Profile

I am a Senior Researcher and European Research Coordinator at the Institute of Transport Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR).

With an engineering background that evolved to transport geography, planning, and policy, my research explores the nexus between transport innovations and societal dynamics. I adopt a socio-technical perspective that places societal actors at the heart of innovation. Through an in-depth exploration of societal acceptance, societal implications, and governance of transport innovations, I advocate for more socially constructed innovations beyond the techno-operational emphasis prevalent in scholarly and professional practice.

In my research, I consider transport innovations to be the novel and fast-growing technological or social innovations that allow people to move and accomplish activities in the real, computer-generated or blended worlds. They have the potential for considerable societal implications. Yet, their most prominent impact, lie in the future while in the emergence phase are still uncertain and ambiguous. Examples of transport innovations include automated vehicles, vehicle sharing, mobility-as-a-service (MaaS), passenger and freight drones, micro-mobility, Hyperloop, AI applications in the transport system (in real world), as well as virtual and augmented reality tools and apps allowing someone to work, shop, recreate, and socially interact within computer-generated and blended worlds.

My research philosophy is rooted in critical realism. I acknowledge that real world exist (ontological realism), yet our understanding of that world is influenced by social, cultural,
ecological, political, psychological, economic and other background factors (epistemological relativism). I strive to understand these background mechanisms in-depth  by developing theories and concepts, empirically exploring them through qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods, and eventually informing effective, human-centered, environmentally and socially sustainable transport policies and innovations.

I have led, contributed, and advised on multiple research projects across Greece, the Netherlands, Germany, Norway and within the EU framework research programmes on transport innovations and society, land use and transport interactions, human perceptions of mobility and cycling mobility. My publications on transport innovations and society are among the most read and cited in the field. I have held teaching and research positions at several leading universities, including Delft University of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, Technical University of Munich, University of Patras, and the National Technical University of Athens.

2021-today
Senior Researcher & European Research Coordinator, Department of Institutional & Strategic Planning
Institute of Transport Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Berlin, Germany

2019
August-Wilhelm Scheer Visiting Professor
Chair of Transportation Systems Engineering (TSE), Technical University of Munich, Germany

2018-2021
Head of the Research Group 'Automated driving and new mobility concepts'
Institute of Transport Research, German Aerospace Center (DLR), Berlin, Germany
 
2015-2018
Assistant Professor of Smart & Sustainable Transport Systems
Department of Transport and Planning, Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands 

2014-2015
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow
Department of Transport and Planning, Faculty of Civil Engineering & Geosciences, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands 

2013-2014
Marie Skłodowska-Curie Research Fellow | Global Fellowships
Transport and Logistics Group (TLO), Faculty of Technology, Policy & Management (TPM), Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands

2012-2013
Marie Skłodowska-Curie Research Fellow | Global Fellowships
Institute of Urban and Regional Development (IURD), University of California, Berkeley

2008-2012
Adjunct Lecturer
Departmentof Architecture, University of Patras, Greece

2007-2012
Post-Doctoral Research Fellow
Sustainable Mobility Unit (SMU), Department of Geography & Regional Planning, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Greece

2002-2006
Ph.D. in Urban and Transport Planning
Department of Geography and Regional Planning, School of Rural & Surveying Engineering, National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), Greece

1995-2001
Diploma – M.Eng. Degree (5-year course) in Surveying Engineering (Transportation Specialization)

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