26 June 2023
Top award for outstanding graduate
An alumni from the School of Politics and Economics was honoured for the exceptional progress he has made since graduating from King’s.
Kaloyan Konstantinov received the Emerging Leader Award at this year’s King’s Distinguished Alumni Awards, which celebrate those who have made outstanding contributions in personal, social or professional spheres since leaving the university. The award recognises a recent King’s graduate who has exhibited exceptional success or rapid progression within their chosen profession, and come to be recognised as a ‘rising star’.
Kaloyan graduated from King’s in 2018 with an MA in Middle Eastern Studies from the Department of Middle Eastern Studies.
According to his awards citation, journalist Kaloyan has produced award-winning coverage of the Ukrainian war and protests in Iran, amongst other world-changing events. Last year, the impact of his work saw him recognised in Forbes magazine’s prestigious ‘30 under 30’. In 2022, Kaloyan developed the Intercultural Media Academy, designed to train and bring together youth from the Middle East and Europe interested in disinformation, ethical leadership and foreign policy.
Kaloyan received his award alongside other distinguished alumni at a ceremony held on 22 June. You can read more here.
Jeroen Gunning, Professor of Middle Eastern Politics and Conflict Studies at King’s, presented Kaloyan’s award.
He said: “It was an honour to present Kaloyan with this richly deserved award. Kaloyan has both provided unique coverage of the Middle East, going beyond the headlines to people’s everyday lives, and is equipping youth from the Middle East and Europe with the skills to navigate (dis)information and report ethically.
“He told me that he could not have produced the award-winning coverage without the area and methodological expertise he gained in the MA, underlining the importance of area expertise at King’s.”