Release Date: March 20, 2026
The International Research Institute for Economics and Management (IRIEM) officially announced the list of 2026 First Half (H1) Distinguished Fellows and Fellows on March 20. As one of IRIEM’s bi-annual selection events (held in H1 and H2 each year), a total of 9 renowned scholars from Europe, Asia, Australia and other regions were selected through expert nomination and democratic election — including 3 Distinguished Fellows and 6 Fellows, covering key research areas such as economics, management, finance, communication, and social sciences.
Distinguished Fellows
Prof. Dr. Kostas Gouliamos (European University Cyprus)
Former Rector (2013–2021), Department of Management and Marketing. A distinguished scholar in communication, politics and culture, with an exceptional track record in organizational management and strategic governance of academic institutions.
Prof. Dr. Shigeyuki Hamori (Kobe University, Japan / Yamato University)
Professor Emeritus, Kobe University; a highly cited economist. Renowned for contributions to applied time series analysis, empirical finance and international economics.
Prof. Dr. Dr. Marc Paolella (University of Zurich, Switzerland)
A world-leading scholar in econometrics, computational statistics, quantitative finance and time-series modeling, recognized for methodological advances in empirical financial research.
Fellows
Prof. Dr. Nelson Jorge Duarte (Polytechnic of Porto, Portugal)
Leading scholar in management, entrepreneurship, innovation, project management and sustainable development strategies.
Prof. Dr. Otilia Manta (Romanian Academy; Romanian-American University)
Prominent expert in FinTech, international financial relations and entrepreneurship.
Prof. Dr. Deimante Vasiliauskaite (Vilnius University, Lithuania)
Renowned specialist in finance, banking, financial technologies, risk management and economics education.
Prof. Dr. Piero Dominici (University of Perugia, Italy)
Distinguished social scientist and philosopher, with significant contributions to education, social theory, systems thinking and interdisciplinary research.
Prof. Dr. Lorenzo Lotti (University College London, UK)
Behavioral and environmental economist specializing in sustainable resources, energy economics and policy-relevant research.
Prof. Dr. David Shao (University of Newcastle, Australia)
Expert in strategic management, international business, digital innovation and green innovation.
An official from IRIEM stated that the selection adheres to the principles of impartiality, openness and academic excellence. As a core academic talent selection mechanism held twice a year, IRIEM will collaborate with the selected scholars on joint research, academic exchanges and talent training, striving to build a world-class interdisciplinary research platform to support the innovative development of global economics, management and social sciences.