3rd December 2024
RENEWING OLD TIES: THE NEW BISHOP OF LONDON
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office Blogs
A unique insight into UK foreign and development policy
25th November 2024
The climate crisis and gender-based violence
8th November 2024
Ecolabels: A Catalyst for Sustainable Food Choices?
15th November 2017 Vienna, Austria
Lady Nugent: portrait of purity
One of the most beautiful, and enigmatic, artworks in the British Embassy in Vienna is Anne Lucy Grenville, Lady Nugent, by the renowned portrait painter Sir Thomas Lawrence. It dates from 1813, around the time that Anne Lucy Poulett (her maiden name), aged 23, married George Nugent Grenville, second Baron Nugent of Carlanstown. The portrait […]
14th November 2017 Santiago, Chile
UK and Chile, Two Maritime Nations Betting to Protect the Ocean
With 3 000 miles of coastline, anything to do with the sea is important for Chile. Chile is showing a growing interest and leadership on many ocean issues including marine research and conservation, sustainable fisheries and security. Foreign Minister Heraldo Muñoz personally led Chile’s initiative to host the international ‘Our Ocean’ conference in Oct 2015 […]
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14th November 2017
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Britain in Constanta
The story of how the United Kingdom played a central role in the building of the city of Constanta has its origins in the Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s and the growing realisation that the British Isles were no longer self–sufficient in food. Across Western Europe other governments were grappling with similar challenges of […]
8th November 2017 Montreal, Canada
Virtual Reality: A whole other world
Forget sitting on your couch watching a flat screen. The next generation of audiovisual hardware puts you right in the action! Wearing a headset you are completely immersed in a virtual world that you can interact with. But this new technology can be applied to far more than video games or entertainment. We recently brought […]
8th November 2017 Vienna, Austria
Why I wear a poppy
Several Austrian friends have asked me recently why I am wearing a small, red flower – a poppy – on my jacket lapel. It’s because the United Kingdom together with other Commonwealth nations will commemorate Remembrance Day on November 11th, the day in 1918 which marked the end of hostilities in the First World War. […]
8th November 2017 Tripoli, Libya
Corruption, Crime and Complacency
Corruption is the scourge of countries trying to lift themselves out of poverty. Around the world, politicians and officials are putting their hands in the till and stealing their country’s wealth. Their actions benefit narrow, powerful elites by allowing them to cream off cash and benefits and favour their friends, family and fellow felons. Their […]
8th November 2017 Vienna, Austria
Vienna – London: Extremes of Good and Bad Luck
The youngest of the four men is 82. He left when he was four years old. The oldest is 98. They cheerfully sign autographs and chat about their experiences. I’m at the launch in Vienna of a terrific book: Vienna – London: Passage to Safety: Emigré portraits in photographs and words, edited by Austrian photographer […]
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6th November 2017 Vienna, Austria
How to stop the illegal trade in wildlife – in Vienna
The pictures are grisly. A black rhino lies slumped, its head a mass of blood and gore. A rotting elephant carcass is hunched in the savannah, torn and ripped by scavengers. #ICYMI @BrentStirton named #WPY53 Wildlife Photographer of the Year for the powerful Memorial to a species. #rhino #photography @NHM_WPY pic.twitter.com/qM1fmF0scf — NHM Images (@NHM_Images) […]
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6th November 2017 Tel Aviv, Israel
The Environment Knows No Borders: A Tour of the Gaza-Israeli Border with EcoPeace
Last week the British Government’s Science and Innovation Network in Israel joined a tour of the trans-boundary water hot-spots along the shared border of Gaza and Israel. The tour was run by EcoPeace, a Middle East organization that brings together Jordanian, Palestinian and Israeli environmentalists with the primary objective of promoting cooperative efforts to protect […]
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3rd November 2017 Vienna, Austria
Sir Neville Marriner Memorial Concert, 14 November 2017
One year ago, I attended with my mother a concert in Vienna by the Academy of St Martin in the Fields. It was a sombre occasion. The concert had been due to be conducted by the founder of the Academy, Sir Neville Marriner, aged 92. But tragically, the great musician had died in his sleep, […]
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