Professor

Ataturk University, Turkey

Prof. Dr. Engin Kurşun currently serves as the Vice Dean of Atatürk University’s Open Education Faculty, which offers educational opportunities to over 400,000 students. From October 1, 2023, to June 17, 2024, he undertook a nine-month research and teaching visit at the University of Oldenburg and the Center for Open Education Research (COER). The primary objectives of his visit were to explore strategies for Open Educational Practices (OEP) sustainability, observe their practical impacts, and expand his professional network within the field.

During his stay, Dr. Kurşun delivered undergraduate and graduate-level courses focused on OER and conducted in-depth research on OER sustainability. This visit provided him with valuable opportunities to deepen his understanding of sustainable OER practices, enhance professional collaborations, and gain insights into the implementation of innovative strategies for OER development. His visit was supported by funding from The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye (TÜBİTAK) 2219 program and the guest lectureship program at the University of Oldenburg.

Postdoctoral Researcher

Duhok Polytechnic University, Iraq

Karwan Al-Dosakee is currently the Director of Professional Development and Researcher at Duhok Polytechnic University, specializing in Educational Technologies with a particular emphasis on Digital Transformation and Assistive Technologies and HCI in Higher Education. During his visit to the University of Oldenburg and COER from November 18, 2024, to December 15, 2024, he aimed to collaborate on conducting a comparative study on research governance, and institutional excellence in the German higher education system and exchange expertise on OER policies as part of a DAAD German Academic Exchange Service funded project under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Olaf Zawacki-Richter.

During his stay, he engaged in intensive academic activities including data collection and conducting interviews with inspiring individuals at the University of Oldenburg for the proposed research project. This visit provided valuable opportunities for expanding his understanding of University of Excellence Clusters, Research Governance, Funding Models, Open Access, and strategies for achieving academic excellence. It also opened pathways for changeover to the research infrastructure and innovation at Duhok Polytechnic University and the other KRG public universities in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq.