Industrial & Supply Chain Management, DePaul University, Chicago

My Fulbright Visiting Scholar experience at DePaul University in Chicago was an academically productive and intellectually formative period, allowing me not only to advance my research, but also to rethink how academic collaboration and applied research can respond more directly to real-world problems. [...] A particularly valuable part of the experience was the opportunity to hold collaborative discussions with drone experts, which is something I had not previously had the chance to do in Greece. These exchanges helped strengthen the practical grounding of my research and made me more attentive to a question I now consider central, i.e., whether a methodological contribution is not only rigorous, but also usable by the people who face the decision problem in practice.

During my stay in Chicago, I also attended several academic and professional events, including the DePaul Symposium for AI in Business, and seminars hosted at Loyola University Chicago. These events exposed me to current developments in applied analytics, artificial intelligence, operations research, and supply chain decision-making, while also showing how closely academic research and industry practice can interact when addressing contemporary logistics challenges. A separate and memorable part of my Fulbright experience was participating in the
Spring 2026 Philadelphia Scholar Seminar. The seminar offered a different kind of academic and cultural exchange, bringing together Fulbright scholars from diverse disciplines and countries. It broadened my understanding of the Fulbright mission by highlighting not only research excellence, but also intercultural dialogue, mutual understanding, and the role of scholars as bridges between academic communities.

Beyond the immediate research outcomes, the Fulbright experience helped me establish multiple new professional contacts within my field, with additional connections formed through the Fulbright seminar. I intend to maintain collaboration with my U.S. host beyond the grant period, with the aim of continuing our research exchange and developing future work on logistics, humanitarian operations, and decision support methods. Upon my return, I also hope to translate part of this experience into teaching material for existing supply chain management courses at the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), in coordination with my NTUA supervisors. This may include case-based discussions on humanitarian logistics, drone-enabled emergency response and the connection between analytical models and practitioner decision-making.

Overall, my Fulbright experience strengthened my research, expanded my international academic network, and reshaped the way I approach research problems. I am grateful to Fulbright Greece for enabling this valuable experience, which will continue to influence my work.