HIAS Bridges NEXT (AP)

Hayato Koga

Research field:Human geography, Political ecology, Energy social science

●What are your current research interests?

Energy geography, Decentralisation of energy governance, nuclear waste management

●What do you enjoy most about research?

Learning new things

● What does research mean to you?(In a nutshell)

Producing new things

●What inspired you to become a researcher?

Among various paths, I felt that being a researcher suited me best in addressing environmental and social issues

●What are your future goals as a researcher?

I hope to contribute, even in a small way, to improving issues regarded as environmental or social problems

Jonathan Krautter

Research field:Japanese and German Economic and Business History

●What are your current research interests?

The demise and resurgence of capital controls from 1945 until today.

●What do you enjoy most about research?

Discovering new insights in archival sources.

● What does research mean to you?(In a nutshell)

Producing knowledge that helps us to navigate and interpret the social and natural world(s) we live in.

●What inspired you to become a researcher?

I did not have a particular inspiration. Rather, I wanted to continue doing archival research and immerse myself in worlds of the past.

●What are your future goals as a researcher?

My long-term goal is to contribute to theory formation in industrial policy research by employing historical and qualitative approaches, and help bridge the gap between quantitative and qualitative research.

Thomas Monnier

Research field:Urban and development economics

●What are your current research interests?

Migration, informality, climate change, structural transformation

●What do you enjoy most about research?

Interacting with many stakeholders while keeping independence and freedom

● What does research mean to you?(In a nutshell)

Getting excited about new ideas, then keeping a cool head and persevere to bring projects to an end

●What inspired you to become a researcher?

Meeting inspiring people, and a love for social sciences and humanities in general

●What are your future goals as a researcher?

Engage with policymakers and develop a truly trans-disciplinary research agenda to maximize impact

PEIRAN LI

Research field:AI/Data Science

●What are your current research interests?

I’m now exploring how to use generative AI models—particularly diffusion and large language models—to simulate and understand large-scale human mobility across cities and regions. My broader interest lies in connecting data-driven modeling with real-world urban and social systems.

●What do you enjoy most about research?

I enjoy discovering unexpected patterns hidden in complex data and transforming them into interpretable insights.

● What does research mean to you?(In a nutshell)

To find things we cannot see by eyes but could be revealed by data.

●What inspired you to become a researcher?

By how data and algorithms can reveal real-wrold behavior.

●What are your future goals as a researcher?

I hope to broaden my research scope—from domain-specific spatiotemporal data analysis to more general data science research. My goal is to develop versatile methodologies that can be applied across different types of data and contribute to solving diverse real-world problems.

David Uriel SOCOL DE LA OSA

Research field:Law

●What are your current research interests?

Law & Technology; Corporate Law; International Economic Law; AI Governance; Geopolitics; Infrastructure

●What do you enjoy most about research?

What I enjoy most about research is the ability to engage directly with the world’s most pressing questions – to ask what is happening, and how can I help. Research gives me the space to think systematically about the structural forces shaping society and to contribute ideas that may improve them. I value the combination of intellectual independence and practical relevance: the opportunity to step back, understand complexity, and then re-enter public debates with work that is rigorous, constructive, and oriented toward real-world impact.

● What does research mean to you?(In a nutshell)

To me, research is the convergence point between expertise, societal need, and principled intention. It is a disciplined way of thinking about problems that matter, grounded in evidence but animated by a sense of responsibility to the broader public. Research is not simply producing knowledge; it is designing frameworks through which institutions, technologies, and societies can navigate uncertainty – ideally with fairness, foresight, and humility.

●What inspired you to become a researcher?

I became a researcher because, across diplomacy, legal practice, and now academia, I find myself drawn to the underlying structures that shape law and how law creates societal structures – the systems of governance, incentives, and coordination that determine whether societies respond to challenges effectively. Research offered a way to engage those questions at their foundations. I wanted to understand how institutions succeed or fail, how technology reshapes governance, and how global systems can be made more equitable and resilient. Some of my key inspirations are the strength of true intellectual curiosity, combined with a desire to contribute meaningfully to public problem-solving.

●What are your future goals as a researcher?

My future goals revolve around building frameworks that help society govern transformative technologies responsibly, sustainably, and at a global scale. Substantively, I aim to deepen work on AI governance, critical mineral supply chains, and the geopolitical architecture of technological development. Institutionally, I hope to contribute to collaborative research communities across law, social science, and technical fields, that can translate scholarship into practical guidance for policymakers, industry, and international institutions. Ultimately, my goal is to shape research that not only advances academic understanding but also strengthens the capacity of societies to manage technological change with fairness, foresight, and institutional integrity.

Shaofeng Zheng

Research field:Social Psychology, Cultural Psychology

●What are your current research interests?

How gene and environmental factors (e.g., culture, childhood experience) independently and interactively shape individuals’ empathy and support-seeking

●What do you enjoy most about research?

Writing interesting papers

● What does research mean to you?(In a nutshell)

Solve problems with a systematic, scientific approach

●What inspired you to become a researcher?

Understanding human nature

●What are your future goals as a researcher?

Create my own theory or research field and inspire others to join me