Politics

With the (former) Trump administration’s sustained attempts to retract the US from its prominent role in multilateralism and China increasing efforts to extend its soft and hard power, the old balance of power has begun to shift. Let’s add to the equation a growingly assertive Russia, a struggling but always more integrated EU and the rise of tech companies worth more than many countries’ GDP, and we should have all the ingredients for an animated discussion.

NEIL BUSH

Neil Bush is Her Majesty’s Ambassador to the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) – the world’s largest regional security organisation covering 57 participating States, including the US, Russia, EU countries and the UK. Prior to this role, he was responsible for the Gulf, Iran and Yemen in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Mr Bush started his career in the Bank of England and has worked for the World Bank, including in the Western Balkans, as well as the private sector and as Head Energy Economist for the UK government. Mr Bush has a BA at University of Oxford in Philosophy, Politics and Economics and a Master’s Degree from Columbia University and the London School of Economics.

DR JODY LAPORTE

Dr. Jody LaPorte is the Gonticas Fellow and Tutorial Fellow in Politics & International Relations at Lincoln College. Her research investigates the dynamics of politics and policymaking in post-Soviet Eurasia. Her work seeks to better understand politics in authoritarian regimes. She completed her undergraduate degree at Yale University, and her MA and PhD at the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to coming to Lincoln, she was a lecturer at the Blavatnik School of Government and Oxford’s Department of Politics & International Relations, and a fellow at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, a leading think tank in Washington, DC.

JELANI MUNROE

Jelani is a DPhil student in Geography, having previously completed an MPhil in Development Studies. He studies the political economy of austerity, with a current research focus on the implications of economic austerity on politics, public services, and the justice system in Jamaica. Before coming to Oxford, he completed a B.A in Economics and Public Policy at Stanford University, with interdisciplinary honours in Democracy, Development and the Rule of Law.

NICCOLO AYLWARD

Niccolo Aylward is in his third year of study for an undergraduate degree in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics at Lincoln College. He co-founded and helped run the Coronavirus Tutoring Initiative together with other Lincoln students in response to the school closures and educational disruption cause by the Covid-19 pandemic. Niccolo will be the first JCR member to chair a Lincoln Leads panel.