Kate Walker is an External Lecturer at the Chair of East Asian Economy and Society at the University of Vienna. In addition, she provides regular input to Executive Training Programs for diplomats and public officials at the Diplomatic Academy of Vienna and delivers specialized training for international organizations based in the Austrian capital.

Kate is currently completing her PhD in Music at the University of Sheffield which focuses on kumi-daiko (ensemble taiko drumming) in the UK. She has performed and undertaken extensive fieldwork in Europe, North America and Japan and pays particular attention to the formation of communities of practice and the use of kumi-daiko as an instrument of soft power by nation states. She is an active member of the International Council for Traditional Music's Study Group on Music, Gender and Sexuality.

Prior to her doctoral studies, Kate completed an MA in World Music Studies at the University of Sheffield and an MA (Hons) in American Studies at the University of Edinburgh. She previously worked as Education Adviser for the British Council (the UK's international organization for cultural relations) where she convened courses for staff around the world. She has also worked for the University of Edinburgh, University of Strathclyde and Southampton Solent University where she sought to widen access to higher education among under-represented groups.