14 Mar Women Shaping Global Politics
The British Foreign Policy Group and our sister organisations British Expertise International (BEI) and the D Group, are delighted to host an expert panel of ‘Women Shaping Global Politics’. With the rise of AI, conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the growing threat of climate change, the future of global politics looks increasingly uncertain.
This event will bring together a panel of leading female foreign policy voices from across Westminster to discuss their expectations for the future of global politics, and draw on their experiences to explore how we can meet some of the challenges that this changing global environment will create.
DETAILS
DATE: Tuesday, 26th March 2024
TIME: 17.30 – 19.30
LOCATION: 23 Grafton St, Mayfair, W1S 4EY
The conversation itself will run from 17.30 – 18.30 and will be followed by a drinks reception. If you have any accessibility requirements, please let us know at hello@bfpg.co.uk.
REGISTER HERE
SPEAKERS
Elisabeth Bowes
Elisabeth is Deputy High Commissioner of Australia to the UK. Prior to coming to the UK in January 2023, she was First Assistant Secretary and Chief Negotiator of the Free Trade Agreements and Stakeholder Division at the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. In this role, she led negotiations for Australia of the Australia-UK FTA. Elisabeth has held many senior posts within DFAT, including at the Australian Embassy in Washington DC, during which she oversaw bilateral trade relations between the US and Australia, as well as broader trade policy issues, climate change and energy issues, infrastructure and transportation, and was Counsellor to Australia’s Permanent Mission to the WTO in Geneva. Elisabeth has a Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Laws from the University of Queensland, and a Master of Philosophy in International Relations from the University of Oxford.
Dr Karin von Hippel
Dr von Hippel is Director-General of the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI). Karin joined RUSI in 2015 after serving for nearly six years in the US Department of State as a Senior Adviser in the Bureau of Counterterrorism, then as a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, and finally, as Chief of Staff to the Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Counter-ISIL. Prior to that, she co-directed the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at the CSIS in Washington DC, and was a senior research fellow at the Centre for Defence Studies, King’s College London. She has worked for the UN and the EU in Somalia and Kosovo, and has direct experience in over two dozen conflict zones. She holds a PhD from LSE, an MSt from Oxford University, and a BA from Yale University.
Michelle Howard
Michelle serves as a Strategic Policy Adviser and the Space Working Group lead at the D Group. Her early career spanned a number of operationally sensitive government programmes across the Middle East, Southeast Asia and East Africa. She moved into the private sector in 2009, establishing Babcock International Group’s regional business in Abu Dhabi. In 2012, Michelle took over as Serco Middle East’s director for new defence business. Since moving to the United Kingdom in 2016, she has served as an independent consultant in business intelligence, policy research, and government affairs for defence and space sectors. Michelle is an accomplished linguist, speaking fluent Arabic and German as well as conversational French, Thai and Swahili. She holds a BA in Political Studies, from the American University of Beirut, Lebanon, and a MSc in Violence, Conflict and Development at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. She is currently a PhD Candidate at King’s College, London in the Defence Studies Department.
Evie Aspinall
Evie Aspinall is the Director of the British Foreign Policy Group. Her primary research interests are domestic consent for foreign policy, the UK’s role in the world and challenges posed by the UK’s strategic rivals. Evie holds a BA from the University of Cambridge and an MSc from King’s College London. She has previously worked at UN Women UK and the Future Leaders Network and was formerly the UK Head Delegate to the Youth7, the G7’s official youth engagement group. She also served as President of Cambridge University Students’ Union. She is a regular commentator in the media on issues pertinent to UK foreign policy.
