcommittee. She is also an adjunct professor of law at MSU’s College of Law, where she teaches Trademark Counterfeiting, Food Counterfeits, and International Intellectual Property. Additionally, she is a member of INTA and on the anti-counterfeiting sub-committee, AIPLA, and the ABA.
RECENT PUBLICATIONS
Saleem Alhabash
Associate Director of Research,
A-CAPP Center
Professor, Advertising & Public Relations, Michigan State University
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Saleem Alhabash is a Professor of Public Relations and Social Media at Michigan State University’s Department of Advertising + Public Relations and the Associate Director of Research for the Center for Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection. He also co-directs the Media and Advertising Psychology (MAP) Lab. His research focuses on the processes and effects of new and social media within the context of persuasion. More specifically, his research investigates the cognitive and emotional responses, and psychological effects associated with using new and social media. His research is geared toward understanding how new communication technologies can be used as persuasive tools, most recently in relation to marketing of alcohol as well as digital aggression across the lifespan. He also studies how new and social media can facilitate cross-cultural and international communication, with emphasis on changing attitudes and stereotypes of foreign nations. In 2014, he was named the inaugural recipient of the American Academy of Advertising’s Mary Alice Shaver Promising Professor Award. His research won best article, top paper, and top poster awards at national and international conferences. Saleem received his Ph.D. from the University of Missouri School of Journalism. Pre-academia, he worked in a youth nonprofit organization focusing on media and well-being.
Pilar Toro
Assistant Director of Industry Outreach
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With over 20 years of experience in developing and executing brand protection programs across various industries, including luxury, fashion, and digital entertainment, Pilar is the Assistant Director of Industry Outreach for the A-CAPP Center. She has a proven track record of leading cross-functional teams and collaborating with law enforcement to mitigate risks and spearhead global anti-counterfeiting initiatives in the private sector. Pilar’s expertise has enabled her to revitalize brand protection awareness among internal and external stakeholders by being involved in comprehensive policy development, market threat assessments, the integration of traceability technologies, and utilizing data analytics to establish key performance indicators that drive strategic business decisions.
Previous to working at the A-CAPP Center, Pilar held key brand protection positions at notable companies including Tiffany & Co., Red Wing Shoe Company, Burberry Limited, Sony Interactive Entertainment, lululemon Athletica and Chanel. Those vast experiences provide her with a broader lens when thinking of ways to help evolve the concept of brand protection through collaboration, partnership, and innovation. She also combines her multilingual skills with her legal expertise, holding an LLM in Intellectual Property from Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law and a law degree from Universidad Externado de Colombia.
Sara Heeg
Business Manager
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Sara is the business manager at the center, where she is responsible for the oversight of its finances and human resource activities, and administration of the center’s education, outreach and research program. She is also the managing editor of the center’s Brand Protection Professional, as well as its graphic designer and publisher. She earned her bachelor’s from the College of Natural Science and has been at the center for 9 years. She enjoys the variety of work the center offers and is appreciative to contribute to the fight against counterfeits.
Nathan Hiltenun
Education Program Coordinator
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Nathan Hiltunen is a versatile professional with a rich background in military service, security, education, and humanitarian work. A U.S. Marine Corps veteran with three deployments, including combat in Afghanistan, he also trained Jordanian soldiers and studied Arabic intensively at San Diego State University. After his service, he became a firearms expert and later applied his security knowledge to the cannabis industry. He earned a degree in Arabic from Michigan State University and supported global refugees and trafficking survivors through his work at Catholic Charities. Now, as Student Education Coordinator at MSU’s A-CAPP Center, Nathan mentors students, builds industry partnerships, and develops programs focused on anti-counterfeiting and product protection.
Rachael Roy
Office Coordinator
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Rachael Roy is the Office Coordinator at the A-CAPP Center, where she plays a crucial role in ensuring smooth and efficient operations. With a strong background in Management in the restaurant industry, Rachael has honed her skills in management and team coordination, bringing a wealth of practical knowledge to her current role.
Before joining the A-CAPP Center, Rachael successfully managed her own tax business for ten years, demonstrating her entrepreneurial spirit and expertise in financial management. Her diverse experience in both the service and financial sectors allows her to approach her work with a unique perspective and a strong focus on efficiency and customer satisfaction.
Rachael’s commitment to excellence and her ability to adapt to different industries make her an asset to any team and to help in the fight to combat counterfeiting.
Rahaf Ahmad
Graduate, Media and Information Science
Community Outreach & Education Fellowship Recipient
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Rahaf is a Graduate student in the Department of Media and Information, pursuing an MA in Media and Information with a focus on Media Policy. With previous background education in Criminal Justice and Information Sciences, along with internship experience at the A-CAPP Center, Rahaf is excited to venture and dive deeper into the realm of Brand Protection and Anti-Counterfeiting. In addition, Rahaf is interested in a global and international approach to Brand Protection Law and has interests in areas such as the Middle East and Africa. Aside from that, she enjoys painting and baking.
Adiya Young
Law Student
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Adiya is currently a 2L at Michigan State University College of Law and has an undergraduate degree in International Business from Saginaw Valley State University (SVSU). During her time at SVSU, she competed on the Varsity Women’s Tennis team, worked for the General Counsel’s office, and competed in Moot Court. During her 1L summer, she worked at Miller Canfield Paddock and Stone as a summer associate and worked on all types of matters including Intellectual Property. Adiya has a passion for Intellectual Property and is excited to advance her learning not only in Intellectual Property, but also Product Counterfeiting.
Addison Keener
Junior, Criminal Justice
Community Outreach & Education Fellowship Recipient
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Addison is entering her third semester with the ACAPP Center. She is a junior studying Criminal Justice with two minors-Law, Justice and Policy alongside a Security Management minor. She is from Rochester, Michigan where she has lived her whole life. Fun fact she is the only person in her family from Michigan! Addison is looking to have a career somewhere in the federal government or working alongside them one day. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her friends and family but especially her two pugs.
Denver Lambert
Law Student
Maher Scholarship Recipient
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Denver Lambert is a third-year law student at Michigan State University College of Law, specializing in brand protection, anti-counterfeiting, trademarks, and copyrights. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of Western Ontario. Outside of his academic and professional pursuits, Denver enjoys spending time with friends and family, traveling, and working out. Upon graduation, he aspires to secure a position in soft IP, either with a law firm or directly with a brand.
Emily Long
Junior, Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering
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Emily Long is an undergraduate student currently majoring in Electrical Engineering and Computer Engineering. As an extracurricular, Emily is also involved in Women in Engineering and Spartan Hackers. Emily is excited to be an intern with the A-CAPP Center in fall 2024.
Karlee Neumann
Senior, Psychology; Criminal Justice
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Karlee Neumann is a senior with dual majors in Criminal Justice and Psychology, and dual minors in Law, Justice, and Public Policy and Leadership in Integrated Learning through the Bailey Scholars Program. A term used to describe Karlee would be a ‘life-long learner’. She loves to learn about law, and sustainability, among others. She also loves to read, play with her cat, and nap.
Max Scheerer
Senior, Psychology; Criminal Justice
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Maxwell Scheerer is an undergraduate student at Michigan State University pursuing a double major in Psychology and Criminal Justice, with a minor in Law, Justice, and Public Policy. Prior to interning at A-CAPP, he assisted as a Law Clerk / Interpretation intern for the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center. Max has been fluent in Spanish since the first grade, attending Ada Vista Spanish Immersion Elementary in Ada, Michigan, and is excited to put these skills to use in a professional environment.
Brooke Winters
Junior, Criminal Justice; International Relations
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Brooke Winters is originally from Dallas, Texas and is starting her junior year. She is pursuing dual degrees in Criminal Justice and International Relations, with a minor in Law, Justice, and Public Policy. She is a research assistant for the School of Criminal Justice and involved in multiple clubs on campus, including Delta Phi Epsilon. Brooke also spent this past summer studying Politics in Salvador Brazil, and she is interested in studying other cultures and learning more about foreign relations. After college, Brooke is hoping to work for the federal government in international security. This is Brooke’s first year working at the A-CAPP Center, and she is excited to start learning about product protection and anti-counterfeiting.
Jessica Boeve
Law Student
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Jessica was born and raised in the Philippines as a missionary kid before moving to Michigan at 16, where she graduated from Holland High School. Jessica pursued her passion for Communications at Michigan State University as an undergrad and graduated in 2013. After graduation, she explored various career paths, starting with the Disney College Program as a lifeguard, then teaching English in South Korea for a year. Back in Michigan, Jessica substitute taught, bartended, and worked as a coach and client advocate at Neurocore for two years. Prior to returning to graduate school, Jessica worked as an Administrative Assistant to the Director of Operations at Helen De Vos Children’s Hospital for four years. Jessica is currently pursuing a JD/MBA at Michigan State, with hopes of specializing in corporate law, focusing on Trademark or Labor & Employment. In her free time, Jessica loves to travel, play pickleball and euchre, and go camping with her Bernese Mountain Dog, Toddler.
The A-CAPP Center Industry Advisory Board consist of brand-owning companies most interested in forming long-term, substantive, and mutually beneficial partnerships. The board provides advice and supports the development and application of strategic goals and specific objectives as its fundamental role, which helps fulfill the Center’s vision to be a trusted resource for industry.
President
Director, Global Security Group
Vice President
Legal Manager, Digital, E-Commerce & Marketplaces
Members
Director, Global Brand Protection, Capabilities & Technology
Senior Director, Global Brand Protection
Assistant Vice President, Global Security Group
Director, Illicit Trade Prevention-U.S.
Liaisons
Director of National IPR Center, Homeland Security Investigations
The A-CAPP Center Brand Protection Councils are a group of professionals from a larger segment of the brand protection community, including not only industry, academia and law enforcement, but also law firms, technology and service providers, government, and e-commerce platforms who serve as expert advisory support on specific topic areas. The BP Councils sit under the A-CAPP’s Advisory Board by invitation to enhance the research and scholarship of faculty and staff, curricula of the A-CAPP Center’s education programs, information sharing and gathering through outreach activities, and placement and career opportunities for graduates.
BP Council: Technology, Online Impact & Policy
BP Council: Global Impact of Counterfeiting
BP Council: Consumer Behavior, Impact & Education
BP Council: Brand Protection Education for Current & Future Workforce
Dana Anafina
Communication MA Student & Teaching Assistant, Michigan State University
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Dana Anafina is a second-year master’s student in the Department of Communication. Her research focus is health communication, specifically how social norms influence an individual’s behavior. She is interested in exploring how persuasive messages can challenge and reshape existing social norms for positive health outcomes. Inspired by current fellows, Dana is excited to work with and learn. As a leadership fellow, she aims to create an environment for international students where their voices are heard and to ensure each individual feels valued and supported.
Dr. Naveed Anwar
Asst. Professor in Computer and Information Sciences, Northumbria University
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Dr. Anwar is a Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader for MSc Information Science (Data Analytics and Library Management) in the Department of Computer & Information Sciences, Northumbria University, UK. He received his PhD in Computing (Data Mining) from University of Sunderland, UK. He has done his MSc and BSc in Computer Science from University of Karachi, Pakistan. He has been working in academia for the last many years at different national and overseas universities. He had been a Research Ethics Lead / Deputy Lead for the Department of Computer & Information Sciences at Northumbria University. He is a Fellow of Higher Education Academy (FHEA), and also a member of FHEA applications’ review committee at Northumbria University. Before joining the Northumbria University, he worked at The Open University, UK as a Research Fellow. He had also worked as a Post-doctoral Research Associate at University of Sunderland, Knowledge Media Institute (KMi) and The Open University Business School, UK. Previously, he was also a full-time Lecturer at Department of Computer Science, University of Karachi, Pakistan. He is also an external examiner at various universities.
Dr Anwar combined his knowledge and research in data mining in the form of a book based on medical data. He has published his research work in many international conferences’ proceedings and journals. Previously he had obtained grants as a Principal Investigator from SAMS (Society for the Advancement of Management Studies), UKCES (UK Commission for Employment Skills) and ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council), UK, and as a Co-investigator from Research Beacon, University of Sunderland, UK. He is a Member of the Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC) UK Peer Review College to review reports and bids/proposals for their schemes and programmes. He has also reviewed many national and international bids. He supervises PhD students, and has chaired and examined many PhD students. He is also a reviewer for many international journals and has been a Technical Programme Committee member for many international conferences.
Dr Anwar is involved in quantitative and qualitative research. His research interest includes qualitative and quantitative data analysis, big data analysis, data mining, business intelligence, digital methods and machine learning, health informatics, intelligent hybrid systems (using a combination of machine learning techniques), information systems, decision support systems, international businesses/entrepreneurship, online businesses/entrepreneurship, online home-based businesses, entrepreneurial marketing, and digital social media. He is open for discussion for research with prospective self-funded postgraduate researchers (MPhil/PhD and Visiting Scholars) or businesses/companies/organizations who are interested in above areas.
Alberto Aziani
Asst. Professor, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
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Alberto Aziani is an Assistant Professor of Criminology at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, where he specializes in illegal markets, trafficking activities, organized crime, and illicit financial flows. His work on these topics has been widely published in leading scientific journals. He holds a PhD in Criminology from Università Cattolica, an MSc in Economics and Social Sciences and a BSc in Management from Bocconi University, Milan. Over the years, he has overseen numerous projects for international and supranational organizations and funding institutions, such as the European Commission and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
Xuemei Bian
Professor in Marketing, Northumbria University
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Dr. Xuemei Bian is Professor in Marketing at University of Northumbria, EDI Lead of MOS and Innovation Fellow of the British Academy 2022/23. She is an advisor to the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), the national government agency, which operates and maintains a clear and accessible intellectual property system in the UK to encourage innovation and helps the economy and society to benefit from knowledge and ideas. Between November 2020 and June 2021, she served IPO’s Exhaustion of Intellectual Property Rights evidence sub-group in her capacity as advisor. She currently holds the visiting professor role at Tianjin University and is also Adjunct Professor at Michigan State University. Her main research interests are in consumer behavior, branding and advertising, with a focus on how judgments, evaluations and choice vary as a function of different decision-making strategies. She has established and sustained an international reputation and recognition in three main research areas: 1) consumption behavior; 2) branding and brand management, and 3) effective advertising with a focus on the influences of advertising appeals on brands, consumer well-being, and behavioral tendency.
She is one of the leading scholars in the field of consumer and counterfeit studies. Her research has appeared in many journals of international repute, such as Journal of Business Research, European Journal of Marketing, Marketing Letters, British Journal of Social Psychology, International Business Review, Journal of Brand Management, International Journal of Consumer Studies, Journal of Consumer Behavior, Advances in Consumer Research, Journal of Product and Brand Management, and The Marketing Review among others. Her paper titled “New Insights into Unethical Counterfeit Consumption” was selected and included in Elsevier’s Newsletter for Science Journalists (2016) and is the “Top Rated” paper in the Journal of Business Research.
Her research has attracted media attention in recent years and has featured in national and international popular outlets and trade magazines such as Huffington Post, Marie Claire, BBC Radio Kent, Refinery29, Fućsia (Colombia), The World Trademark Review, Luxury Daily (USA), and numerous online news websites. She is a regular contributor to national and international popular outlets, including The Sunday Times and BBC Radio Kent, commenting on consumer related topics.
Jay Choi
University Distinguished Professor in Economics, Michigan State University
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Jay Choi is a University Distinguished Professor of Economics at Michigan State University. His research is in industrial organization, with a focus on intellectual property rights, economics of network effects, and antitrust economics. He holds a Ph.D. in economics from Harvard University and a BA from Seoul National University.
Marco Dugato
Researcher, Transcrime; Adjunct Professor, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore
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Marco Dugato is Senior Researcher at Transcrime since 2009 and Adjunct Professor of Methods and Techniques for Criminological Research at the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. From the a.y. 2010/11 to the a.y. 2012/13 he has been Adjunct Professor of Crime Statistics at the Faculty of Sociology of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano. He holds a PhD in Criminology at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore and a MA in Sociology at the Università degli Studi di Milano Bicocca (2009). He is a founding partner and administrator of Crime&tech, spin-off company of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore-Transcrime. His main research fields are spatial analysis of crime; predictive policing; crime and criminal justice statistics; organized crime and illicit markets. He has coordinated several national and international research projects.
Karen Edwards
Assoc. Dean of the College of HRSM, University of South Carolina
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Karen Edwards serves as associate dean of academic programs and student affairs and is a senior instructor in the Department of Retailing at the University of South Carolina. Recipient of the University’s 2019 Garnet Apple Award for Teaching Innovation, the 2017 Faculty Integrity Award, and the 2010-11 Harry E. Varney Distinguished Teacher of the Year Award, Edwards teaches in the areas of digital commerce, asset protection and law-related issues affecting retailers. Edwards has developed numerous undergraduate and graduate-level courses, such as Law for Retailers, Fashion and the Law and Asset Protection for Retailers. She has also led numerous study abroad programs and co-developed the University’s first-ever virtual study abroad course. In 2016, Edwards received the Brian J. and Linda L. Mihalik Global Scholar Award. She is a frequent presenter and past associate director for distributed learning at the University’s Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE).
Edwards’ research focuses on legal issues affecting retailers/service providers and best practices in online learning. In 2019, she was named a Fulbright Specialist through the U.S. State Department. She was elected to the Loss Prevention Foundation (LPF) board of directors in 2022. Edwards’ research has been published in International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, Journal of Retail and Consumer Services, Tourism Management, Sport Marketing Quarterly, and other scholarly publications. Her work has been presented at various conferences, including the University of Queensland Digital Service Transformation Summit, Quality Matters annual conference, the Association of Marketing Theory and Practice, and Online Learning Consortium Accelerate. She is a reviewer for Journal of Business Research, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Journal of Services Marketing, and Bloomsbury/Fairchild Publishing.
Prior to arriving at USC, Edwards practiced law with Duff, White and Turner, L.L.C., a firm serving public school districts and colleges across South Carolina. Her practice, which focused on employment law and education law, included significant amounts of workforce training on legal matters for her clients. Before attending law school, Edwards worked for a number of years in retail management, including roles as a merchandise coordinator, human resources manager and corporate trainer. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the Joseph F. Rice School of Law and her bachelor’s degree from Coker University in Hartsville, South Carolina. Edwards is a past chair of Coker’s Board of Trustees, and a member of the South Carolina Bar Association, South Carolina Women in Higher Education, American Collegiate Retailing Association and American MENSA.
Stan Griffis
Professor in Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Michigan State University
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Professor Griffis is the Bowersox-Thull Endowed Professor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management in the Department of Supply Chain Management at Michigan State University. His primary teaching interests include logistics and supply chain management.
Professor Griffis received his Ph.D. in Business Administration from The Ohio State University with a major in Logistics and a minor in Information Systems Management. He also holds a Master of Science in Logistics Management from the Air Force Institute of Technology, and a Master of Arts in Logistics from The Ohio State University. Prior to joining academia he worked on numerous logistics system design programs for the U.S. Air Force.
Professor Griffis’s research focuses on a variety of issues including how consumers truly value the set of logistics and supply chain services companies strive to differentiate upon (returns, assortment, speed). Additionally, he researches vehicle routing through real supply chain networks, seeking to account for the variability in traffic, stop lengths, and goods/services delivered/picked up in ways that classic vehicle routing techniques ignore. Lastly, Dr. Griffis works in the area of illicit supply chain networks where goods (e.g. counterfeit or illegal) co-mingle with legitimate supply chains, creating challenges for legitimate business operations.
Professor Griffis has published research in the Journal of Business Logistics, Journal of Operations Management, Decision Sciences, International Journal of Production Research, Transportation Journal, European Journal of Operations Research, Journal of Management, International Journal of Management Science (Omega), International Journal of Production Economics, Supply Chain Management Review, and the Journal of Transportation Management.
Michael Haupt
Doctoral Researcher, Global Health and Data Institute
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Michael Haupt is a computational social scientist, freelance data analyst, and graphic designer. His research investigates online communication dynamics and misinformation spread using machine learning, natural language processing, and social network analysis. He also conducts experimental research examining how psychological and cognitive traits (eg., conscientiousness, narcissism) influence how we perceive credibility in online environments.
Rowan Hilend
Asst. Professor in Supply Chain Management, Colorado State University
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Rowan Hilend is an Assistant Professor of Supply Chain Management at Colorado State University. Her research is largely focused on illicit behavior spanning international supply networks. She integrates criminological theories to examine the motivations, effects, and responses to illicit behavior in both traditional supply chains and expressly illegal contexts from a range of interdisciplinary and global perspectives.
Kevin Hoff
Asst. Professor of Psychology, Michigan State University
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Kevin Hoff (PhD, University of Illinois) is an Assistant Professor of Organizational Psychology. Kevin’s research focuses on individual differences and career and life outcomes. In particular, he studies the use of psychological assessments (personality, interests, values, and skills) for decision-making purposes, including career planning and human resource management. He also studies issues related to the future of work, such as the impact of automation and technology on people’s careers. Kevin has contributed to several applied projects aimed at developing free career exploration tools for public use, including collaborations with The World Bank and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Information Network (O*NET).
Bree Holtz
Assoc. Professor in Advertising & Public Relations, Michigan State University
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Dr. Holtz’s research explores the adoption, perceptions, and outcomes of telemedicine, mobile phone health apps (mhealth), consumer grade sensors (i.e., Fitbit, Apple Watch, etc.), electronic medical records, AI, and social media for health topics.
More generally, Dr. Holtz’s research sits at the intersection of health communication, information communication technologies (ICT or “technologies”) and the promotion of healthy behaviors through persuasion. Within this space, she is especially interested in the adoption of consumer health technology, telehealth services, and artificial intelligence (AI) in health communication. Her goal is to help improve health outcomes and individuals’ quality of life and has built a successful record of mixed methods research around this mission. This record includes 40 peer-reviewed articles, five book chapters, and numerous presentations (both conference and invited). I have also submitted proposals for internal, foundation, and federal funding and demonstrated success with more than $2 million in research awards, as either the PI or a Co-I.
Dr. Holtz studies a variety of technologies, populations, and conditions on an array of health topics, which tend to include chronic illnesses, mental health, and activities conducted over longer periods of time (e.g., fitness, nutrition). She uses a variety of theoretical frameworks from both health communication and information systems to match the questions/phenomenon.
Dr. Holtz has been recognized as an outstanding instructor having been awarded both the Faculty Impact Award and an Adams Academy Teaching Fellow by Michigan State University. Where in her classes she focuses on professional development, campaign planning and design, and health communication. She regularly brings students to Chicago to visit Public Relations firms.
She received her B.A. in Telecommunication from MSU, her MSc in Information Systems from the London School of Economics, and her Ph.D. in Media and Information Studies from MSU. She completed her postdoctoral training at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System in the Health Services Research and Development Department. She returned to MSU’s College of Communication Arts and Sciences in 2012.
Pat Huddleston
Professor in Advertising & Public Relations, Michigan State University
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Patricia Huddleston is a professor of retailing in the Department of Advertising + Public Relations and Director of the Information and Media Ph.D. program at Michigan State University. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. She is a Research Council Member with the Anticounterfeiting and Product Protection Center (ACAPP). She teaches consumer behavior, retail strategy, and strategic brand communication courses.
Her current research focuses on eye-tracking to evaluate consumer information processing of point-of-purchase retail display elements (e.g., signage, price) and how these elements motivate purchase intention. This research has been funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program and Horticulture Research Institute. Her work has been published in publications such as the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, PLOS, and the Journal of Product and Brand Management. Recently, she has co-authored a 17-country study to understand global attitudes and behavior toward counterfeit products funded by Underwriters Laboratories.
Jina Kim
Assoc. Professor of Korean Literature & Culture, University of Oregon
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Jina Eleanor Kim is associate professor of Korean literature and culture in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures. She is the author of Urban Modernities in Colonial Korea and Taiwan, a comparative study of modernist literature and culture emerging in Seoul and Taipei during the Japanese colonial era; co-editor of The Journal of Korean Studies special issue on “Intermedial Aesthetics: Korean Literature, Culture, and Film,” a collection of essays that show how the movements across media can open up new ways of engaging in transnational, interdisciplinary work on Korea. She is currently completing a second book project on Auditory Texts in Colonial Korea, which examines the relationship between emerging genres and new sound media technologies especially through the study of radio and radio dramas. Her current research project is on contemporary global Korean literature and transpacific studies which probes the literary and cultural productions between Korea and global Korean diasporic cultures in order to understand the formation of world literatures. This study interrogates the system of literary prizes and engages with digital humanities methods.
Broadly, her research interest area is in modern Korean literature and cultural history. More specifically, her research questions rest in the historical, theoretical, and philosophical concept of the “New,” whether they be material goods, social and technological revolutions, cultural and artistic movements, racial formations, or subjects of knowledge. Her other research areas include comparative colonialisms, in particular, between Korea and Taiwan, Vietnam, and Korean diasporic literatures; Intermediality, transmedia storytelling, and digital humanities; Sound studies; Radio and radio dramas; Popular fiction and popular culture; and History of technology and literature.
Anastasia Kononova
Assoc. Professor in Advertising & Public Relations, Michigan State University
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Anastasia Kononova is an associate professor of advertising at MSU. Media multitasking is an overarching focus of Kononova’s interdisciplinary and international research that lies in the intersection of three areas: media and technology use across different cultures and social groups; psychological responses to media devices and persuasive messages; and advertising and digital literacy. Kononova’s primary research interest is related to exploring media multitasking behavior, i.e. using/being exposed to multiple media at the same time. Studying media multitasking patterns reflects idiosyncrasies and commonalities of media use across markets. Such knowledge helps enhance international communication, especially with regard to using multiple platforms to convey messages effectively. Kononova has studied media multitasking not only in a cross-cultural setting but also across the lifespan, focusing on media use behaviors of older adults.
A large body of Kononova’s media multitasking research is devoted to exploring the effects of this behavior on cognition, emotion, rationalization, and resistance to persuasion. Kononova has found that switching between online tasks and using multiple screen devices at the same time negatively affect memory for mediated content, elicit less skeptical responses to persuasive messages (e.g., health and advertising messages), and hinder rational choices (e.g., choice of healthful snacks). In a related area of research, Kononova has explored how individuals cognitively and affectively respond to advertising messages placed in congruent and incongruent online contexts.
In a recent project, Kononova focused on the use of health mobile applications (apps) and privacy concerns associated with sharing personal information via smartphones, exploring credibility judgments that individuals made of sponsored health mobile apps.
Kononova’s word appeared in highly ranked peer-reviewed journals, such as Computers in Human Behavior, Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, International Journal of Communication, Journal of Health Communication, Journal of Medical Internet Research: mHealth and uHealth, and others.
Before joining the Department of Advertising and Public Relations at Michigan State University, Anastasia worked as an assistant professor of communication and media at the American University of Kuwait. She earned a doctoral degree at the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism and a master’s degree at Oklahoma State University. Before graduate school, Anastasia studied in Rostov State University (Southern Federal University since 2006) in Russia, where she also worked as a corporate communication specialist.
Kyoo il Kim
Professor of Economics, Michigan State University
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Kyoo il Kim is a Professor of Economics at Michigan State University. He also worked at the University of Minnesota, Amazon.com, Sungkyunkwan University, and Singapore Management University. He completed a B.A. at Seoul National University and a Ph.D. in Economics at UCLA. His research focuses on topics in Econometrics and Industrial Organization including differentiated products demand, discrete choices, random coefficient models, hedonic pricing, nonparametric identification, control function methods, production function, firm productivity, corporate social responsibility, and minimum wage.
Heijin Lee
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Michigan State University
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Heijin Lee is a doctoral student in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations. Her research aims to explore the role of social media in interpersonal and international communication. She is particularly interested in influencer marketing and the role of social media influencers in public diplomacy and intercultural/international communication.
Heijin received her M.A. in Mass Communication at Tsinghua University in China, and B.A. in Journalism and Chinese Foreign Affairs and Commerce at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Korea. Before joining MSU, she worked as a marketer at TikTok and cooperated with government agencies and companies as a social media influencer.
Honglei Li
Asst. Professor in Computer Sciences, Northumbria University
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Dr Honglei Li is an assistant professor in Computer Sciences in Department of Computer and Information Sciences at Northumbria University. With over 20 years’ research experience in information systems, she has developed herself into an expert in end-user information technology adoption particularly for virtual communities, smart cities, online recommendation systems, and artificial intelligence.
She has published papers in top tier journals such as IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Systems, Information Technology & People, Information & Management, Social Science Computer Review, Journal of Association for Information Science and Technology, Internet Research, Electronic Commerce Research, Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, etc. She has served as the senior editor for Information Technology & People and Associate Editor of Journal of Electronic Business and Digital Economics. She has serves as the reviewers for top journals such as Decision Support Systems, MIS Quarterly, Information & Management, etc.
Dr Honglei Li has been leading a research team in electronic governments with the blockchain technology, P2P energy trading and artificial intelligence with Computer Vision. She has successfully secured funds from the university studentship and other sources for her PhD students. Dr Honglei Li has successfully secured funds from various sources, including the A-CAPP grant of USD30000 from Michigan State University as PI, the Innovate UK fund of Innovation Voucher by looking into how online recommendation systems could be applied into the property management industry in 2014 as PI; the e-social science research fund from the China Academy of Social Science in 2015 as PI to examine how the social science research could be digitalized; and, digitalization of flood prevention system as Co-PI from Northumbria University in 2021. Dr. Honglei Li will be leading the project, responsible for the design science section of the project, including the e-commerce and blockchain system analysis, design, and implementation, and final report.
Dr. Honglei Li serves as the website officer in the UK Association of Information Systems. She has also served as the conference chair and successfully organized the 19th International Conference on Electronic Business held in Newcastle Upon Tyne in 2019. She serves as the co-chair for the UKAIS 2025 annual conference to help organize the conference.
Timothy Mackey
Professor in Anthropology, University of California, San Diego
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Tim Mackey is a professor of global health in the Global Health Program at UC San Diego in the Department of Anthropology, the director of the Global Health Policy and Data Institute, and the editor-in-chief of JMIR Infodemiology. He is also the CEO and co-founder of the data science and research services company S-3 Research, currently funded by the National Institutes of Health and through other government and private sector contracts. He holds a BA in political science-international relations, a master’s degree in health policy & law and also earned his Ph.D. in global public health from the joint doctoral program at UC San Diego – San Diego State University. Mackey’s work has been featured in high-impact journals such as Science, JAMA, Nature Biotechnology, the Lancet, Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology, Clinical Microbiology Reviews, and BMC Medicine. His research and expertise have also been featured in major news outlets such as CNN, NPR, and the Wall Street Journal. His work focuses on an array of multidisciplinary topics in domestic and global public health. He also has extensive professional experience including over 10 years experience in the private sector and acting as a consultant for the World Health Organization, the US Department of State and others.
Mirko Nazzari
Researcher, Transcrime
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Mirko Nazzari is currently enrolled in the third year of the International Ph.D. in Criminology at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan and is a researcher at Transcrime – Joint Research Centre on Transnational Crime where he researches money laundering, terrorist financing, and illicit financial flows.
Moldir Moldagaliyeva
Research and Teaching Assistant, Michigan State University
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Moldir Moldagaliyeva is an Information and Media doctoral student in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations. She is an international student from Kazakhstan interested in cross-cultural comparative studies on social media and digital technology use, the digital divide, and digital literacy. She is working on projects on older adults’ ICT use in the US and Central Asia. She is also a Research Assistant at the Center for Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection at MSU for a global study on counterfeit product sales.
She earned her Master’s in Advertising and Public Relations from Michigan State University in 2022. Before joining MSU, Moldir worked as a Marketing and Public Relations Specialist for a nationally recognized IT company in Kazakhstan and participated in initiatives to promote e-government services and enhance citizens’ digital literacy through the e-government portal.
Victoria Nelson
Graduate Research Assistant, Michigan State University
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Victoria Nelson is a doctoral student in the Information and Media program. She is interested in the intersection of health, emerging technology, and the law. Specifically, she is interested in blockchain and artificial intelligence in healthcare settings especially when applied to those with chronic illness. Victoria received her Juris Doctor from Michigan State University College of Law (2020) and her B.S. in Supply Chain Management and Political Science from The University of Tennessee (2017).
Haley Paluzzi
Asst. Professor in Supply Chain Management, University of Colorado
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Haley Paluzzi is an Assistant Professor in Supply Chain Management at the University of Colorado. Before that she was a Ph. D. Candidate at Iowa State University. Paluzzi received her Bachelor of Science degree from the Colorado School of Mines in metallurgical and materials engineering and an MBA from the University of California, Riverside. Paluzzi has five years of industry experience, working as a senior metallurgical engineer and logistics analyst in the steel industry. Her research interests include consumer impatience, consumer-centric supply chain management, e-commerce, and omni-channel fulfillment. She is also interested in the development of logistics capabilities and supply chain sustainability.
Zac Rogers
Assoc. Professor in Supply Chain Management, Colorado State University
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Dr. Rogers is an Associate Professor of Operations and Supply Chain Management at Colorado State University. His primary research interests include the financial impact of supply chain sustainability, emerging logistics technologies, supply chain cyber security and various other emerging purchasing and logistics issues. Dr. Rogers’ work has appeared in multiple academic journals, corporate white papers, trade publications, and conference proceedings. He is also a frequent speaker at both academic and practitioner-oriented conferences. Dr. Rogers earned his B.S. and M.B.A. degrees at the University of Nevada, Reno and his PhD in supply chain management from Arizona State University. Prior to returning to academia Dr. Rogers worked as a purchasing agent for a large hotel-resort and as an operations manager for Quidsi, a subsidiary of Amazon.
Saetbyul Park
Asst. Professor in Apparel & Textile Design, Michigan State University
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Saetbyul Park is an assistant professor in Apparel & Textile Design at Michigan State University. She received her degrees of B.S. and M. S. in Clothing and Textiles from Seoul National University in Korea and her Ph.D. from University of Minnesota, specializing in Apparel Studies with a minor in Anthropology. She also studied in the Professional Designation Program of Merchandise Product Development at Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM). She has developed her solid foundation in apparel design and product development through her career as a designer and merchandiser in Korea and the United States. She is a current member of International Textile and Apparel Association (ITAA) and Costume Society of America (CSA).
Prof. Park’s main research focuses on socio-cultural influence on the aesthetic perspectives of immigrants in the United States. Her interest lies in investigating different migratory experiences among ethnic groups and its influence on their apparel related practices and experiences. An important contribution of the research is to show that the dynamics in the culture of origin and the host culture of immigrants influence their social identity and to find that they modify their attitudes and behaviors on appearance to balance fundamental needs of inclusion and exclusion depending on their cultural contexts. Her research also seeks to examine the growing issues of sustainability and ethical consumption of apparel, concerning how consumers can be responsible in the procedure of apparel consumption and disposal.
Sandy Strick
Asst. Professor/Director of the Wine and Beverage Institute, University of South Carolina
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Sandy K. Strick, a graduate of Purdue University, has been on the faculty of the School of Hospitality and Tourism at the University of South Carolina for more than 20 years and took over as interim director for the school in July 2024. Strick has previous experience leading the school having been its chair for five years. She also serves as director of the Wine and Beverage Institute at USC.
She teaches Wine and Spirits, Meeting Planning and Multicultural Human Resources courses at the graduate and undergraduate levels. Strick has dedicated a significant portion of her professional effort toward the improvement of hospitality education through her work with the Accreditation Commission for Programs in Hospitality Education where she ha,s among other positions, served two terms as commission chair, and continues to participate actively in accreditation site visits. Strick is also a certified hospitality educator with the American Hotel and Lodging Association.
Strick is a certified wine specialist. She is active in the Society of Wine Educators where she has been an instructor for several of their classes and serves on the society’s educational advisory board. Strick is the founding director of the Wine and Beverage Institute at Carolina. The institute is dedicated to wine and beverage education in the Columbia community. Through the institute, Strick teaches a variety of wine courses to include Wine 101, Bordeaux, Rose, and Sparkling Wines and Champagnes. For the past several years, she has participated in the Banfi Scholarship Tour that provides students and faculty with a Tuscan food and wine experience.
Doria Velez
Research Director,
National Citizen Observatory
Manuel Velez
Deputy Research Director, National Citizen Observatory
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Manuel is currently the Deputy Research Director at the National Citizen Observatory, a Mexican leading think tank and NGO specialized in criminal justice, security and lawfulness. As a trained economist he has participated in multiple mixed-method research projects about homicides, extortion, money laundering from human trafficking, kidnappings for ransom, political violence, electoral crimes, money laundering policy, forced disappearances, child recruitment into organized crime, among a vast array of other topics in Mexico.
Moreover, in 2020 he co-authored the first report on the supply side of counterfeiting and the institutional response against it. Years later, he co-authored the first report on illicit pesticides in Mexico including those that are substandard, stolen, tampered, unregistered, smuggled and counterfeit.
He is a regular op-ed writer in online newspapers targeted at Mexican and international audiences. He has also published articles in peer reviewed journals such as Revista Mexicana de Opinión Pública and Boletín Criminológico. Last year, he participated as research assistant for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Issue Paper on Organized Crime and Gender: Issues Relating to the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime. He co-authored a chapter from the book Genética forense en México: promesas y realidades titled Infraestructuras forenses: claves conceptuales para su reflexión published by Editorial Siglo XXI in 2022. He is also a security expert group advisor at the U.S.- Mexico Forum 2025 from the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies based at the University of California San Diego.
Erin Willis
Assoc. Professor in Advertising & Public Relations, University of Colorado
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Associate Professor Erin Willis earned a doctorate from the University of Missouri School of Journalism. Willis’s research examines the ways in which health messages influence people’s behaviors. She is particularly interested in the processes by which health behavior is shaped by the information and technology that people use every day. The goal of her research is to explore how message design can influence people’s understanding about health and health promotion, which is central to public health. Willis’s work has appeared in notable journals such as Health Communication, Health Psychology, Health Informatics and Health Promotion and Practice.
Willis joined CU Boulder from the University of Memphis, where she served as an assistant professor. Prior to academia, Willis worked in public relations and marketing communications.
Dana Anafina
Communication MA Student & Teaching Assistant, Michigan State University
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Dana Anafina is a second-year master’s student in the Department of Communication at Michigan State University. Her research focus is health communication, specifically how social norms influence an individual’s behavior. She is interested in exploring how persuasive messages can challenge and reshape existing social norms for positive health outcomes. Inspired by current fellows, Dana is excited to work with and learn. As a leadership fellow, she aims to create an environment for international students where their voices are heard and to ensure each individual feels valued and supported.
Dr. Naveed Anwar
Asst. Professor in the Department of Computer and Information Sciences, Northumbria University
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Dr. Anwar is a Senior Lecturer and Programme Leader for MSc Information Science (Data Analytics and Library Management) in the Department of Computer & Information Sciences, Northumbria University, UK. He received his PhD in Computing (Data Mining) from University of Sunderland, UK. He has done his MSc and BSc in Computer Science from University of Karachi, Pakistan. He has been working in academia for the last many years at different national and overseas universities. He had been a Research Ethics Lead / Deputy Lead for the Department of Computer & Information Sciences at Northumbria University. He is a Fellow of Higher Education Academy (FHEA), and also a member of FHEA applications’ review committee at Northumbria University. Before joining the Northumbria University, he worked at The Open University, UK as a Research Fellow. He had also worked as a Post-doctoral Research Associate at University of Sunderland, Knowledge Media Institute (KMi) and The Open University Business School, UK. Previously, he was also a full-time Lecturer at Department of Computer Science, University of Karachi, Pakistan. He is also an external examiner at various universities.
Dr Anwar combined his knowledge and research in data mining in the form of a book based on medical data. He has published his research work in many international conferences’ proceedings and journals. Previously he had obtained grants as a Principal Investigator from SAMS (Society for the Advancement of Management Studies), UKCES (UK Commission for Employment Skills) and ESRC (Economic and Social Research Council), UK, and as a Co-investigator from Research Beacon, University of Sunderland, UK. He is a Member of the Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC) UK Peer Review College to review reports and bids/proposals for their schemes and programmes. He has also reviewed many national and international bids. He supervises PhD students, and has chaired and examined many PhD students. He is also a reviewer for many international journals and has been a Technical Programme Committee member for many international conferences.
Dr. Anwar is involved in quantitative and qualitative research. His research interest includes qualitative and quantitative data analysis, big data analysis, data mining, business intelligence, digital methods and machine learning, health informatics, intelligent hybrid systems (using a combination of machine learning techniques), information systems, decision support systems, international businesses/entrepreneurship, online businesses/entrepreneurship, online home-based businesses, entrepreneurial marketing, and digital social media. He is open for discussion for research with prospective self-funded postgraduate researchers (MPhil/PhD and Visiting Scholars) and businesses/companies/organizations who are interested in above areas.
Alberto Aziani
Asst. Professor, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano
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Alberto Aziani is an Assistant Professor of Criminology at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, where he specializes in illegal markets, trafficking activities, organized crime, and illicit financial flows. His work on these topics has been widely published in leading scientific journals. He holds a PhD in Criminology from Università Cattolica, an MSc in Economics and Social Sciences and a BSc in Management from Bocconi University, Milan. Over the years, he has overseen numerous projects for international and supranational organizations and funding institutions, such as the European Commission and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.
Subhalakshmi Bezbaruah
Teaching Assistant, Michigan State University
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Subhalakshmi is currently a doctoral student with an Advertising Major, primarily researching on cognitive processing of mediated ads. Prior to joining MSU, she was associated with the Institute of Management Technology, Ghaziabad (India) as a faculty member, teaching courses such as Integrated Marketing Communication, Digital Marketing, etc. to graduate students.
She has a doctoral fellowship from MICA (Fellow Program in Management Communications), India where her research areas included exploring the effect of hybrid marketing messages on consumer-brand relationships. She takes pride in being a mixed-method researcher, proficient in tools such as SPSS, AMOS, SMART-PLS, and qualitative methods including multi-sited ethnography, focus groups, in-depth interviews, content analysis, thematic analysis, and so on.
Subhalakshmi was formerly associated with Swiggy, India’s largest food ordering and delivery platform based out of Bangalore, for a period of 2 years where she worked in Catalogue Operations, a role that made her super adaptable and proactive. She can also be called an Ergophile and was also awarded the “Powerhouse Performance” in the year 2016.
Xuemei Bian
Professor in Marketing, Northumbria University
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Dr Xuemei Bian is Professor in Marketing at University of Northumbria, EDI Lead of MOS and Innovation Fellow of the British Academy 2022/23. She is an advisor to the UK Intellectual Property Office (IPO), the national government agency, which operates and maintains a clear and accessible intellectual property system in the UK to encourage innovation and helps the economy and society to benefit from knowledge and ideas. Between November 2020 and June 2021, she served IPO’s Exhaustion of Intellectual Property Rights evidence sub-group in her capacity as advisor. She currently holds the visiting professor role at Tianjin University and is also Adjunct Professor at Michigan State University. Her main research interests are in consumer behavior, branding and advertising, with a focus on how judgments, evaluations and choice vary as a function of different decision-making strategies. She has established and sustained an international reputation and recognition in three main research areas: 1) consumption behavior; 2) branding and brand management, and 3) effective advertising with a focus on the influences of advertising appeals on brands, consumer well-being, and behavioral tendency.
She is one of the leading scholars in the field of consumer and counterfeit studies. Her research has appeared in many journals of international repute, such as Journal of Business Research, European Journal of Marketing, Marketing Letters, British Journal of Social Psychology, International Business Review, Journal of Brand Management, International Journal of Consumer Studies, Journal of Consumer Behavior, Advances in Consumer Research, Journal of Product and Brand Management, and The Marketing Review among others. Her paper titled “New Insights into Unethical Counterfeit Consumption” was selected and included in Elsevier’s Newsletter for Science Journalists (2016) and is the “Top Rated” paper in the Journal of Business Research.
Her research has attracted media attention in recent years and has featured in national and international popular outlets and trade magazines such as Huffington Post, Marie Claire, BBC Radio Kent, Refinery29, Fućsia (Colombia), The World Trademark Review, Luxury Daily (USA), and numerous online news websites. She is a regular contributor to national and international popular outlets, including The Sunday Times and BBC Radio Kent, commenting on consumer related topics.
Jay Choi
University Distinguished Professor, Michigan State University
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Jay Choi is a University Distinguished Professor of Economics at Michigan State University. His research is in industrial organization, with a focus on intellectual property rights, economics of network effects, and antitrust economics. He hold a PhD in economics from Harvard University and a BA from Seoul National University.
Marco Dugato
Illicit Trade, Transcrime – Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore di Milano
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Marco Dugato is Senior Researcher at Transcrime since 2009 and Adjunct Professor of Methods and Techniques for Criminological Research at the Faculty of Political and Social Sciences of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan, Italy. From the a.y. 2010/11 to the a.y. 2012/13 he has been Adjunct Professor of Crime Statistics at the Faculty of Sociology of the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore. He holds a PhD in Criminology at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore and a MA in Sociology at the Università degli Studi di Milano Bicocca. He is a founding partner and administrator of Crime&tech, spin-off company of Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore-Transcrime. His main research fields are spatial analysis of crime; predictive policing and risk assessment analysis; crime and criminal justice statistics; organized crime and illicit markets. He has coordinated several national and international research projects. His research has appeared in several peer-reviewed journals.
Karen Edwards
Assoc. Dean, University of South Carolina College of HRSM
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Karen Edwards serves as associate dean of academic programs and student affairs and is a senior instructor in the Department of Retailing at the University of South Carolina. Recipient of the University’s 2019 Garnet Apple Award for Teaching Innovation, the 2017 Faculty Integrity Award, and the 2010-11 Harry E. Varney Distinguished Teacher of the Year Award, Edwards teaches in the areas of digital commerce, asset protection and law-related issues affecting retailers. Edwards has developed numerous undergraduate and graduate-level courses, such as Law for Retailers, Fashion and the Law and Asset Protection for Retailers. She has also led numerous study abroad programs and co-developed the University’s first-ever virtual study abroad course. In 2016, Edwards received the Brian J. and Linda L. Mihalik Global Scholar Award. She is a frequent presenter and past associate director for distributed learning at the University’s Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE).
Edwards’ research focuses on legal issues affecting retailers/service providers and best practices in online learning. In 2019, she was named a Fulbright Specialist through the U.S. State Department. She was elected to the Loss Prevention Foundation (LPF) board of directors in 2022. Edwards’ research has been published in International Journal of Retail and Distribution Management, Journal of Retail and Consumer Services, Tourism Management, Sport Marketing Quarterly, and other scholarly publications. Her work has been presented at various conferences, including the University of Queensland Digital Service Transformation Summit, Quality Matters annual conference, the Association of Marketing Theory and Practice, and Online Learning Consortium Accelerate. She is a reviewer for Journal of Business Research, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, Journal of Services Marketing, and Bloomsbury/Fairchild Publishing.
Prior to arriving at USC, Edwards practiced law with Duff, White and Turner, L.L.C., a firm serving public school districts and colleges across South Carolina. Her practice, which focused on employment law and education law, included significant amounts of workforce training on legal matters for her clients. Before attending law school, Edwards worked for a number of years in retail management, including roles as a merchandise coordinator, human resources manager and corporate trainer. She earned her Juris Doctor degree from the Joseph F. Rice School of Law and her bachelor’s degree from Coker University in Hartsville, South Carolina. Edwards is a past chair of Coker’s Board of Trustees, and a member of the South Carolina Bar Association, South Carolina Women in Higher Education, American Collegiate Retailing Association and American MENSA.
Stanley Griffis
Professor in Logistics and Supply Chain Management, Michigan State University
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Professor Griffis is the Bowersox-Thull Endowed Professor of Logistics and Supply Chain Management in the Department of Supply Chain Management at Michigan State University. His primary teaching interests include logistics and supply chain management.
Professor Griffis received his Ph.D. in Business Administration from The Ohio State University with a major in Logistics and a minor in Information Systems Management. He also holds a Master of Science in Logistics Management from the Air Force Institute of Technology, and a Master of Arts in Logistics from The Ohio State University. Prior to joining academia he worked on numerous logistics system design programs for the U.S. Air Force.
Professor Griffis’s research focuses on a variety of issues including how consumers truly value the set of logistics and supply chain services companies strive to differentiate upon (returns, assortment, speed). Additionally, he researches vehicle routing through real supply chain networks, seeking to account for the variability in traffic, stop lengths, and goods/services delivered/picked up in ways that classic vehicle routing techniques ignore. Lastly, Dr. Griffis works in the area of illicit supply chain networks where goods (e.g. counterfeit or illegal) co-mingle with legitimate supply chains, creating challenges for legitimate business operations.
Professor Griffis has published research in the Journal of Business Logistics, Journal of Operations Management, Decision Sciences, International Journal of Production Research, Transportation Journal, European Journal of Operations Research, Journal of Management, International Journal of Management Science (Omega), International Journal of Production Economics, Supply Chain Management Review, and the Journal of Transportation Management.
Professor Griffis has won multiple “best paper” awards in supply chain journals and is a National Science Foundation (NSF) grant winner (2019).
Michael Haupt
Doctoral Researcher, University of California, San Diego
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Michael Robert Haupt is a Doctoral Research Fellow at GHPi and a PhD student in Cognitive Science at UC San Diego. He holds a Masters Degree in Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences (QMSS) from Columbia University with a focus in data science, and a BA in Anthropology and Psychology from the University of Michigan. Prior to his PhD program, Michael was a senior data analyst at a research consulting firm and also worked as a research coordinator at the Stanford Graduate School of Business (GSB) Behavioral Lab. His current work uses social network analysis (SNA), natural language processing (NLP), and machine learning to investigate political mobilization and misinformation spread across online platforms.
Rowan Hilend
Asst. Professor in Supply Chain Management, Colorado State University
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Rowan is an Assistant Professor of Supply Chain Management at Colorado State University. Her research is largely focused on illicit behavior spanning international supply networks. She integrates criminological theories to examine the motivations, effects, and responses to illicit behavior in both traditional supply chains and expressly illegal contexts from a range of interdisciplinary and global perspectives.
Kevin Hoff
Asst. Professor in Organizational Psychology, Michigan State University
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Kevin Hoff (PhD, University of Illinois) is an Assistant Professor of Organizational Psychology. Kevin’s research focuses on individual differences and career and life outcomes. In particular, he studies the use of psychological assessments (personality, interests, values, and skills) for decision-making purposes, including career planning and human resource management. He also studies issues related to the future of work, such as the impact of automation and technology on people’s careers. Kevin has contributed to several applied projects aimed at developing free career exploration tools for public use, including collaborations with The World Bank and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Information Network (O*NET).
Bree Holtz
Assoc. Professor in Advertising & Public Relations, Michigan State University
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Dr. Holtz’s research explores the adoption, perceptions, and outcomes of telemedicine, mobile phone health apps (mhealth), consumer grade sensors (i.e., Fitbit, Apple Watch, etc.), electronic medical records, AI, and social media for health topics.
More generally, Dr. Holtz’s research sits at the intersection of health communication, information communication technologies (ICT or “technologies”) and the promotion of healthy behaviors through persuasion. Within this space, she is especially interested in the adoption of consumer health technology, telehealth services, and artificial intelligence (AI) in health communication. Her goal is to help improve health outcomes and individuals’ quality of life and has built a successful record of mixed methods research around this mission. This record includes 40 peer-reviewed articles, five book chapters, and numerous presentations (both conference and invited). I have also submitted proposals for internal, foundation, and federal funding and demonstrated success with more than $2 million in research awards, as either the PI or a Co-I.
Dr. Holtz studies a variety of technologies, populations, and conditions on an array of health topics, which tend to include chronic illnesses, mental health, and activities conducted over longer periods of time (e.g., fitness, nutrition). She uses a variety of theoretical frameworks from both health communication and information systems to match the questions/phenomenon.
Dr. Holtz has been recognized as an outstanding instructor having been awarded both the Faculty Impact Award and an Adams Academy Teaching Fellow by Michigan State University. Where in her classes she focuses on professional development, campaign planning and design, and health communication. She regularly brings students to Chicago to visit Public Relations firms.
She received her B.A. in Telecommunication from MSU, her MSc in Information Systems from the London School of Economics, and her Ph.D. in Media and Information Studies from MSU. She completed her postdoctoral training at the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System in the Health Services Research and Development Department. She returned to MSU’s College of Communication Arts and Sciences in 2012.
Pat Huddleston
Professor in Advertising & Public Relations, Michigan State University
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Patricia Huddleston is a professor of retailing in the Department of Advertising + Public Relations and Director of the Information and Media Ph.D. program at Michigan State University. She earned her Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. She is a Research Council Member with the Anticounterfeiting and Product Protection Center (ACAPP). She teaches consumer behavior, retail strategy, and strategic brand communication courses.
Her current research focuses on eye-tracking to evaluate consumer information processing of point-of-purchase retail display elements (e.g., signage, price) and how these elements motivate purchase intention. This research has been funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program and Horticulture Research Institute. Her work has been published in publications such as the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, PLOS, and the Journal of Product and Brand Management. Recently, she has co-authored a 17-country study to understand global attitudes and behavior toward counterfeit products funded by Underwriters Laboratories.
She is an Affiliated Faculty member with the Center for Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection (A-CAPP) at Michigan State University. In July 2020, she was a panelist for the ACAPP Center’s “Brand New World” virtual summit, speaking on the topic of “E-Commerce and Counterfeits: Evolving Consumer Behavior”. In December 2020, collaborated with Dr. Saleem Alhabash and Dr. Anastasia Kononova on “A Social-Media Toolkit for Brand Protection at the ACAPP Center’s Executive Education Seminar.
Jina Kim
Assoc. Professor in Korean Literature & Culture, University of Oregon
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Jina Eleanor Kim is an associate professor of Korean literature and culture in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures. She is the author of Urban Modernities in Colonial Korea and Taiwan, a comparative study of modernist literature and culture emerging in Seoul and Taipei during the Japanese colonial era; co-editor of The Journal of Korean Studies special issue on “Intermedial Aesthetics: Korean Literature, Culture, and Film,” a collection of essays that show how the movements across media can open up new ways of engaging in transnational, interdisciplinary work on Korea. She is currently completing a second book project on Auditory Texts in Colonial Korea, which examines the relationship between emerging genres and new sound media technologies especially through the study of radio and radio dramas. Her current research project is on contemporary global Korean literature and transpacific studies which probes the literary and cultural productions between Korea and global Korean diasporic cultures in order to understand the formation of world literatures. This study interrogates the system of literary prizes and engages with digital humanities methods.
Before joining the Department of Advertising and Public Relations at Michigan State University, Anastasia worked as an assistant professor of communication and media at the American University of Kuwait. She earned a doctoral degree at the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism and a master’s degree at Oklahoma State University. Before graduate school, Anastasia studied in Rostov State University (Southern Federal University since 2006) in Russia, where she also worked as a corporate communication specialist.
Anastasia Kononova
Assoc. Professor in Advertising & Public Relations, Michigan State University
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Anastasia Kononova is an associate professor of advertising at MSU. Media multitasking is an overarching focus of Kononova’s interdisciplinary and international research that lies in the intersection of three areas: media and technology use across different cultures and social groups; psychological responses to media devices and persuasive messages; and advertising and digital literacy. Kononova’s primary research interest is related to exploring media multitasking behavior, i.e. using/being exposed to multiple media at the same time. Studying media multitasking patterns reflects idiosyncrasies and commonalities of media use across markets. Such knowledge helps enhance international communication, especially with regard to using multiple platforms to convey messages effectively. Kononova has studied media multitasking not only in a cross-cultural setting but also across the lifespan, focusing on media use behaviors of older adults.
A large body of Kononova’s media multitasking research is devoted to exploring the effects of this behavior on cognition, emotion, rationalization, and resistance to persuasion. Kononova has found that switching between online tasks and using multiple screen devices at the same time negatively affect memory for mediated content, elicit less skeptical responses to persuasive messages (e.g., health and advertising messages), and hinder rational choices (e.g., choice of healthful snacks). In a related area of research, Kononova has explored how individuals cognitively and affectively respond to advertising messages placed in congruent and incongruent online contexts.
In a recent project, Kononova focused on the use of health mobile applications (apps) and privacy concerns associated with sharing personal information via smartphones, exploring credibility judgments that individuals made of sponsored health mobile apps.
Kononova’s word appeared in highly ranked peer-reviewed journals, such as Computers in Human Behavior, Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, International Journal of Communication, Journal of Health Communication, Journal of Medical Internet Research: mHealth and uHealth, and others.
Before joining the Department of Advertising and Public Relations at Michigan State University, Anastasia worked as an assistant professor of communication and media at the American University of Kuwait. She earned a doctoral degree at the University of Missouri’s School of Journalism and a master’s degree at Oklahoma State University. Before graduate school, Anastasia studied in Rostov State University (Southern Federal University since 2006) in Russia, where she also worked as a corporate communication specialist.
Alexander Krasnikov
Asst. Professor at the Graduate School of Business, Nazarbayev University
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Alexander Krasnikov joined the Quinlan School of Business in the fall 2015. Prior to coming to Quinlan School, he was full-time faculty at the George Washington University, Washington, D.C.. In addition, he held visiting research positions at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and the Graduate School of Management at St. Petersburg State University, Russia.
His area of expertise include intellectual property and brands, marketing strategy in the emerging markets, and marketing analytics.
He contributes as invited speaker and instructor to the educational programs organizes by World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
Kyoo il Kim
Professor of Economics, Michigan State University
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Kyoo il Kim is a Professor of Economics at Michigan State University. He also worked at the University of Minnesota, Amazon.com, Sungkyunkwan University, and Singapore Management University. He completed a B.A. at Seoul National University and a Ph.D. in Economics at UCLA. His research focuses on topics in Econometrics and Industrial Organization including differentiated products demand, discrete choices, random coefficient models, hedonic pricing, nonparametric identification, control function methods, production function, firm productivity, corporate social responsibility, and minimum wage.
Heijin Lee
Graduate Teaching Assistant, Michigan State University
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Heijin Lee is a doctoral student in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations. Her research aims to explore the role of social media in interpersonal and international communication. She is particularly interested in influencer marketing and the role of social media influencers in public diplomacy and intercultural/international communication.
Heijin received her M.A. in Mass Communication at Tsinghua University in China, and B.A. in Journalism and Chinese Foreign Affairs and Commerce at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in Korea. Before joining MSU, she worked as a marketer at TikTok and cooperated with government agencies and companies as a social media influencer.
Honglei Li
Asst. Professor in Computer and Information Sciences, Northumbria University
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Dr Honglei Li is an assistant professor in Computer Sciences in Department of Computer and Information Sciences at Northumbria University. With over 20 years’ research experience in information systems, she has developed herself into an expert in end-user information technology adoption particularly for virtual communities, smart cities, online recommendation systems, and artificial intelligence.
She has published papers in top tier journals such as IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Systems, Information Technology & People, Information & Management, Social Science Computer Review, Journal of Association for Information Science and Technology, Internet Research, Electronic Commerce Research, Journal of Electronic Commerce Research, etc. She has served as the senior editor for Information Technology & People and Associate Editor of Journal of Electronic Business and Digital Economics. She has serves as the reviewers for top journals such as Decision Support Systems, MIS Quarterly, Information & Management, etc.
Dr Honglei Li has been leading a research team in electronic governments with the blockchain technology, P2P energy trading and artificial intelligence with Computer Vision. She has successfully secured funds from the university studentship and other sources for her PhD students. Dr Honglei Li has successfully secured funds from various sources, including the A-CAPP grant of USD30000 from Michigan State University as PI, the Innovate UK fund of Innovation Voucher by looking into how online recommendation systems could be applied into the property management industry in 2014 as PI; the e-social science research fund from the China Academy of Social Science in 2015 as PI to examine how the social science research could be digitalized; and, digitalization of flood prevention system as Co-PI from Northumbria University in 2021. Dr. Honglei Li will be leading the project, responsible for the design science section of the project, including the e-commerce and blockchain system analysis, design, and implementation, and final report.
Dr. Honglei Li serves as the website officer in the UK Association of Information Systems. She has also served as the conference chair and successfully organized the 19th International Conference on Electronic Business held in Newcastle Upon Tyne in 2019. She serves as the co-chair for the UKAIS 2025 annual conference to help organize the conference.
Tim Mackey
Assoc. Professor, University of California, San Diego
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Tim Ken Mackey is an Associate Professor at the University of California, San Diego, the Director of Healthcare Research and Policy at UC San Diego – Extension, and is the Director of the Global Health Policy Institute (www.ghpolicy.org). He is also the CEO and co-Founder of the NIH-funded healthcare technology startup S-3 Research LLC. He holds a BA in Political Science-International Relations, a Masters Degree in Health Policy & Law and also earned his PhD in Global Public Health from the joint doctoral program at UC San Diego – San Diego State University. Prof. Mackey’s work has been featured in high-impact journals such as Science, JAMA, Nature Biotechnology, the Lancet, Nature Reviews Clinical Oncology, Clinical Microbiology Reviews, and BMC Medicine. His research and expertise has also been featured in major news outlets such as CNN, Wired, NPR, and the Wall Street Journal. His work focuses on an array of multidisciplinary topics in global health, public policy, international relations, and technology and innovation. He also has extensive professional experience including over 10 years experience in the private sector and acting as a consultant for the World Health Organization, the US Department of State and others. His work in anti-counterfeiting and brand protection focuses on using big data, machine learning, and data visualization to detect, characterize, and report illegal online sale and trafficking of health products and other commodities.
Nazzari Mirko
Researcher, Transcrime
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Nazzari is currently enrolled in the third year of the International Ph.D. in Criminology at Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan and I am a researcher at Transcrime – Joint Research Centre on Transnational Crime. Researching money laundering, terrorist financing and illicit financial flows.
Saetbyul Park
Asst. Professor, Michigan State University
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Saetbyul Park is an assistant professor in Apparel & Textile Design at Michigan State University. She received her degrees of B.S. and M.S. in Clothing and Textiles from Seoul National University in Korea and her Ph.D. from University of Minnesota, specializing in Apparel Studies with a minor in Anthropology. She also studied in the Professional Designation Program of Merchandise Product Development at Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM). She has developed her solid foundation in apparel design and product development through her career as a designer and merchandiser in Korea and the United States. She is a current member of International Textile and Apparel Association (ITAA) and Costume Society of America (CSA).
Prof. Park’s main research focuses on socio-cultural influence on the aesthetic perspectives of immigrants in the United States. Her interest lies in investigating different migratory experiences among ethnic groups and its influence on their apparel related practices and experiences. An important contribution of the research is to show that the dynamics in the culture of origin and the host culture of immigrants influence their social identity and to find that they modify their attitudes and behaviors on appearance to balance fundamental needs of inclusion and exclusion depending on their cultural contexts. Her research also seeks to examine the growing issues of sustainability and ethical consumption of apparel, concerning how consumers can be responsible in the procedure of apparel consumption and disposal.
Manuel Velez
Deputy Research Director, National Citizen Observatory
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Manuel Velez is currently the Deputy Research Director at the National Citizen Observatory, a Mexican leading think tank and NGO specialized in criminal justice, security and lawfulness. As a trained economist he has participated in multiple mixed-method research projects about homicides, extortion, money laundering from human trafficking, kidnappings for ransom, political violence, electoral crimes, money laundering policy, forced disappearances, child recruitment into organized crime, among a vast array of other topics in Mexico.
Moreover, in 2020 he co-authored the first report on the supply side of counterfeiting and the institutional response against it. Years later, he co-authored the first report on illicit pesticides in Mexico including those that are substandard, stolen, tampered, unregistered, smuggled and counterfeit.
He is a regular op-ed writer in online newspapers targeted at Mexican and international audiences. He has also published articles in peer reviewed journals such as Revista Mexicana de Opinión Pública and Boletín Criminológico. Last year, he participated as research assistant for the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime Issue Paper on Organized Crime and Gender: Issues Relating to the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime. He co-authored a chapter from the book Genética forense en México: promesas y realidades titled Infraestructuras forenses: claves conceptuales para su reflexión published by Editorial Siglo XXI in 2022. He is also a security expert group advisor at the U.S.- Mexico Forum 2025 from the Center for U.S.-Mexican Studies based at the University of California San Diego.