Professor Ioannis Th. Mazis, School of Economics and Political Sciences, Dpt of Modern Turkish and Modern Asian Studies, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens [webpage: http://scholar.uoa.gr/yianmazis, E-mail: yianmazis@turkmas.uoa.gr]
Ioannis Mazis is Emeritus Professor of Economic Geography and Geopolitical Theory, at the School of Economics and Political Sciences and ex. Chairman of the Department of Modern Turkish and Modern Asian Studies, National & Kapodistrian University of Athens.
Distinctions: He has awarded with the Grade of “Chevalier de l’ Ordre des Palmes Academiques”/2014 and “Officier de l’ Ordre des Palmes Academiques”/2022 de la Republique Francaise. -He was awarded the High Distinction of the Egyptial Left (Tagamoo) in 2011. This distinction has also been awarded, to date, only to Nelson Mandela and Yasser Arafat.-He has been honoured by the Central Board of Jewish Communities in Greece for his contribution to the analysis of the Jewish Holocaust. He has also received the following distinctions: (i) silver and (ii) bronze Medal of Teaching from the Federico II University of Naples, for teaching in a post-doctoral programme of studies in Geopolitics (as part of the network of Universities under the auspices of Federico II University of Naples), in Naples andin Capri.-He has been honoured by the postgradute schools of Greece’s Armed Forces and of the Hellenic Police for his didactic contribution to their teaching programmes and for hisscientific contribution, by participating in their conferences as organiser and keynote speaker. StudiesHe is a graduate of the National Technical University of Athens, Faculty of Rural and Surveying Engineering. The subject area of his thesis is Geography and Space Analysis. Heholds a Doctorat D’État in Geography, following a 4-year period of studies in Economic Geography (Geography of Freight Transports and Spatial Organisation) (D.E.A. and Doctorat d’État en Sciences Humaines-Geographie Economique) at the Postgraduate Institute of Geography, University of Aix-Marseille II in Aix-en-Provence, France.
Scientific and research orientations: Prof. Mazis specialises in Geopolitics of the Middle East and the South Eastern Mediterranean. He is the author of many books and articles on the Middle East, the Islamist Movement and the water issue in the Middle East, the theory and practice of Geopolitics, and the Secret Islamic Orders in relation to the economic and political Islam in Modern Turkey. From July 2004 until July 2008, Ioannis Th. Mazis was the Chairman of the Academic Boardof the Defence Analyses Institute (IAA), a research institution under the umbrella of theGreek Ministry of National Defence. He was a member of the Direction Board of the Centerfor Security Studies (KEMEA). KEMEA is the think tank of the Hellenic Ministry of Public Order and Citizen Protection on security policies. He was in charge of four IAA publications, including “Defensor Pacis,” an English publication with international recognition (period:2004-2008). He is one of the Founders of Ionian University, an institution founded in 1984. He was the founder and Director (period: 2002-2010) of the Laboratory of Geocultural Analyses at Ionian University (Geolab), Corfu, Greece. At Geolab, he was in charge of all the scientific researches, publications and Monograph series. Ioannis Mazis introduced to the Greek academic community the geographic analytical method of Systemic Geopolitics and the theoretical geopolitical approach of the Islamist movement. (His name in Greece in now linked to his methods and scholarly approaches).
Other teaching positions: In addition to Ionian University, other teaching positions include: The NationalTechnical University of Athens (Master courses in Geography); the Diplomatic Academy of the Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the School of National Security of the Ministry of Interior; the Hellenic Higher Joint Command War College; the Hellenic National Defence School; the Hellenic Navy War Academy; the Hellenic Air Force Academy, and the NATO School in Oberammergau-Germany. Previous teaching positions include the Universita Autonoma de Barcelona and the Università Federico II, Naples, Italy. As Professor of Geopolitics, he participates in the annual international post-doc seminar of the University of Naples in collaboration with the Universities of Sorbonne, Rome, Bologna, Trieste (Institute of Geopolitics/School of Foreign Politics and Diplomacy), Benevento and Novara, etc. Hebelongs to the “Auditeurs” of “Fondation Mediterraneen d’Etudes Strategiques/IHEDN”(République Française, établissement sous la tutelle du IHEDN).
Researches collaborations: He has collaborated with and taught at “Ιnstitut des Hautes Etudes pour la DefenceNationale/FMES”, (République Française, 1948, Etablissement Public administratif, aupresdu Premier ministre de la Republique). Ioannis Th. Mazis has been a member of the Examinations Committee in the subject field of World Geography at the Diplomatic Academy of the Hellenic Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He has worked closely with Professors of Mideastern Universities, in putting together several seminars. The themes included Middle East issues, security in the South Eastern Mediterranean, Israel and the Palestinian Intifada with Professor Amikam Nachmani. He participated in academic conferences as a guest speaker of Professor Efraim Inbar, Director of BESA Center of Strategic Studies at the Bar Ilan University. He has also participated as a speaker in several Seminars at “The S. Daniel Abraham Center for International and Regional Studies” of Tel Aviv University in collaboration with Professor David Menashri. He participated also in five high level seminars at the “China Institute of International and Strategic Studies/CIISS” in Beijing (China) and in Athens (Greece). He is a Fellow of the “Royal Society of Arts” of London, U.K. (F.R.S.A.– est. 1754). He collaborate (with official MOU) with: i) the “Fondation Mediterranéenne des Hautes Études Stratégiques/FMES”, France ii) the “Institute of Europe” of the Russian Academy of Sciences/Moscow/Russian Federationand iii) Institute of International Politics and Economics/Belgrade/Serbia. He collaborated with “Avrasya Enstitüsü” at Istanbul University, and with “Hazar Strategı Enstitüsü”, Turkey (2014). In 2003 he was invited to participate in the “International Visitors Leadership Programme” as a guest of the U.S. Department of State.
