Mandate: 2024 - 2026
President
Dr. Mihaela Pavličev
University of Vienna
Mihaela Pavličev is evolutionary biologist with a wide range of interests. After finishing her PhD in Ecology at the University of Vienna, she took several postdoctoral positions in molecular phylogenetics and evolutionary quantitative genetics (Vienna Natural History Museum, Universities in St. Louis and Oslo, Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition in Altenberg). In 2013 she was recruited as faculty to the University of Cincinnati Medical School/ Cincinnati Children`s Hospital in Ohio, and returned to the University of Vienna in December 2019, as a full professor for Theoretical Evolutionary Biology in the Department of Evolutionary Biology. Pavlicev`s work focuses at the interface between the organismal structure (its physiology and development) and evolutionary change. This fascinating field touches both on explanations of how the patterns of organismal diversity beyond species arise, as well as why the populations vary along the very specific patterns, thereby also addressing the patterns of pathological variation, i.e., disease. Pavlicev applies both theory as well as empirical research, using vertebrate reproduction as her main system of expertise.
The SMUL Council Members
Dr. Veronika Fikfak
International Law at University College London, School of Public Policy
Dr. Veronika Fikfak is a Full Professor in Human Rights and International Law at University College London, School of Public Policy and a co-Director of the UCL Institute for Human Rights. Veronika leads a team of six researchers on the ERC project Human Rights Nudge, which looks at how states respond to judgments of the European Court of Human Rights. She is currently working with the Department of Executions in Strasbourg on incorporating insights from this project into policy recommendations to 46 states of the Council of Europe. She is a managing editor of the American Journal of International Law Unbound and sits on the Board of the European Society of International Law. She also serves as a judge ad hoc at the European Court of Human Rights. Dr Fikfak’s research interests lie in the fields of international law, human rights, and public law. Her current research focuses on reparations for human rights violations, compliance with international norms, interaction of domestic and international law, and system design. She employs quantitative and qualitative approaches in her work, informed by psychology and behavioural economics. Her work has been funded by the European Research Council, UK’s ESRC Future Research Leaders Grant, the British Academy, Norway’s Research Council, Carlsberg Foundation, and the Humboldt Foundation. She has published articles in European Journal of International Law, American Journal of International Law, and International Journal of Constitutional Law, among others.
Dr. Uroš Seljak
University of California, Berkeley
Dr. Uroš Seljak, is a Professor of Astronomy and Physics at the University of California, Berkeley, where he has been a faculty member since 2008, with a joint appointment at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL). He earned his B.S. in 1989 and M.S. in 1991 from the University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and completed his PhD at MIT in 1995. He held a Smithsonian Fellowship at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics from 1995 to 1998 before joining the faculty at Princeton University, ICTP Trieste, and Zurich University. He is a recipient of Warner Prize (2001), Gruber Prize (2021), Packard Fellowship (2000), Sloan Fellowship (2001), NSF CAREER Award (2002) and APS Fellowship (2013). He is a member of American National Academy of Science (2019) and of American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2024). In 2023 he received honorary doctorate from University of Ljubljana. In 2022 he established Dr. Uros Seljak Prize for the best research paper by a Slovenian undergraduate student. As a theoretical cosmologist, Seljak’s research focuses on extracting the fundamental properties of the universe through cosmological observations. The standard cosmological model, which includes the Big Bang, inflation, dark matter, and dark energy, forms the basis of much of his work, though he explores alternative theories such as dynamic dark energy and the cyclic universe. His research addresses key questions regarding the nature of dark energy and dark matter, the origins of cosmic structures, the future of the universe, and the properties of neutrinos. Through his work, Seljak aims to deepen our understanding of the universe’s evolution and composition.
Prof. dr. Boštjan Markoli
University of Ljubljana
Boštjan Markoli is a full professor in the field of physical metallurgy at the Faculty of Natural Sciences and Engineering at the University of Ljubljana (UL NTF), where he received his PhD in 2000. He is engaged in the characterisation and development of new metallic materials. In the 1990s he perfected his skills by collaborating with the Technical University of Munich in the development of alloys for the Airbus 320 and the Audi A6. In 2010 he was a visiting researcher at NTNU in Trondheim, Norway, as a Norwegian Government Fellow, and as a Fulbright Fellow he worked at the University of California, Berkeley, USA, in 2011 and 2012. More recently, Prof. Dr. Markoli has collaborated with the Université de Lorraine in Nancy as a member of the associated laboratory PACS2, under the auspices of the French CNRS. At his home faculty, he has held several leadership positions and was also Dean of the UL NTF in 2017-21. He has gained experience in managing and evaluating the quality of services and processes in business as a member of supervisory boards in companies. He publishes the results of his research in prestigious scientific and professional publications, regularly participates in international scientific meetings and is a member of international professional associations. He was elected the Vice-Rector of the University of Ljubljana for internationalisation and quality, for a period from 1st October 2021 to 30th September 2025.
SMUL Secretary
Katja Cerar
University of Ljubljana
Katja Cerar completed her Bachelor's and Master's degree at the University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Sport. She began her career in the private sector as a project, health promotion and sports coordinator. She later continued her career in the public sector. Since 2015, she has been responsible for promotion and support activities for international students, cooperation with international partners and within international associations and networks. She actively participates in and coordinates the activities of the University of Ljubljana Global Alumni and Associate Network and the Rectors' Forum of Southeast Europe and Western Balkans.
List of leading representatives of SMUL in previous mandate periods
| No. | SMUL Leadership | Position |
| 1. | Dr. Zlatko Skrbiš | President SMUL (2015 - 2017) |
| 2. | Dr. Jernej Ule | The SMUL Council Member (2015 - 2017) |
| 3. | Dr. Manja Klemenčič | The SMUL Council Member (2015 - 2017) |
| 4. | Dr. Urška Velikonja | President SMU (2017-2019) |
| 5. | Dr. David Modic | The SMUL Council Member (2017 - 2019) |
| 6. | Dr. Zlatko Skrbiš | The SMUL Council Member (2017 - 2019) |
| 7. | Dr. Alenka Čopič | President SMU (2020 - 2022) |
| 8. | Dr. Mateja Jamnik | The SMUL Council Member (2020-2022) |
| 9. | Dr. Simon Sedej | The SMUL Council Member (2022 - 2022) |
| 10. | Dr. Klementina Fon Tacer | President SMU (2022 - 2024) |
| 11. | Dr. Mihaela Pavličev | The SMUL Council Member (2022 - 2024) |
| 12. | Dr. Boštjan Kobe | The SMUL Council Member (2022 - 2024) |