Akademik Kadro

Derya Nizam is a sociologist focused on agricultural and rural transformation in Turkey. She earned her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Sociology from Bogazici University and completed her PhD in Sociology and Social Policy at The University of Sydney. Over the past two decades, her research has examined the dynamics of rural change and localism in Turkey. She has been involved in key research projects such as “Neoliberal Transformation of Agriculture,” “Agrarian Change under Globalization,” “Adoption of Sustainable Farming Practices,” and “Pastoralism and Action for Sustainability,” supported by organizations such as TUBITAK, the World Wide Fund for Nature, and the British Academy. In addition to her research, Dr. Nizam conducts consultancy work for development agencies, particularly in the areas of geographical indications, cooperatives, and community building. Her fieldwork and interviews with farmers and rural stakeholders across Turkey are integral to her studies. She is particularly interested in alternative rural development strategies and agro-exceptional methodologies within the classical agrarian question debate. Her broader research interests include, Rural Sociology, the Political Economy of Agricultural and Food Policies, Sociology of Food, Geographical Indications, Sense of Place and Localism, Eco-feminism, and Cooperatives and Community Development. She is a member of the Rural Sociological Society (US), the European Society for Rural Sociology, and the Agrifood-Research Network (Australia-New Zealand). Her work has been acknowledged through awards such as the Ronald Wimberley Best Graduate Student Paper Award from the Rural Sociological Society in 2012 and the Visiting Scholar Scholarship from the University of Helsinki's Ruralia Institute in 2023. Dr. Nizam has held academic positions at Bogazici University, Istanbul Bilgi University, and The University of Sydney before joining Izmir University of Economics in September 2016.

Seher Şen, Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi, Şehir ve Bölge Planlama Bölümü'nden 1998 yılında mezun oldu. Master derecesini aynı üniversitenin Kentsel Politika Planlaması ve Yerel Yonetimler Yüksek Lisans Programı'ndan 2000 yılında aldı. Doktora derecesini ise Bilkent Üniversitesi, Siyaset Bilimi Bölümü'nde tamamladı. Seher Şen, Eylül 2005'te İzmir Ekonomi Üniversitesi'nde çalışmaya başlamıştır.

Dr. Özen, doktora derecesini Orta Doğu Teknik Üniversitesi Sosyoloji Bölümü’nden 2007 yılında almıştır. Siyaset sosyolojisi alanında çalışan Özen’in Türkiye’deki çeşitli toplumsal hareketler ve protestolar, popülizm ve enformel siyaset üzerine Current Sociology, South European Society and Politics, World Development, Organization, Organization and Environment, Geoforum, Environmental Communication, Environmental Politics, Amme İdaresi Dergisi, SBF ve Mülkiye Dergisi gibi uluslararası ve ulusal akademik dergilerde yayınları vardır. Dr. Özen ayrıca John Benjamins, Lexington ve Routledge gibi uluslararası yayınevlerinin yanı sıra çeşitli ulusal yayınevlerince basılan derleme kitaplarda bölümler yayımlamıştır.

2015 yılında Ege Üniversitesi Sosyoloji Bölümünden mezun oldu. 2018 yılında Ege Üniversitesi Genel Sosyoloji ve Metodoloji Anabilim Dalındaki yüksek lisans eğitimini sanat sosyolojisi alanında tamamladı. 2025 yılında Aydın Adnan Menderes Üniversitesi Sosyoloji Doktora Programından yapay zekâ ve müzik üretimi üzerine yazdığı doktora teziyle mezun oldu. TÜBİTAK 2214-A bursu kazanarak Ocak 2024-Mayıs 2024 tarihleri arasında ABD'de Drexel Üniversitesinde doktora sırası araştırmacı olarak bulunmuştur.

Deniz Yükseker received her Ph.D. degree in sociology from Binghamton University in 2000. She is currently a faculty member in the Department of Sociology at Izmir University of Economics. She is also the chief editor of the social science journal New Perspectives on Turkey. Previously, she has worked in sociology and political science departments at Istanbul Kent University, Istanbul Aydın University, Koç University, The Johns Hopkins University and Bilkent University. She has conducted research and has published articles, books and reports in English and Turkish on topics such as the informal shuttle trade between Turkey and former Soviet republics, African migrants and refugees in Istanbul, the forced displacement of Kurds, women’s vocational education, seasonal migrant labor in the hazelnut value chain, the daily lives of Syrian and Turkish youth, working conditions of service providers who work with refugees and migration and social participation.