Jojin V. John
Hon. Director
Dr. Jojin V. John is an Assistant Professor, School of International relations and Politics at Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala. He is also affiliated with Centre for Public Policy Research (CPPR), Kochi as Hon. Senior Fellow and Adjunct Fellow, Institute of Chinese Studies, Delhi. Previously Dr. Jojin was affiliated with the Indian Council of World Affairs (ICWA) as Research Fellow for East Asia. During his stint at ICWA, Dr. Jojin coordinated several track 1.5/2 bilateral and trilateral dialogues between India and East Asian countries. Prior to joining ICWA, Dr. Jojin taught political science in Christ University, Bangalore. He also held visiting research positions at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Seoul (July-September 2022); National Chengchi University, Taipei (2015); Institute of Chinese Studies, Delhi (2013-14); Seoul National University (2012) and Academy of Korean Studies, Korea (2010-11). He received PhD from the School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. He has several publications to his credit, including monographs, book chapters and articles that appeared in academic journals, including Asian Affairs, Copenhagen Journal of Asian Studies, China Report, The Journal of International Relations, Strategic Analysis, India Quarterly and Area Studies.
Jitendra Uttam
Advisor/Co-Researcher
Dr. Jitendra Uttam is Assistant Professor of Korean Studies in the Centre for East Asian Studies, School of International Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, India. He has received PhD degree from Seoul National University, Republic of Korea in comparative international political economy. His area of expertise includes international political economy with particular reference to East Asia. He has published two books; first, ‘The Political Economy of Korea: Transition, Transformation and Turnaround’ (Palgrave Macmillan, 2014); and the second book, ‘Varieties of Capitalism in Asia: Beyond the Developmental State’, co-authored with David Hundt (London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2017. He has presented several research papers at national and international conferences and lectured at various international institutions, universities and forums.
Dr. Haksoon Paik
Advisor/Scholar-in-Residence 2023
Dr. Haksoon Paik is Founding President of the Academy of Kim Dae-jung Studies established by the Kim Dae-jung Foundation. He is currently a member of Board of Directors of the three Kim Dae-jung-related institutions: the Kim Dae-jung Foundation, the Kim Dae-jung Peace Center, and the Kim Dae-jung Nobel Peace Prize Memorial. He is also Executive Director of the “Kim Dae-jung Peace Forum.” (Kim Dae-jung was the 15th President of the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and the Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 2000). Most recently, Dr. Paik was President of the Sejong Institute, a leading independent think tank in South Korea. He was formerly an advisor in various capacities to South Korea’s Ministry of Unification, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Security Council, and National Assembly.
Dr. Paik has written extensively on North Korean politics, inter-Korean relations, North Korea-U.S. relations, North Korean nuclear and missile issues, and East Asian international relations. He is author of 14 books and monographs and co-author, editor, and co-editor of 8 books written in Korean and English, including: The Korean Peninsula Peace Strategy (Co-Author, 2022), Park Geun-hye Administration’s Policy on North Korea and Unification: Comparison with Previous Administrations (2018), North Korean Politics in the Kim Jong Un Era, 2012-2014: Ideas, Identities, and Structures (2015), The U.S.-North Korea Relations During President Obama’s Second Term, 2013-2014: Threat of the Use of Nuclear Weapons and the Collapse of Relationship (2014), and The History of Power in North Korea: Ideas, Identities, and Structures (2010).
Dr. Paik earned his Ph.D. in political science from the University of Pennsylvania and was a post-doctoral fellow at Harvard University.
Rekha J.
Project Fellow
Rekha J holds an M.A. in International Relations and Politics from the School of International Relations and Politics, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam. Her research interests include East Asia, the broader Indo-Pacific region, and gender studies. She has contributed articles to various platforms, including NIICE Nepal, TruecopyThink, The Malabar Journal, and International Prism. In addition to her academic pursuits, Rekha has taken on various internships and research opportunities. She is currently an intern at the Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS), further deepening her expertise in Chinese studies. She has also been acknowledged for her academic excellence, receiving the Research Award (Aspire Scholarship) funded by the Ministry of Higher Education, Government of Kerala.
Muhammed Unais
Project Fellow
Mohammed Unais A V holds an M.A. in International Relations and Politics at the School of International Relations and Politics, Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam. He completed a B.A. in Political Science with Journalism from the University of Calicut. His areas of research interest include East Asia, Migration studies, Gender and International Relations. He has been working as a research intern at the Global Research Forum on Diaspora and Transnationalism. Before this, he published several articles and book reviews on online websites. He is also a Project Intern in a Science and Engineering Research Board (SERB) Project 2022-25. Recently, he received Research Award (Aspire Scholarship) funded by the Ministry of Higher Education, Government of Kerala
K. R. Gopikrishna
Project Fellow
K. R. Gopikrishna is a political science researcher interested in international relations, global and domestic politics, and trade policy. He holds an MA in Political Science from the University of Hyderabad, an MA in Applied Economics from the Centre for Development Studies, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala and a BA in Economics from Loyola College, Chennai, where he was the academic topper. Gopikrishna has research experience, including assisting at the Centre for Development Studies, and worked at the Azim Premji Foundation. He qualified for UGC-NET and is proficient in MS Office and multiple languages.