IPSC Distinguished Fellows

Brendon J. Cannon is Assistant Professor of International Security at Khalifa University, Abu Dhabi, UAE. He earned a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Utah, USA (2009). His research is at the nexus of international relations, security studies, and geopolitics. He has published on topics related to regional security and geopolitics, the arms industry, and shifting distributions of power across the Indo-Pacific. Cannon’s articles appear in Defence Studies, Small Wars and Insurgencies, Asian Security and Third World Quarterly. His new book, edited with Kei Hakata, is Indo-Pacific Strategies: Navigating Geopolitics at the Dawn of a New Age (Routledge, 2021). He joined Khalifa University in 2016.

Dr. Kumari Mansi is a distinguished scholar and educator with a multifaceted background in both French studies and Political Science. Currently, she holds the prestigious position of MoFA Taiwan Fellow at the National Chengchi University (NCCU) in Taipei, Taiwan. In addition, she has been honored with the Ministry of Education Taiwan Short Term Research Award (2022) at the post-doc level. Dr. Mansi has been contributing to the academic community as an Assistant Professor at Amity University, Haryana, India, since 2013. Her teaching journey began earlier as a guest lecturer at the School of Foreign Languages, Ministry of Defense, India. Her academic achievements are further highlighted by the awards she has received, including the Shastri Indo-Canadian Students Mobility Program (2012) and the Shastri Knowledge Grants Award (2014). These accolades reflect her dedication to research and education. Dr. Mansi's educational background is both rich and diverse. She earned her PhD from the School of International Relations at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). In addition to her doctoral studies, she holds two Master's degrees: an MA in French and an MA in Political Science. With her extensive experience, innovative research, and commitment to education, Dr. Kumari Mansi continues to be a leading figure in her field. Her work in both language studies and political science showcases her versatility and passion for fostering international understanding and collaboration.

Dr. Stephen Nagy is Professor of Politics and International Studies at the International Christian University, specializing in Indo-Pacific geopolitics and great power competition. Concurrently, he holds strategic appointments as Senior Fellow at the MacDonald Laurier Institute, Research Fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, and Visiting Fellow at the Japan Institute for International Affairs. His expertise is further recognized through affiliations with the Institute for Security and Development Policy, the East Asia Security Centre, and the Research Institute for Peace and Security. From 2017-2020, he served as Distinguished Fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation and is currently senior fellow. He serves as the director of policy studies for the Yokosuka Council of Asia Pacific Studies (YCAPS), spearheading their Indo-Pacific Policy Dialogue series. He is currently working on middle-power approaches to great-power competition in the Indo-Pacific. The tentative title for his forthcoming monograph is "Navigating U.S. China Strategic Competition: Japan as an International Adapter Middle Power."

Dr. Jagannath Panda is based in Stockholm, and is the Head of Stockholm Centre for South Asian and Indo-Pacific Affairs (SCSA-IPA) at the Institute for Security and Development Policy (ISDP), Sweden. In addition to his primary appointment at ISDP, Dr. Panda is also the Director for Europe-Asia Research Cooperation at the Yokosuka Council on Asia-Pacific Studies (YCAPS); International Research Fellow at the Cannon Institute for Global Studies (CIGS) in Japan; a Senior Fellow at East Asian Security Centre at Bond University, Australia; and a Senior Research Fellow at the Japan Forum for Strategic Studies (JFSS), Tokyo. He was a fellow at India’s premier think-tank, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (now, Manohar Parrikar-IDSA) for one and half-decade [2006-2022]. As a senior expert on Indo-Pacific affairs, Dr. Panda’s research focuses primarily on India’s relations with Indo-Pacific powers (China, Japan, Korea, USA); EU-India Relations; and EU’s infrastructure, connectivity and maritime initiatives in Indo-Pacific. He is the Series Editor for Routledge Studies on Think Asia, and also the Editorial Board Member of the Journal of Asian Public Policy (JAPP: Routledge). Dr. Panda has a monthly column as “Asia’s Next Page” with Japan Forward, and is a keen follower of Chinese, Japanese and Korean affairs. He has been a Korea Foundation (2018) and Japan Foundation fellow (2018). He frequently writes for The National Interest, China Brief (Jamestown Foundation), The Diplomat, 38 North (Stimson Centre), Asia Times, The Japan Times, The Diplomat, South Asian Voices and many other international forums. Dr. Panda is the author of the book India-China Relations (Routledge: 2017) and China’s Path to Power: Party, Military and the Politics of State Transition (IDSA & Pentagon Press: 2010). His recent work includes Quad Plus and Indo-Pacific (Routledge: 2021); Scaling India-Japan Cooperation in Indo-Pacific and Beyond 2025 (KW Publishing Ltd. 2019), and The Korean Peninsula and Indo-Pacific Power Politics: Status Security at Stake (Routledge, 2020), India-Japan-ASEAN Triangularity (Routledge: 2022), and the Future of Korean Peninsula: Korea 2032 and Beyond (Routledge: 2021). He has published in leading peer-reviewed journals like Journal of Indo-Pacific Affairs, Journal of Asian Public Policy (Routledge), Journal of Asian and African Studies (Sage), Asian Perspective (Lynne Reiner), Journal of Contemporary China (Routledge), Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs (Georgetown), Strategic Analysis (Routledge), China Report (Sage), Indian Foreign Affairs Journal (MD Publication), Portuguese Journal of International Affairs (Euro Press) etc.

Captain Parmar, an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and Defence Services Staff College, served in the Indian Navy from 1987 to 2023. A Sea King pilot, he commanded ships and a key helicopter squadron. He represented the Indian Navy at international conferences and was part of the XI Indian Antarctic Summer Expedition in 1991. As Director (Strategy) at IHQ MoD (Navy), he contributed to revising the maritime security strategy. At the Maritime Doctrines and Concepts Centre, he directed strategic maritime assessments and doctrine development. Joining the National Maritime Foundation in 2018, he served as Executive Director and Senior Fellow, focusing on national and maritime security strategies in the Indo-Pacific and international maritime law. Currently a Distinguished Fellow at the United Service Institution of India, he specializes in lawfare and related aspects.

Dr. Dattesh D. Parulekar is a Senior Assistant Professor of International Relations at Goa University and a Non-Resident Fellow at the Middle East Institute, New Delhi. Specializing in Indian foreign policy, Indo-Pacific maritime affairs, and geopolitics, he is a seasoned strategist and commentator with extensive teaching and research experience across India, Asia, Europe, and Latin America.