Markus Ziener is a professor of journalism at the Hochschule für Medien, Kommunikation und Wirtschaft (HMKW), University of Applied Sciences, in Berlin. He teaches political theories and economics, mass media, journalistic writing, and the history of the press. He is also the global affairs correspondent of the newspaper The Straits Times in Singapore and a regular contributor to the Neue Zürcher Zeitung and Deutschlandfunk/Deutschlandradio. Ziener is also a liaison lecturer at the Heinrich-Böll-Stiftung.

Between 2006 and 2012 Markus Ziener was Washington bureau chief of Handelsblatt, Germany's business daily. Prior to that he worked as a field reporter, covering the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. He has also served as Handelsblatt’s correspondent in Moscow (1994–1999) and Eastern Europe (1990–1994). From 1999 to 2001 he was foreign editor with the Financial Times Deutschland.

Originally from Darmstadt, Ziener obtained his Ph.D. in politics at the Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, examining financial crises and reforms in Poland. He also spent time at Duke University through a GMF fellowship for foreign journalists.

Jonas Parello-Plesner is a visiting fellow in GMF's Indo-Pacific program. His research focuses on Asia and China and relations with EU and the United States. Parello-Plesner has also worked at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) as a Senior Policy Fellow with a focus on European-Chinese relations.

Nicolas Bouchet is a visiting fellow based in GMF’s Berlin office, working closely with GMF’s Transatlantic Trusts in its efforts to support democracy and civil society in Eastern Europe. He conducts research on EU and US democracy promotion, with a particular focus on Russia and Eurasia (especially the countries of the EU’s Eastern Partnership). His research interests also include US foreign policy, democratization, and civil society.

Kristina Kausch is deputy managing director and senior fellow, GMF South. She is also GMF’s representative in Madrid. Her research focuses on Europe’s relations with its neighborhood and broader geopolitical trends in the Middle East.

Prior to joining GMF, she held positions with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Spanish think tank FRIDE, the Bertelsmann Foundation, and the German development cooperation agency GIZ. She has provided articles and commentary to a range of outlets including The New York Times, the Financial Times, The Guardian, Politico, El País, Middle East Eye, Der Tagesspiegel, and Süddeutsche Zeitung.