The Rt. Rev. Dr. Isaac S. Sato
Professor of Religious Ethics and Public Theology
Director of the Centre for the Study of Religion, Politics and International Relations

The Rt. Rev. Dr. Isaac S. Sato is among the foremost Religious Ethics and Public Theology scholars and educators in Asia who approaches his work from a theoretically rich, yet sensitively aware and acknowledged practical standpoint. Thus, much of his scholarship assesses how religious traditions respond ethically to contemporary socio-political challenges. He blends Christian Social Thought with theories of global justice, a decolonial frame, and political ethics across comparative traditions to form a unique and important body of research.

His scholarship emerges from a crucial perspective through which to evaluate postcolonial political structures, the dynamics of religious pluralism, and the ethics of interstate relations. His conclusions and subsequent arguments are not only compellingly logical but framed within an intercultural and interfaith intention to promote dialogue for social change.

As Director, his interdisciplinary approach to scholarship is a microcosm of what the public square should embody, with theology at the forefront as a vibrant, necessary voice. Under his leadership, the Centre has become one of the preeminent venues for socio-ethical exploration of emerging global developments, attracting interest from academics and practitioners/policy makers alike.

As an educator, Dr. Sato embodies the promise of championing the efforts of expected ethical leaders of a complicated world. He nurtures the next generation of scholars and public leaders through a rare approach to mentorship that maintains high academic expectations while simultaneously helping others to understand ethical implications from emerging work to their individual agency. His advisory roles across international bodies and public policy discussions reflect the type of ethical achievement through practical application that responds to a complicated cultural, political, and religious world.

Dr. Anjali R. Kapoor
Professor of Environmental Studies and Sustainable Development

Dr. Anjali R. Kapoor is one of the foremost environmental scholars in South Asia specializing in sustainable development, climate adaptation, and urban environmental governance. Her research is cross-disciplinary and involves the intersection of socio-economic and socio-environmental pressures which complicate the nature of environmental change—such as the increasing focus on urbanization, climate adaptation, and climate justice—and access to natural resources and emergent developmental needs.

Dr. Kapoor has become an authority on environmental governance in South Asia through her policy research and implementation of her findings in the field. For instance, she has established herself as both a climate justice champion and a climate and urban sustainability researcher. Thus, she has been able to redirect policy guidance from projections based on adequate but previously ineffective research frameworks to resource allocation systems that truly work as long as equity-focused sustainable development is placed at the intersection. Thus, government agencies, international NGOs, and elite policy collaboratives seek her authority for recommendations based on what works after implementation and not on theoretical regurgitation that fails to take into account need-based efforts of already marginalized communities.

Dr. Kapoor is lauded for the practical application of her discoveries and the empirical quality of her research which assures that her contributions to environmental policy are most appropriate for such rapidly changing socio-environmental contexts.

Prof. Saroj T. Varma
Chair in Economic and Social Development

Professor Saroj T. Varma is among the top political economy scholars in South Asia. He specializes in poverty alleviation strategies, fiscal federalism, and labor economics. While many policies attempt to ignore the sociopolitical realities behind structural causes of poverty and inequity, Professor Varma empirically assesses the trends through causative analysis (and correlation) to bring a scientific understanding of socio-economic events into play during everyday life in the region.

For instance, his groundbreaking papers on fiscal decentralization and internal labor migration are used as policy determinants for developmental policy decisions in India, Bangladesh, and Nepal. He is frequently cited in the National Development Plans of these countries and commissioned by the ILO, World Bank, UNDP, and IMF to apply his suggestions for solutions for international and national peace and stability.

Thus, Professor Varma possesses the investigative skills of a classroom teacher and equity policy practitioner. He champions the notion that economic policy should not only emerge from capitalist foundations (for the good of economics) but also with an eye towards social justice resulting in inclusive growth.

The Rev. Dr. Andrew Hyunwoo Kim
Professor of International Relations and South Asian Diplomacy

The Rev. Dr. Andrew Hyunwoo Kim is an expert on trans-regional diplomacy and South Asian foreign relations. His work aids in the comprehensive appreciation of the Indo-Pacific through the lenses of political science, theology, and conflict resolution. However, of the utmost interest is his perspective on the relationship between diplomacy and peace-making, interfaith and intercultural dialogue, and the ethical considerations of diplomacy with a nation partner that is both religiously and ethnically diverse.

Dr. Kim’s research from a historical standpoint of South Asia’s trends in diplomacy places him on the cutting edge of research into South Asia’s real-time efforts in foreign relations, from national security interests to cultural representations to soft power efforts in the international arena. He even participated as a policy advisor in a Track II dialogue where South Asian and East Asian nations seek to broker understanding through nontraditional approaches.

His work is well-cited, and his ongoing contributions to elevating the practice of diplomacy through ethical awareness and practical application are a necessity within international relations scholarship.

Prof. Helena von Strauss
Professor of Historical Sociology
Senior Fellow of the Centre for the Study of Religion, Politics and International Relations

Prof. Helena von Strauss is an internationally recognized historical sociologist, and her scholarship represents a creatively engaged practitioner of the discipline while also bolstering a historical awareness of cultural history within South Asia. By studying the remnants of colonialism and the postcolonial state formation that often rapidly ensues, yet engages with contemporary historiography, she situates our better understanding of the sociocultural imagination, practice, and memorialization within South Asia as forever transformed.

Her research revolves around a continuing engagement with memory, identity, and power—the notions of what and why we tell specific stories about ourselves and others—and the dynamics that allow some stories to hold more power and sociohistorical legitimacy than others over generations. Her contributions toward establishing historical sociology as a growing field of study contain crucial considerations in understanding plural and negotiated modernities within the South Asian continent.

Her expertise is sought after year-round by multiple heritage agencies, cultural institutions, museums, and consular services that work in the space between cultural heritage opportunities and geopolitically fraught negotiations. The breadth and depth of her scholarship render her a reliable and beneficial partner in the continued discourse of cultural heritage, postcolonial justice, and ethical memory in a globalizing world.

Dr. Ravi Iyer
Professor of Social Policy and Public Health

Dr. Ravi Iyer is a leading expert in the fields of social policy and public health, whose work addresses the structural inequalities that shape healthcare access and delivery across South Asia. His research focuses on designing and evaluating community-based healthcare models that prioritize equity, accessibility, and sustainability — particularly for marginalized and rural populations.

Through extensive fieldwork and policy analysis, Dr. Iyer has contributed to national frameworks for health governance, bringing academic rigor to the design of public health systems that respond to the lived realities of vulnerable communities. His studies of rural healthcare infrastructure have informed both national policy and international development initiatives, positioning him as a vital voice in South Asia’s pursuit of equitable and inclusive health systems.

Widely respected for bridging scholarly research with practical policy innovation, Dr. Iyer’s work exemplifies a commitment to social justice, public health ethics, and the transformative potential of community-centered governance.

Dr. Priya Deshmukh
Professor of Gender Studies and Social Equity
Senior Fellow of the Centre for the Study of Religion, Politics and International Relations

Dr. Priya Deshmukh is arguably one of the leading voices on gender and social change in South Asia. Her research draws powerful connections between gender and power, gender and inequality, and through a comprehensive understanding of both oppression’s pillars and subsequent dismantling through research and application.

A feminist theory and political economy of gender expert, she is the author of pioneering scholarship on women as agents/sites of injustice, geo-cultural injustices, and socio-legal modes of existence for gender justice. She is often cited in policymaking; many of her articles have appeared in judicial pronouncements and legislative acts and serve as the basis for government-sponsored endeavors for female empowerment across South Asia.

Dr. Deshmukh is known for impressively researched scholarship with a predisposition for practicality.

Dr. Lars M. Schneider
Associate Professor of Comparative Legal Studies and Governance

Dr. Lars M. Schneider is a foremost expert on comparative legal systems and systems governance reform. His most recent body of scholarship reflects the need (or failure to need) of law to adjust to requirements based upon changes to environmental factors. Dr. Schneider’s research focus is at the onset of legal institutions forming in postcolonial or transitional societies; for example, in South Asia, where the need to know constitutional origins and determinations or regulatory innovations exists at the foundational level of the democratic process.

As a natural byproduct of comparative inquiry, Dr. Schneider became a consultant for multiple national commissions for judicial and administrative reform. He is cited extensively in peer-reviewed legal journals and governmental endeavors throughout the region. Thus, his work transcends scholarly publication into the world of application where he enacts processes of institutional change for better citizen access and participation with governance.

Dr. Schneider at the Institute is the ideal of scholarly research for a practically applicable approach to educated inclusion of disciplines surrounding South Asia’s challenges with governance.

The Rev. Dr. Benjamin Jisoo Yoon
Associate Professor of South Asian Studies, Cultural Anthropology, and Ethnography
Fellow of the Centre for the Study of Religion, Politics and International Relations

The Rev. Dr. Benjamin Jisoo Yoon is at the forefront of cultural anthropology regarding South Asia. His focus on the ethnographic day-to-day experiences of people caught in the web of tradition, change, and identity renders a relatively rare perspective based on the reality of research. He undertakes fieldwork in villages and towns, in temples and social festivals, with memories cultivated through religious and cultural engagement, mapping through memory and change their intersection with an evolving world.

Dr. Yoon’s conclusions generate cultural initiatives for preservation within the region and beyond; increasingly relevant as vulnerable populations seek to retain their cultural integrity amidst vastly transformed socio-economic environments. Dr. Yoon’s insights are sought out by intergovernmental offices, heritage committees, and cultural policymaking roundtables for endeavors positioning culture into political policy and preservation initiatives.

Dr. Yoon is an engaged scholar who personifies the anthropologist not only as a detached observer but as an ethically entrenched party who uses knowledge to improve the circumstances of those from whom he’s learned and attempted representation.