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Teodor Kalpakchiev

Teodor Kalpakchiev

Profile

I completed a B.A. in European Studies (Economics and Law) at Jean Monnet Centre of Excellence at Sofia University, a M.A. in Public Policy Willy Brandt School of Public Policy at the University of Erfurt and an Advanced M.A.the College of Europe in Natolin with focus on the EU as a Global Actor. I was quite involved with CSOs, social movements and university structures (e.g. Team Europe, DIEM25, BETA Europe, European Federalists, and Student Government), which allowed me to participate as a delegate in some interesting exchanges, forums and training programs such as the Asia-Europe Meeting Curriculum Development or 5th Africa-EU Summit as Governance Fellow . Some of my relevant experiences are in the “Brussels Bubble”, e.g. the EU Commission DG International Partnerships as a trainee and the European Parliament as Assistant to a MEP, coding German and Nigerian law for an Intellectual Property Database (JIIP) and teaching institutions and economics in genocide-stricken Myanmar (European Education Centre). Research-wise some of my assignments were related to Public Procurement and Conflicts of Interest in the Polish-Ukrainian UEFA for Transparency International and lobbyism in the EU at the University of Vienna. 

I joined the Sustainability Research Institute at the School of Earth and Environment in November 2021 under the supervision of Prof. Julia Martin-Ortega (SRI) and Dr Markus Fraundorfer (POLIS) working on Transforming Phosphorus Governance. 

Research interests

While I was wary in setting a direction for my interests I have been continuously excited about critical prisms over sustainability governance and advancing frontier innovations. I find theoretical advances such as trade-driven telecoupling as a result of domestic regulations, practical aspects of decision-making that incorporate anthropocentric and other forms of evidence such as bioinformatics, geostrategic competition for scarce resources, as well as advancing the science on what policy solutions work in different contexts continuously exciting. I feel lucky to be working with an intricate and challenging topic such as Phosphorus, which allows me to challenge my thinking with the help of the bright minds at the University of Leeds. 

I maintain my research profiles in some of the dedicated networks, such as Researchgate, Academia, ORCID. 

Some of my writings can be found on my science-policy think-tank, with which I sometimes participate in public consultations.

Qualifications

  • Sofia University: European Studies (Economic Governance and European Law)
  • Willy Brandt School of Public Policy: International Affairs, Cooperation and Development
  • College of Europe: European Interdisciplinary Studies: EU as a Global Actor (in Circular Economy)

Research groups and institutes

  • Sustainability Research Institute
  • Economics and Policy for Sustainability
  • water@leeds