About Us

William (Bill) J Buchanan OBE FRSE  is a Professor of Applied Cryptography in the School of Computing, Edinburgh and the Built Environment at Edinburgh Napier University. He is a Fellow of the BCS and a Principal Fellow of the HEA. Bill was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2017 Birthday Honours for services to cybersecurity, and,  in 2024, he was appointed as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE). In 2023, he received the “Most Innovative Teacher of the Year” award at the Times Higher Education Awards 2023 (the “Oscars of Higher Education”). Along with this, he has won the Best Lecturer/Tutor for Computing at the Student-voted Excellence Awards six times (2011, 2014, 2015, 2019, 2020 and 2023). Bill lives and works in Edinburgh and is a believer in fairness, justice, and freedom.  His social media tagline reflects his strong belief in changing the world for the better: “A Serial Innovator. An Old World Breaker. A New World Creator.” Bill works in the areas of cryptography, blockchain, trust and digital identity. He has one of the most extensive cryptography sites in the World (asecuritysite.com) and is involved in many areas of novel research and teaching.  He has published over 30 academic books and over 450 academic research papers.

Eda Telli Yamamoto is an experienced projects expert specializing in R&D, innovation, and European Union-funded projects. Born in 1993 in Istanbul, she graduated with high honors from Boğaziçi University’s Management Information Systems department and is currently pursuing a PhD in Business Administration at Maltepe University, focusing on the usage of NFTs in loyalty programs. She previously studied digital marketing during her time in the UK at Brunel University London and the University of Bradford. With nearly a decade of experience at TAGES, Eda has contributed to developing and managing ICT, smart city, open data, circular economy, and AI-based innovation projects. Her expertise includes defining user requirements, conducting use case analyses, and organizing workshops for industry stakeholders. She has contributed to notable Horizon2020 and Horizon Europe projects, such as GLASS, CircularPSP, and FACTLOG. Eda has also lectured on e-commerce at Okan University, covering topics such as digital marketing, B2B and B2C strategies, and web-based business model development.

Dr. Burcu Sakız is a seasoned technology professional and educator with over 20 years of experience in digital transformation, data governance, and advanced technologies. Currently a distinguished member of Turkish Airlines’ IT Department, she has led critical projects in corporate architecture and data management, contributing significantly to the organization’s technological advancement. Her expertise lies in integrating innovative solutions to address complex business challenges and improve operational efficiency. Dr. Sakız is also a passionate educator who bridges the gap between academia and industry. She is a part-time lecturer at Istanbul Bilgi University, where she teaches courses on Blockchain Technology and Applied Cryptography. Her teaching philosophy focuses on equipping students with both theoretical foundations and practical skills, preparing them to tackle real-world challenges in cybersecurity and cryptography. An advocate for diversity and inclusion in technology, Dr. Sakız is a board member of Istanbul Blockchain Women, where she actively works to empower women and girls in technology and cybersecurity.

Dr. Cagla GUL SENKARDES is an assistant professor and head of “Entrepreneurship in Technology and Innovation” department at İstanbul Bilgi University in Turkey. She is the founder to Durugoru Consultancy and the founding board member of Istanbul Blockchain Women Association. With over 20 years of professional career as a manager, academic works as a researcher and lecturer and educational background combined with a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering and Communications at PHD level, makes it possible for her to create an holistic ecosystem for humanity and inspire on technology. She is a believer in data science, technology and committed to impact humanity on a global scale and is true supporter of gender equality. Gül Şenkardeş is the Board member of Istanbul Blockchain Women Association, Board member of Yeniden Biz Women Association, Advisory Board member to Tomorrow and Board member of Blockchain Turkey Platform. She carries out academic researches on disruptve technologies and society focusing on inclusion and sustainability topics, and has published academic articles and books. She has pinned Cryptofeminism to academic literature at World Women Conference in 2022. Having two kids, she is a lover of sports and music.

Hisham Ali graduated with his PhD in 2024, and is now a Research Assistant in the Blockpass ID Lab at Edinburgh Napier University. With a focus on privacy-preserving technologies and ethical hacking, my research is geared towards fortifying digital infrastructures against evolving threats. His involvement with the Hyperledger Community and the Blockpass Identity Lab (BIL) underpins his dedication to distributed ledger technology and its applications in securing data integrity and privacy. Holding a Master’s in Computer Science/Network Security from Heriot-Watt University and another in Telecommunication Engineering from Karary University, his educational background lays a robust foundation for his research endeavours. The skills honed through his studies are reflected in his aptitude for telecommunications and ethical hacking, guiding his contributions to knowledge in a field critical to our interconnected world.

Born on July 5, 1986, Zeynep Oral holds a law degree from Maltepe University and a master’s degree in private law from Yeditepe University. Her professional focus is on intellectual property rights and she has a keen interest in emerging technologies. She currently serves as Secretary General of Istanbul Blockchain Women Association, where she combines her legal expertise for fostering innovation and gender equality in the blockchain ecosystem.

Born on February 12, 2000, İrem Dölen graduated from the Department of Culture and Communication Sciences at the Turkish German University in 2024. Since September 2024, she has been continuing her master’s degree in International Communication and Media Studies at the Turkish-German University. Since December 2024, she has been working as a research assistant at the Department of Culture and Communication Sciences, Faculty of Culture and Social Sciences, Turkish-German University. İrem Dölen is a Sub-Board Member at the Istanbul Blockchain Women Association. Since 2020, she has been actively working as the head of the technology team. Her research interests are Communication Studies, Artificial Intelligence, Digital Communication and Critical Algorithm Studies.

Berk Canberk is a Full Professor within the School of Computing, Engineering and The Built Environment at Edinburgh Napier University-UK, where he leads interdisciplinary research and initiatives in AI-enabled Digital Twins, IoT Communication, and Smart Wireless Networks. He is also the Innovation Director of BTS Group, the biggest network automation and cloud computing company in Turkey. He is a distinguished recipient of the UK Royal Academy of Engineering’s Global Talent Endorsement. He serves as an Associate Editor in IEEE Communications Surveys and Tutorials (IF:34), and a Lead Editor in IEEE ComSoc Best Readings on Digital Twins and Metaverse. In addition, he was an Associate Editor in IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology, Elsevier Computer Networks Journal, Elsevier Communication Networks Journal, and IEEE Communications Letters between 2014-2024. He’s actively involved in several conferences as TPC chair and Organizing Committee Member. He was a post-doctoral researcher at Georgia Institute of Technology USA from 2011 to 2013. He received his PhD in Computer Science from ITU Turkey in 2011, his MSc in Telecommunications Engineering from the Chalmers University of Technology Sweden in 2005, and his BSc in Electrical Engineering from ITU in 2003. He was an Associate Professor at the Department of Computer Engineering at ITU between 2016-2021 and a full Professor between 2021-2022.

Ben Paechter is a Professor of Artificial Intelligence specialising in Evolutionary Computing and Combinatorial Optimisation. He held the role of Associate Dean for Research (or similar roles)  at Edinburgh Napier University for twenty years – recently stepping down to concentrate on personal research activities and developing teaching in Artificial Intelligence.  He was the Coordinator of the EvoNet, PerAda, and AWARE European Commission Coordination Actions within Future and Emerging Technologies (FET) and Deputy Coordinator of the FOCAS Coordination Action. He acted as Principal Investigator in the “Speckled Computing” consortium of Scottish universities – developing “spray on” computers for wireless sensor networks. He coordinated the FET DREAM project, looking at peer-to-peer distributed evolution and served as the scientific officer in charge of Edinburgh Napier’s contribution to the Metaheuristics Network, examining the use of metaheuristics for combinatorial optimisation and the FET NEWTIES project which created an artificial society and examined the relationships between individual, social, and evolutionary learning.