15 May Introducing BFPG’s Associate Fellows
The British Foreign Policy Group is delighted to announce the appointment of five new Associate Fellows.
As the UK’s leading think tank focused on the intersection between foreign and domestic policy, we believe that effective foreign policy decision-making requires diverse insights and expertise. Specialists with knowledge spanning key regions and disciplines, our new Fellows will help expand and strengthen BFPG’s knowledge and expertise as we continue to grow.
Dr Mafalda Dâmaso, Visiting Fellow at the European University Institute and Visiting Research Fellow at King’s College London
Dr Mafalda Dâmaso is an academic whose work focuses on EU cultural and media policy and its intersection with diplomacy. Currently, she works as Principal Investigator for Erasmus University Rotterdam on REBOOT, a Horizon Europe project focused on the competitiveness of the European film industry. She is also a Visiting Fellow at the Robert Schuman Centre of the European University Institute. Previously, among other experiences, Mafalda worked with or for the Centre on Public Diplomacy of the University of Southern California, the German Institute for Foreign Cultural Relations, the European Parliament, and the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission. Based in London, she is also a Member of the UK Council of Creative UK, Senior Media Policy Advisor of the UK Coalition for Cultural Diversity, and a Member of the Scientific Council of the Portuguese Association of Researchers and Students in the UK.
James Jennion, Co-Executive Director at Labour Campaign for Human Rights
James Jennion is the Co-director of the Labour Campaign for Human Rights and works in transnational campaign strategy at a leading international human rights organisation. He previously worked as an adviser to the Foreign Affairs Select Committee, where he managed the Committee’s inquiries into human rights violations in Xinjiang and Myanmar, and worked as a senior political affairs adviser to UNICEF UK, where he managed political advocacy around the UK’s response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He is Chair of the China Working Group of the Labour Foreign Policy Group, and his foreign policy analysis has been published in various outlets and cited in parliamentary, congressional, and governmental reports. He is an incoming part-time PhD candidate at the University of Leeds, where his project will focus on the UK and China’s human rights diplomacy in the Indo-Pacific.
Michael Martins, Founding Partner at Overton Advisory, and former Economic and Political Specialist at the U.S. Department of State
Michael Martins is a founding partner at Overton Advisory, a public affairs, communications, and geostrategy company. Prior to founding Overton, Michael spent six years working for the State Department at the US Embassy in London, translating UK domestic and foreign policy into their effect on US interests while implementing the foreign policy priorities of Presidents Trump and Biden. He has spent nearly a decade writing for The Economist’s forecasting arm, the Economist Intelligence Unit, covering the UK, US, Russian, EU, and Chinese foreign and domestic policy. Prior to these roles, he worked for the Institute of Directors’ Policy Unit and for politicians in the UK, US, and Canada. He holds an MSc from the London School of Economics and an MA and BA from York University.
Mohamed Cassimjee, Geopolitical Analyst and Consultant, and former Deputy Ambassador of South Africa to Germany
Mohamed Cassimjee was a senior diplomat for South Africa for over 26 years. He served as Deputy Ambassador to Germany from 2016-2020, and prior to that served abroad in Washington DC, Uganda and Senegal. He has served in various positions at the Department of International Relations including: Director of the African Union; German Speaking Countries/Nordics/Baltics; Latin America/Caribbean and the European Union. Prior to joining the foreign service, he was an Advocate (Barrister) in South Africa. He is a mentor at the Blavatnik School of Government and a Research Associate at the Centre for African Studies at Oxford University. He is also a Director at the SA Chamber of Commerce UK. He has consulted and presented on geopolitics to government, business chambers, risk consultancies and academia in the UK. He has also written for the South African Institute of International Affairs (SAIIA) and for Chatham House.
Aryan Sanghrajka, Founder and Managing Director of Forced to Flee and UNHCR Global Young Champion for Refugees
Aryan is an award-winning young leader for refugees, migration & human rights. At the age of 14, he founded Forced To Flee, a global non-profit organisation advocating for the rights of refugees around the world. Aryan was named best Human Rights & Refugee Organisation MD at the SME News Awards 2023. He is also a UNHCR Young Champion for Refugees and awarded the 2023 UNHCR Advocacy Award for his efforts. Aryan also was Alternatives to Detention Specialist at the UN Major Group for Children & Youth Migration Constituency, and now serves as an elected member of the Executive Team and GCM Lead. Aryan has represented youth at the 78th Session of the UN General Assembly, 2023 SDG Summit and Global Refugee Forum, giving interventions in front of Heads of State & Government. On a domestic level, he is a member of the UN Association – United Kingdom’s Finance & Governance Committee.
