17th July 2025
Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
15th July 2025
International Day of Women in Diplomacy: UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls visit to Geneva
1st May 2025
The UN Commission on the Status of Women: My first visit as UK Special Envoy for Women and Girls
26th February 2013 Bucharest, Romania
AKCEES-ing entrepreneurship is GREAT
Entrepreneurship is one of those key words business people bring up a lot these days. And it is easy to understand why. Jobs for the ever-increasing unemployed youths, creativity, innovation, and competitive edges that can bring more dynamism to Romania’s business landscape – these are just of a few of the arguments that are put […]
25th February 2013 Washington DC, USA
The Biggest Computer I’ve Ever Seen, and Why Sometimes 0 and 1 Just Ain’t Enough
When you work in international scientific collaboration, you sometimes take inspiration from bizarre sources. Like this 2008 Gonzales song “Working Together”: Last week, I had a UK high-performance computing group with me in DC, Pittsburgh and Chicago, and couldn’t get the song out of my head. The US Science and Innovation Network runs a lot […]
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25th February 2013 Washington DC, USA
And the Band Plays on… Tour to the South
The following is a guest blog by Major Andrew Halliday from the Black Watch. Major Halliday is currently taking part in the Pipes and Drums of The Black Watch and the Military Band of the Scots Guards 2013 US tour. This is his second post as they head towards the Carolinas and Texas. The Black […]
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25th February 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The Olympic Flame burns bright in Romania
I was in Poiana Brasov last week to support Team GB at the European Youth Olympic Winter Festival. I spent two days on the slopes, and brought my three daughters along too to watch the figure skating – their favourite sport. For many of the young British athletes and their coaches this was their first […]
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25th February 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Istanbul: bridges, tunnels, airports and – maybe – Olympics
Two vast bridges spans a picturesque strait. Nearby, engineers are completing a rail tunnel which, like the bridges, will link Europe and Asia. A third bridge is under construction. A road tunnel is planned, together with a brand-new airport which, with a capacity of 150 million passengers, will be the world’s largest. Welcome to Istanbul. […]
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25th February 2013 Geneva, Switzerland
Showtime
Anyone who has been through a March session of the Human Rights Council knows that you never come out it of quite the same person as you go in. While the rest of the year’s meetings are important, seasoned Council goers will tell you that March is special. It’s the main event; the Saturday night […]
25th February 2013 Beirut, Lebanon
Invitation to a Virtual Dinner: Can Lebanon Skip a Tech Generation?
Earlier this month I posted some futuristic thoughts on what Lebanon could be in 2020. Much more interesting than the speculation in the post was the response. The almost 300 comments so far give a good sense of current debate in Lebanon: idealism, cynicism, fatalism, frustration. Some seek to apportion blame, many to identify practical […]
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25th February 2013 New Delhi, India
PM’s visit heralds new Indo-UK research and innovation initiatives
In the words of UK Prime Minister David Cameron, the ‘sky is the limit’ for UK-India partnership and this was evident throughout his visit to India (18-20 Feb 2013). The PM’s delegation included David Willetts, Minister of State for Universities and Science, and a host of Vice Chancellors (VCs) from some of the UK’s leading […]
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25th February 2013 Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Bread
One of the things all foreigners in Uzbekistan learn about is the local bread – non, or lipyoshka in Russian. There are regional variations, but all on the same theme of a circle of bread with a crisp, flattened centre and a thick rim. Bread, we are told, is an inescapable part of every meal: […]
25th February 2013 London, UK
“Ignite Your Future!”
Before choosing that slogan for the latest Education UK Exhibition here in Brunei, and the dramatic logo which went with it, we discussed what it meant. Some of us thought it sounded too incendiary. Then some bright spark recalled that the I-Centre had pioneered use of the word “ignite” for their excellent “Business Plan” competition. […]