Merlyna Lim

Merlyna Lim is a scholar, author, and artist, and a Canada Research Professor at Carleton University. Born and raised in Dayeuhkolot, an industrial slum in Bandung, Indonesia, she is now based in Ottawa and works internationally across research, creative practice, and public scholarship. She directs the ALiGN Media Lab, where she examines technology, power, and social justice through interdisciplinary and creative approaches. Her books include Social Media and Politics in Southeast Asia (2024) and Hands: Medium and Massage (2020). She was inducted into the Royal Society of Canada's College of New Scholars, Artists, and Scientists in 2016, won the 2017 Jackson's Art International Urban Sketching Contest, and received the 2025 Heritage Ottawa Cullingham Grant.