Our Team

 

 

Michel Alhadeff-Jones

Executive Director

Michel is a psychosociologist specializing in adult education (Psychologue FSP; M.Sc. in Psychology & Human Resources, University of Geneva), as well as a philosopher of education (Ph.D. in Educational Sciences, University of Paris 8). He established the Sunkhronos Institute and the TRC Lab in 2013. Beside being the Executive Director of the Sunkhronos Institute, Michel teaches at the University of Fribourg where he is the Program Director of the Certificate of Advanced Studies Life Narrative and Biographical Coaching. He is also Adjunct Associate Professor at Teachers College, Columbia University in the department of Organization and Leadership, where he teaches regularly since 2004, and the co-convener of the ESREA STREAM Network. Michel's teaching, coaching and research interests include among others: the use of life history and rhythmanalysis to promote critical self-reflection, complex ways of thinking, transformative learning, leadership development, and the development of transdisciplinary strategies of research. For more information, visit: www.alhadeffjones.com

Natasha Alhadeff-Jones

Associate Director

Natasha is a dancer and dance educator (MA in Dance Education from Teachers College, Columbia University,) as well as a movement theorist (Certified Movement Analyst from the Laban/Bartenieff Institute of Movement Studies). Her teaching and performing experiences have led her to create the MAPS Lab, which researches the essential role that space plays in the relationships with ourselves and others and how engaging in site-specific, movement-based artistic experiences can deepen complex understandings of these relationships. In addition to being the Associate Director of the Institute, she is the founder of Alliance Action Arts, an organization which promotes mindful movement through diverse and fun, learning activities for children, families, and adults at preschools, schools, and private studios. Natasha is devoted to progressive and interdisciplinary approaches to education, the collaborative process, and the transformative and educative power of dance.

Fadia Dakka

Associate Researcher

Fadia is a social scientist based in Birmingham, UK. Her interests lie at the intersection of philosophy, sociology, and theory of higher education. Researching in the field of Critical University Studies, she explores how universities adapt, transform, and reproduce intense competition and commodification, foregrounding institutional and psychosocial dimensions and implications (e.g. mental health and wellbeing of staff and students). Fadia's research focuses more specifically on Lefebvre’s rhythmanalytical insights and explores rhythm-informed methodologies. She is currently working toward theorizing rhythm as a distinct form of ethics that underpins critical pedagogy in higher education. Fadia has been awarded a British Academy / Leverhulme small grant to develop her research in the UK and Norway. She is currently co-convening the ESREA STREAM network and is also an Adjunct Associate Professor in the department of Education and Lifelong Learning of the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.

Gaia Del Negro

Associate Researcher

Gaia has a Ph.D. in Education from Canterbury Christ Church University, and works as an Associate Researcher at the University of Milano-Bicocca. Her research interests lie in adults'  relationship to knowing and culture in professional lives. She is fond of auto/biographical, transformative and participative research methodologies, literature, languages and increasingly feminism. She has professional experience in multinational companies, consultancies and non profit organizations with a focus on adult learning. She also practices yoga and dance.

Sadegh Nashat

Associate Researcher

Sadegh is a clinical psychologist (M.Sc. in Clinical Psychology, University of Geneva), family therapist (M.Sc. in Systemic Psychotherapy, University of East London) and researcher in the field of mental health and psychotherapy. He trained in child psychoanalytic psychotherapy and family systemic psychotherapy in the UK where he worked for 16 years. Sadegh was a consultant clinical psychologist and Child & Adolescent Mental Health Training Lead for 10 years at the Tavistock & Portman NHS Foundation Trust. He has designed and delivered a range of mental health training over the years for education professionals and schools. In parallel with his function as Associate Director for the Sunkhronos Institute, Sadegh is currently working in private practice and he is a Lecturer in couple and family therapy at the University of Geneva.

Gabriel Salerno

Assistant Researcher

Gabriel studied environmental sciences at the University of Lausanne and completed an internship at the United Nations Environment Programme headquarters in Nairobi. He subsequently defended a doctoral thesis under the supervision of Dominique Bourg at the University of Lausanne's Faculty of Geosciences and Environment. His thesis focused on the analysis of collapse narratives in the light of the philosophy of history. He was interested in the different conceptions of time conveyed by these narratives. At the University of Lausanne, he has taught a course on international environmental policy in the Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, and courses on the scientific and social challenges of the environment and epistemology in the Faculty of Geosciences and Environment. As part of his activities in the Temporalities, Rhythms and Complexity Lab at the Sunkhronos Institute, Gabriel is involved in the research project "The Times of a Just Transition", directed by Michel Alhadeff-Jones, with the support of the British Academy.

Monika Staab

Community Manager and Online Learning Assistant

Monika holds a Ph.D in Adult Education from the University of Würzburg, Germany, and the University of Florence, Italy. Her research interests include professionalisation of adult education, internationalisation of higher education and international and comparative research. From 2016-2021, Monika was involved in teaching and coordinating various international projects at the University of Würzburg. She currently works as an independent researcher and freelance trainer in adult education and lifelong learning. In this role, she collaborates primarily with higher education institutions, providing training for university staff and developing online learning programmes. Monika is also a certified Holistic Life Coach and Mind-Body Practitioner with the MindBodyFood Institute in Queensland, Australia, and supports PhD students on their academic journey. At the Sunkhronos Institute, Monika works as a Community Manager and Online Learning Assistant.

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