David Bandurski
David Bandurski is a founding member and contributor at The Decoding China Project. His work focuses on media, public diplomacy and civil society. He is also Executive Director of the China Media Project, an independent research organisation based in Taiwan that specialises in the study of Chinese-language media and the discourse of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) both within the PRC and globally. His books include Dragons in Diamond Village (Penguin/MelvilleHouse), a work of reportage on urban development in China, and Investigative Journalism in China.
Katja Drinhausen
Katja Drinhausen is a founding member, contributor and co-managing director at The Decoding China Project. Her work focuses on China’s political, legal and governance system, including digital development and human rights. She also heads the research programme on Chinese politics and society at the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS), which she joined in 2018. She previously worked as a researcher and project coordinator for the Hanns Seidel Foundation in Beijing, organising political and academic exchange with Chinese partner institutions. Katja studied Sinology as well as Chinese and international law, receiving her LL.M. from China University of Political Science and Law.
Jerker Hellström
Jerker Hellström is a founding member and contributor at The Decoding China Project. His work focuses on investment, trade, and security. During 2024, he served as China Fellow with IDEA, the advisory hub that reports to the European Commission president. Having held senior roles at Sweden’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs and the Swedish Defence Research Agency, Jerker was Director of the industry-backed Swedish Center for China Studies. A journalist by training, Jerker worked as a Reuters correspondent in Shanghai and Stockholm until 2008.
Malin Oud
Malin Oud is a founding member, contributor and co-managing director at The Decoding China Project. Her work focuses on Global China, international law, human rights, and development cooperation. Malin is currently Senior Advisor at the Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights and Humanitarian Law, having initially joined the Institute in 2001 as Director of its Beijing Office. Additionally, Malin serves as vice chair in the Swedish Expert Group for Aid Studies (EBA) and on several advisory boards, including the Mercator Institute for China Studies (MERICS). She studied Chinese language, Chinese law and international human rights law in Lund, Kunming, and London, and has an MA in International Development from Melbourne University.
Marina Rudyak
Marina Rudyak is a founding member, contributor and co-managing director at The Decoding China Project. Her work focuses on Global China, development cooperation, international relations, and global governance. She is currently an Assistant Professor in Chinese Studies at Heidelberg University and a Principal Investigator in the Horizon Europe project Detecting and Countering Information Suppression from a Transnational Perspective (De-Conspirator). Previously, she worked for the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) in Beijing and Bishkek. Marina studied Modern and Classical Chinese Studies and Public Law in Heidelberg and Shanghai, and holds an MA and PhD in Chinese Studies from Heidelberg University.
