My family is based in Lund, Skåne, Sweden, but originally we are from Georgia. My family fled Sokhumi, Abkhazia
when the war started in 1992.2012-2016 I graduated with a bachelor's hon. degree majoring in Psychology and minoring in Social Work in the Department of Psychology, Education & Social Work, and achieving the highest GPA summa cum laude. My bachelor's thesis explored sustainable leadership in academia, researching the personality of Georgian educational psychologist D. Uznadze and his influence on the formation of an independent school of thought. I also questioned what it was about his commitment to the students that still keeps his legacy alive today. Upon graduation, I was privileged to be listed in the University Honour Book as the best graduating student of the year among all faculties. During bachelor studies, I received three scholarships for academic excellence and community work. As part of the scholarship, the university kindly offered me a teaching role as an assistant-instructor for the ‘Introduction to Psychology’ and ‘Introduction to Social Work’ courses. This was my first role in academia. 2016-2017In 2016 I pursued a master's program in Human Rights at the San Antonio Catholic University of Murcia (UCAM), Faculty of Social Sciences & Communications, located in a picturesque, vibrant region of Spain. I completed a master's thesis on the right to education in the context of educational inequality, researching Syrian and Rohingya refugee children. During my studies, I was again humbled to be offered a scholarship position in the university as a student-care and admission-processing assistant, focusing on CIS, Eastern Europe & Africa. This role allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of the concept of student trust in higher education, as well as the expectations students have about HE.2017-2019From 2017 to 2019, field-worked in nonprofits for refugees and immigrants, including Skaramagas Refugee Camp (UNHCR), Piraeus Open School for Immigrants in Greece; Rohingya Community Center (Malaysian Relief Agency); as well as Ukhiya Rohingya Refugee Camp (Bidyanondo Foundation) in Bangladesh. Working in these refugee camps with the focus on K-12 education was an extraordinary, incomparable, and sometimes extremely uncomfortable experience that changed my life. I am forever grateful for the opportunities offered by these organizations, some of them have allowed me to live in the camps side by side with the refugees. Visit this gallery for the photographic chronicles of my fieldwork.2019-2023In 2019, I joined the research team on school development for South China Normal University (SCNU), working with SCNU schools across Guangdong Province in China. We have collaborated with over 30 schools, but my permanent alliance included: SCNU Affiliated Foreign Language School (IB, preK-12 levels), SCNU Affiliated Baiyun Fangyuan School (G1-G12), and SCNU Affiliated Heshan Experiential Boarding Primary School (G1-G6). My responsibilities included researching on IB & inquiry-based curricula and assessment, teaching quality,
development of counselling strategies. Staying with this team for four and a half years, made leaving it one of the saddest decisions. It was during this time that I first took on micro team leadership, which was challenging and I did make some mistakes. One of the most enjoyable aspects of this work was creating training programs for educators and traveling across different cities and towns in Guangdong to provide these sessions. I've had the pleasure of meeting and learning from a diverse range of educators, including school administrative staff, teachers to school principals, which was exceptionally enriching and fun. In 2020, joined a PhD program in Sociology and Anthropology at Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), where continued my research on educational vulnerabilities. However, due to the travel limitations brought by COVID-19, this PhD research was paused and resumed in fall '24.In 2021, awarded a qualification in Neurophysiology of Behavior from the Faculty of Biology, MSU. That same year, joined the International Sociological Association (ISA), established in 1946 under UNESCO, as well as its Research Committee on Sociology of Education (RC04). Three years later, starting from the World Congress of Sociology (Melbourne, Australia), I was honored to be selected to lead media and communications for the ISA and ISA Publications, including journals Current Sociology (SAGE), International Sociology (SAGE), and Global Dialogue Magazine, published in 15 languages.2023-2026In 2023, joined the University of Hong Kong (HKU), Faculty of Social Sciences, Department of Social Work and Social Administration as a teaching assistant. In this department, I am a member of the Taskforce on Ethnic Diversity and a Programme Committee Member for the Master in Nonprofit Management (MNPM). Since January 2024, I am a resident tutor in the Jockey Club Student Village IV. In 2024 joined the
American Psychological Association (APA), Division 15 Educational Psychology.
Starting September 2024 doctoral researcher at the Faculty of Education, Department of Educational Psychology, Charles University, under the supervision of Dr. Irena Smetackova, the department head.
I received a fellowship from Advanced HE (UK) in October 2025.
In 2026, I graduated from a two-year-long Postgraduate Certificate in Academic Practice (PCAP) program at HKU, aligned with the UK Professional Standards Framework. This program covers all aspects of teaching and learning in higher education, including curriculum design, assessment and feedback, student motivation, and professional development. In 2026, I was awarded the Common Core Tutor Innovation Award (CCTIA), HKU.
My contribution to youth wellbeing work has also been acknowledged by my home government, which appointed me as Georgia’s Youth Representative to the United Nations and invited me to represent my country at the UN Headquarters in New York to report on youth wellbeing. This engagement was broadcast on national television (
LINK). I am grateful for these forms of recognition, which should be regarded not as personal achievements alone, but as affirmations of the value of student‑centred, evidence‑based care.