Professor Luk Van Wassenhove is a pioneer in the area of humanitarian operations. He strives to close the loop between theory and practice by: (i) finding relevant problems in the practice of humanitarian operations, (ii) using rigorous research methods to gain insights on these problems, (iii) publishing his findings in peer-reviewed outlets, pedagogical case studies and other publications, and (iv) giving back to practice through implementable recommendations. Luk is also very generous with his time and contributes actively to strengthen the research community.