Dr Ash Brockwell

Stephen studies how movements, ideas and institutions have shaped society in the USA and Britain, with a particular focus on race, religion, protest and community history. Before joining LIS as Academic Director and BASc Programme Director, he was Professor of Modern History at the University of Oxford and was the founding director of Oxford's interdisciplinary research centre in the humanities. His books include We Ain’t What We Ought to Be: The Black Freedom Struggle from Emancipation to Obama and The Night Malcolm X Spoke at the Oxford Union: A Transatlantic Story of Antiracist Protest. At LIS, he brings an interdisciplinary approach and a passion for connecting past and present struggles for justice.

Amelia is a social scientist and policy expert leading the development of LIS' new MBA. Previously Head of Learning and Teaching, she shaped LIS’ curriculum and institutional design. A Harvard PhD graduate and Inequality and Social Policy Scholar, she has worked with the OECD, Brookings Institution, and Innovation Unit on global education policy. She is also part of Rethinking Assessment, contributing to curriculum reform in the UK, Australia, and Canada.

Adam is a quantitative anthropologist: he applies data science tools and open research practices to better understand human behaviour and its evolution. He convened under- and post-graduate courses in the human sciences at the University of Oxford, where he was Departmental Lecturer in Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, and he taught data science skills across Oxford as a qualified data and software instructor. He holds a BA in Natural Sciences (University of Cambridge), MSc in Human Evolution and Behaviour (UCL), and a DPhil in Anthropology (University of Oxford), alongside a PGCE in Secondary Science.

Anson is a theoretical physicist specialising in condensed matter and complex systems. Passionate about problem-solving pedagogy, he is a British Physics Olympiad trustee with secondary school management experience.

Ash is an interdisciplinary academic, consultant, and visual artist with an MBiochem in Biochemistry, MSc Environmental Anthropology, and a PhD in Sustainability Education. He has contributed to over 30 publications (most of them in a previous name) in diverse disciplines, including evaluation and program planning, healthcare, biodiversity management, design, and sustainability.

Bronwyn is a human behavioural scientist interested in the evolution of social behaviours, particularly music and dance. She completed her DPhil (PhD) at the University of Oxford and has continued her research in evolutionary anthropology and psychology there.

Kaysara’s work is situated at the science -policy interface and is international, multi-scaled, and collaborative in nature. She holds a PhD in Geography from the University of Bristol, an MSc in Environmental Science with Legislation and Management from Brunel University, and a BSc in Physics from Kings College, London. Kaysara uses interdisciplinary approaches from both the natural and social sciences towards the management and preservation of terrestrial and marine ecosystems mainly through a political ecology lens. She also sits on several expert panels and acts as an advisor for governments, the private sector, and civil society.

James is a computational linguist who uses artificial intelligence to understand the relationship between cognition and culture. He is especially interested in the intersection between interpretive, computational, and experimental methods of inquiry. His research has been funded by the Wellcome Trust, the European Commission, and Innovate UK. Previous to coming to LIS, James worked in Brunel University London, Lancaster University, and the University of Oxford (where he held a Junior Research Fellowship). He is also founding director of Texture AI, a data science company that has had the BBC, Google, ITV, Reach PLC, the UK Cabinet Office and other leading organisations as clients.

Mattia is a philosopher and the Editor-in-Chief of Interdisciplinary Science Reviews. Previously Head of Research and Development at LIS, he led on faculty development and academic growth. Prior to joining LIS, Mattia lectured on social philosophy at LSE and managed a programme on the human mind at the University of London. A graduate of Bocconi, LSE, and the University of Exeter, he held fellowships at Columbia University and the Jean Nicod Institute in Paris.

James in an intellectual historian who has published on aspects of seventeenth-century intellectual culture. Before gaining a PhD in History, he completed an undergraduate degree in languages and a Master’s degree in English Literature. Before joining LIS, he taught on interdisciplinary degree programmes at UCL and the University of Birmingham.

María Angélica is an artist and theorist who has exhibited in Los Angeles, London, Bogotá, Lisbon and Seoul. She has an MA in Sculpture from the Slade School of Fine Art, UCL, and a further MA in Philosophy and Critical Theory from Kingston. She is writing a PhD at EGS on an aesthetic theory of desire. She directs The Gallery at LIS, and was Head of Art in Colombia from 2015 to 2020.

Waqās is the author of the internationally acclaimed book The Polymath (Wiley 2019) and founder of the DaVinci Network. He has edited several volumes for international organisations such as the UNESCO Universal Declaration of Cultural Diversity book (2022). He holds a BSc in Economics (SOAS) and postgraduate degrees in International History (LSE) and Neuroscience (King's College London). Waqas has been Visiting Scholar at the University of Cambridge and Visiting Fellow at the Open University Business School, with research interests including comparative theology, non-Western art, cognitive flexibility and interdisciplinary leadership. Outside of academia, he has been a diplomatic journalist, charity director and entrepreneur.

Isaiah is an award-winning polymathic creative scholar from Stratford, East London, passionate about belonging, education, and creative expression. His interdisciplinary career spans academia, investment management, law, venture capital, technology, and branding. Recipient of the inaugural Amos Polymath Award in 2021, Isaiah joined LIS in 2019, where he teaches anthropology, design, ethnography, and ethics, while leading the undergraduate and master’s coaching programmes. He completed his undergraduate degree at UCL, LSE, and Harvard, and is currently pursuing a government-funded PhD in anthropology at Oxford, exploring belonging and social mobility among diverse students. Isaiah has collaborated with organisations such as Adobe, Cambridge University, Depop, Airbnb, Hachette, the British Royal Family, and the NHS, and works as a writer, speaker, curator, consultant, and creative strategist.