Gianluca Spezza

Dr. Gianluca Spezza is an Associated Research Fellow of ISDP’s Stockholm Korea Center. Dr. Gianluca Spezza earned his PhD in 2018 from the University of Central Lancashire under the supervision of Professor Hazel Smith, on the strength of research on the cooperation between UNICEF and the DPRK in education and childcare. Dr. Spezza is assistant professor of international relations at KIMEP University in Almaty, Kazakhstan and a senior researcher at KIMEP’s DPRK Strategic Research Center. He is writing a monograph on education, international cooperation, and scientific development in North Korea (Palgrave 2021) and recently published a chapter in the edited volume “East–West Reflections on Demonization. North Korea Now, China Next?” by NIAS Press. Since 2012, his work on the DPRK, articles or interviews, can be found, among others, on the websites of the BBC, The Guardian, The Diplomat, IRIN-New Humanitarian, The Interpreter, NK News, DR.dk, Newsweek Korea, and El Confidential.