Academic Advisors

We have invited reputed academics from the world over to serve on an honorary basis as Academic Advisors for the Gandhara Chair at University of Wah. Their input for developing activities of the Gandhara Chair will be an invaluable source of support and encouragement. The University of Wah wishes to work together towards joint funding proposals for research, documentation, publication, and academic event planning to promote the scholarship on Gandhara in Pakistan and abroad.

University of Wah is honored and privileged to have following Academic Advisors for the Gandhara Chair.

Jason Neelis

Associate Professor/Neelis Chair,
Religion and Culture,
Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada

: jneelis@wlu.ca
: 519.884.0710 x4572
: Dr Alvin Woods Building 2-119A

EDUCATION

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• Ph.D. in Asian Languages and Literature, University of Washington, USA

RESEARCH / AREAS OF EXPERTISE

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• South Asian religions, history, literature, and languages
• Buddhist transmission across Asia
• Gandhara Civilization
• Upper Indus inscriptions and petroglyphs in northern Pakistan

ACHIEVEMENTS

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• Principal organizer of conference for "Where the Buddha was Previously Born, Seen and Heard”
• Director, Upper Indus Petroglyphs, and Inscriptions in Northern Pakistan
• Co-Ordinator for a Collaborative Research Grant from the Robert H.N. Ho Family Foundation Program in Buddhist Studies
• South Asian Studies Expert Consultant, Mercator foundation grant for “Dynamics of Textual Corpora and Image Programs”

Rev. Dr. ‘Sir’ Sumana Siri

Buddhist Cardinal of UK & Europe,
London, UK

: oxforddrsumana@gmail.com
: Buddhist Realists ’Vihara, Ilford, London, UK

EDUCATION

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• Ph.D. in Homoeopathy Medicine (UK)
• Ph.D. in Naturopathy Medicine (USA)
• Ph.D. in Humanities Vietnam Buddhist University

RESEARCH / AREAS OF EXPERTISE

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• Epidemiology, Emergency Medicine, Prevention, Critical Care Nursing, and Psychiatry
• Applied Theology, Homoeopathy, Naturopathy, Buddhist & Western Philosophy, Languages

ACHIEVEMENTS

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• Created a new theory to the field of Genetics hence, designated as a medical scientist
• Presented 130+ research papers on Sociology, History of Asia, Buddhist Philosophy, Medical Ethics, Criminal Science and Politics in 30 countries
• Conversant in 11 languages, lectured in 63 countries
• Founder of the Buddhist Realists' Movement worldwide
• Created a World Record by Walking the Entire Great Wall of China; 6,000 kilometers in 9 months
• Awarded 'Ambassador of Peace' from the World Federation of Peace, USA

Juyan Zhang

Professor, Department of Communication,
The University of Texas
San Antonio, USA

: juyan.zhang@utsa.edu
: MB 2.248G

EDUCATION

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• Ph.D. in Journalism, University of Missouri-Columbia

RESEARCH / AREAS OF EXPERTISE

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• Strategic Communication, International Communication, Media Analysis, Public Relations
• Faith tourism and Buddhism (the origin of Avalokiteśvara)
• Public diplomacy and strategic communication
• Buddhist diplomacy and Sino-Vatican

ACHIEVEMENTS

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• Contributing Scholar for the USC Center on Public Diplomacy
• The most published publish relations scholar in the field of public diplomacy since 1990
• Contributed two monographs for the PD Perspective of the USC Center on Public Diplomacy

Jonathan Mark Kenoyer

Professor of Anthropology,
University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA

: jkenoyer@wisc.edu
: (608) 262-5696
: 5402 Sewell Social Science Bldg

EDUCATION

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• Ph.D., University of California, Berkeley

RESEARCH / AREAS OF EXPERTISE

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• Archaeology of the Indus Civilization (Pakistan and India)
• Origins of Technology, Craft Specialization, Ancient Trade, Early Urbanism (Near East to China)
• Power and Social Relations, Gender, Warfare, Writing, Ethnoarchaeology
• Experimental Archaeology, Asian Martial Arts

ACHIEVEMENTS

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• Elected member of American Academy of Art and Sciences
• Served as Member Board of Trustees, Member Executive Committee and President of American institute of Pakistan studies
• Society for American Archaeology Award for Excellence in Archaeological Analysis
• WARF Named Professorship
• National Science Foundation-Presidential Young Investigator Award
• Archaeological Research and Cultural Heritage Program: India and Pakistan, supported by the US State Department
• National Geographic Society Grant for Research at Harappa, Pakistan
• Council of American Overseas Research Centers-Executive Committee
• Fluent speaker of Urdu, Hindi, and Bengali

Dr. Saifur Rahman Dar (T.I.)

Fmr Director General,
Directorate of Archaeology,
Government of the Punjab, Lahore

: 092-42-9230322
: Dept. of Archaeology, Univ. of the Punjab, Lahore

EDUCATION

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• Ph.D., Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

RESEARCH / AREAS OF EXPERTISE

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• Museology and archaeology folklore of Pakistan
• Taxila and its relationship with the contemporaneous Hellenistic world
• Pathways between Gandhara and North India
• Gandhara Art

ACHIEVEMENTS

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• Served as Director. Lahore Museum
• Publication, "The Hellenistic Origin of Gandhara Art". In : Alexander the Great - From Macedonia to the Oikoymeni. Veria, Greece
• Article in Sodhra Gazette, "Taxila Cross and Saint Thomas - Was Taxila A Centre of Activities In The First Century AD?"
• First Chapter of the book entitled: Buddhism and Gandhara Art. "Fifty Years of Studies in Gandhara Art in Pakistan"