11th May 2026
The Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction Bill: turning a global ocean agreement into UK law
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
9th April 2026
The Gulf, Berlin and the Commission on the Status of Women: building global alliances to advance women’s progress
26th February 2026
Different Memories, Shared Futures: Why Inclusive Remembrance Matters for Serbia and the Region
23rd March 2016
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Fifty Anglican years at the Vatican
March 1966 saw an historic visit to the Vatican, the first official visit by an Archbishop of Canterbury since – incredibly – Thomas Arundel in 1398. Rightly, it will be much celebrated during the year ahead. The visit had been made possible by the Second Vatican Council, which formally opened up the Roman Catholic Church […]
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22nd March 2016 Skopje, North Macedonia
Dialogue and Democracy – the Value of Magna Carta for Contemporary Times
On 15 June 2015, the United Kingdom marked the 800th anniversary of the sealing of the Magna Carta Libertatum, one of the most significant legal documents ever written. “No freeman shall be taken, or imprisoned, or outlawed, or exiled, or in any way harmed, nor will we go upon him nor will we send upon […]
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22nd March 2016 British High Commission, Kingston, Jamaica
Women, Leadership & Unconscious Bias
I am in my eighth week of my internship at the British High Commission in Kingston, and International Women’s Day was March 8th. The theme for this year is focused on a pledge for parity. Even though women’s representation in our Parliament continues to be below 25%, gender parity is an under-discussed issue in Jamaica. That […]
22nd March 2016 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
Shakespeare’s Hamlet for Refugees in Djibouti
By Ruth Bradley-Jones Can you imagine two journeys more different? That of 3000 Yemeni refugees http://ow.ly/ZNIbB fleeing conflict in their homeland across the 30 mile stretch of water to the dessert in Djibouti; and the 260,000 miles and 160 countries travelled by the London company of the Shakespeare’s global tour of Hamlet http://ow.ly/ZNP11. But in […]
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21st March 2016 Geneva, Switzerland
Dungeons and Dragons
Sorry for last week’s silence. A bout of family flu and some absent colleagues kept me busier than usual but thankfully everyone’s fine again. The middle two weeks of the Council session have been typically frantic with everyone trying to work out the version of their resolutions to table which they hope will attract the […]
21st March 2016 Geneva, Switzerland
The Syrian Conflict Comes to Geneva
The Syrian conflict is the source of the most immediate threats now facing the United Kingdom and Europe. Dealing with it has become the most important agenda in Geneva. Our citizens have travelled to the conflict and came back radicalised and ready to commit acts of terrorism. Regional rivals have been drawn into the conflict […]
17th March 2016 Hanoi, Vietnam
GREAT British Food and Drinks Festival in Vietnam
Although I sometimes watch cookery contests like Master Chef on TV, I never imagined I would take part in one. But life is full of surprises. And on Monday, instead of chairing the usual start-the-week meeting at the Embassy, I was at Hanoi’s famous Metropole Hotel rolling up my sleeves, putting on an apron, and […]
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16th March 2016 London, UK
Celebrating Northern Ireland
This week, we and other British Embassies around the world are celebrating Northern Ireland! Northern Ireland is a successful part of the UK, thriving economically and culturally. Check out the hashtag #NIFacts for lots of interesting details. Amongst my own favourite facts: Northern Irish capital Belfast is the #1 destination globally for financial technology investments; […]
16th March 2016 Beirut, Lebanon
Five years of War in Syria: how international support for Lebanon is changing
It has been five years since the Syria conflict began. Five years of barrel bombs, mass executions and disappearances. Five years of people being forced from their homes because they fear for their lives. And for many of those who fled to Lebanon, what they expected to be a temporary move has become a painful […]
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16th March 2016 Asuncion, Paraguay
Paraguay Hackathon discovers young talent
I recently attended my first Hakathon in Asuncion. It was an enjoyable and fascinating experience. The event was organised by the Embassy in association with a local NGO, the Centro de Estudios Ambientales y Sociales (CEAMSO). The competition brought together some 40 young people divided into 14 teams. They were tasked with finding innovative solutions […]
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