Jana Hönke is a Professor of Sociology of Africa at the University of Bayreuth. She currently directs the ERC INFRAGLOB project Africa’s Infrastructure Globalities, and is Associate Editor of Security Dialogue. Her current work examines how political geographies transform through South-South relations by studying the contested security arrangements related to multinational companies and transport infrastructures in contexts of fragility.
Email: Jana.Hoenke@uni-bayreuth.de
Raoul Bunskoek is a senior researcher at the University of Bayreuth as well as a senior research fellow and coordinator of the Clingendael China Centre. Within the INFRAGLOB project, he researches how Chinese political-economic practices in African countries (re)shape global governance and what this means for International Relations (IR) theorizations.
Email: Raoul.Bunskoek@uni-bayreuth.de
Jan Sändig is a postdoctoral researcher in Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Bayreuth. Within INFRAGLOB he examines how local communities and transnational activists contest Chinese mining projects in Guinea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Email: Jan.Saendig@uni-bayreuth.de
Mia Yifan Yang is a PhD candidate promoted by Chair of Sociology for Africa at Bayreuth University and a research associate within the INFRAGLOB project, where she is responsible for the China-Africa component.
Email: Yifan.Yang@uni-bayreuth.de
John Heathershaw is a Professor at the University of Exeter and an advisor of the project, especially in regard to research ethics.
Galina works as a student assistant for the INFRAGLOB project. She holds a bachelor’s degree in international politics from Nankai University. Currently, she is a master’s student in Development Studies with a focus on Advanced Politics & Sociology at the University of Bayreuth. Galina is particularly interested in development issues, especially Chinese development projects in Africa and Chinese transnational professionals in Africa. She is also interested in sustainable development, having completed a bachelor thesis on the localization of the SDGs and working with the UN SDSN.
Matthieu works as a student assistant for the INFRAGLOB project. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from the University of Lüneburg and from the University of Paris 12. Currently, he is a master’s student in Development Studies with a focus on Advanced Geography at the University of Bayreuth and the University of Bordeaux Montaigne. Matthieu is particularly interested in development disparities, especially among the territories encompassed by France.
Within INFRAGLOB, he supports the Francophone research context on mining projects and contestations in Guinea and the DRC. He further coordinates the website and social media activities of INFRAGLOB.
Yuqin (Jamila) has joined the INFRAGLOB project as a student assistant. She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in Asian and African Studies at Shanghai International Studies University and is an exchange student in African Studies at the University of Bayreuth. With her undergraduate background in Swahili Language and Literature, Yuqin’s primary focus is on East Africa. Her current research interests center around the humanistic aspects of China-Africa relations, especially in sustainable development areas such as education, gender equality, and the preservation of indigenous languages and cultural heritage. A key part of her role in INFRAGLOB is to analyze and conduct research on materials in Mandarin Chinese.